Summer Of The Feral Kitty

The first time I saw her was in June. She was small and very thin. Little grey and white female kitty. She was looking for food in the dumpster, behind our apartment building. As soon as she saw me, she took off running and hid in the bushes. Didn't see her again for several days.
I started putting out food and water out for her.
Never saw her eating it, but it was always gone the next day. Figured my cats could spare some food. They weren't starving.
About this time I bought my dog, Lucy. Two pound ball of fluff. She's a pomeranian. I would take Lucy outside in the evening to let her play. The cat started coming around and would watch Lucy, from a distance. Lucy wanted to play with her so bad, she could hardly stand it. Eventually, the cat came closer and they became the best of friends. They would rub all over each other, Lucy would clean her ears for her. This became a regular event every evening. Of course, I still couldn't get anywhere near her.
We started hearing the kittens about August. They were in the attic of our laundry room, which is attached to the carport. Momma kitty had gone up under the carport and found an opening around a stovepipe. I was frantic.
I found a ladder in the laundry room and poked my head up through an opening in the ceiling. Even with my flashlight, I couldn't see them.
A few weeks later they started coming out the opening around the stovepipe. Momma kitty had four babies. All the while, Lucy and momma kitty played every night. I would sneak a pet in, while she was eating. Sometimes she would take off, sometimes not. If I sat in my chair, she would rub against my legs, as long as I didn't touch her.
I ended up going into the furnace room to look for another access to the attic. I found one. Poked my head into the attic again and there they were. Four sweet little puffballs. Started putting food and water up there everyday. Little by little, they began to trust me.
One day I was able to grab two. A friend of mine adopted them the very next day. A few days later, I was able to rescue the other two. I ended up taking them to our local shelter. It's a no kill shelter, so I wasn't worried about them being euthanized. Had to pay twenty dollars a piece to surrender them, but it was worth every penny to know they would find good homes.
Now all I had to do was catch momma kitty. Not an easy job. I could pet her now, but I hadn't tried picking her up.
One evening, Lucy and momma kitty were at play, and I decided, tonight was the night. I picked her up by the back of the neck, supporting her lower body. She didn't struggle or hiss, just let me hold her. Silly me, I didn't have a pet carrier outside to put her in. Ran up to my mother's apartment and knocked on her door with my foot. Mom came to the door and I asked her to go down to my apartment and get my big pet carrier. Well, momma kitty took one look at my mother and the show was on. She started wiggling and trying to get loose. Turned her head around and bit my knuckle on my right hand. I let her go, thinking I'd never regain her trust. Had a nice half inch cut across my knuckle. Next day my finger looked like a sausage. Went to the doctor and ended up on antibiotics for ten days.
A few nights later, she did come back. Acted like nothing ever happened, so we continued are nightly playtime.
The weather was turning nasty by this time. Momma kitty would meow by my bedroom window at night. I went to the door several times and invited her in, but she still wasn't brave enough.
One night it began to snow. About one in the morning, I heard this big bang at my back door. Went to see what the commotion was and there was momma kitty, hanging from my screen door. She had jumped up onto it and was just hanging there.
She jumped down, I opened the door and coaxed her in. She still wasn't sure, but she didn't want to be out in the snow. Slept in my bedroom that night, warm and safe.
Next day I took her to our shelter. Told Jim that she was very scared and could be wild. Showed him my finger. He took her back to the isolation room and found her a cage. Said she was very calm and he didn't have any problems with her.
Checked on her a few days later. Seems Jim went to clean her cage and she went berzerk on him.
They ended up putting her in a foster home, so she could be socialized and realize not all people are bad. She was adopted a few months later.
After it was all done and over with, I realized I had spent six months trying to rescue this momma kitty and her babies. I didn't mind the time, money, or even the bite on my knuckle. What I do mind are people who abuse, abandon, or neglect their pets. I really don't understand how they sleep at night.