Feral cats deserve caretaking just as much as the kitties who live with us; they are often victims of abandonment, accidental loss, and failure by owners to fix their pets.
Here’s how to help ferals in your community.
It's easy to confuse a feral cat with a stray cat (Hint: feral cats are the offspring of lost or abandoned pet cats or other feral cats who are not fixed). They don't easily adapt, or may never adapt, to living as pets in close contact with people, but they still need our help. Many don't survive; if they do, their lives aren't easy without human caretakers.
Free-roaming cats can have an impact on wildlife, and it is important that this also be acknowledged as part of the dynamic of dealing with feral cats.
There's a growing need for community-wide Trap-Neuter-Return programs, which help improve the health and quality of life for feral cats and prevent more from being born into this dangerous and difficult existence.
Trapping your feral Cats:
Items needed for Trapping Cats :
•
Can of Tuna
•Paper plate to put tuna on
•Old Towels (can’t guarantee the same ones will be returned from clinic)
•newspaper for cage to be placed on for recovery
For the Fastest, Easiest Trapping
•Stop feeding cats 24 hours before trapping. Water is fine.
•Put a teaspoon of tuna on a 2 inch piece of paper plate in the trap
•Set trap
•Cover trap with towel, the cat will stay calm and feel secure
•Once trapped move to a safe place till ready for transport
•Keep trap covered with towel for trapping, transport and recovery
•No food after midnight the night before surgery
Recovery
•Keep cats in cage for at least 24 hours, females up to 48 hours
•Place trap on newspaper
•It’s fine to give them food and water after surgery
Return Traps
•Please clean traps with soap & water with sponge or soft brush before returning
Thank you for being responsible and fixing your cats,
Spay/Neuter is the only Humane Solution to Pet Overpopulation.
After the surgery, the cats need a temperature-controlled, safe place to recover and should be monitored closely. Once they are ready to return to their outdoor homes, you can continue with your regular colony care.
Step-by-Step
Post-Surgery
1.After surgery, allow the cat to recover overnight. Keep the cats indoors in their covered traps and make sure they are dry, in a temperature-controlled environment, and away from loud noises or dangers such as toxic fumes, other animals, or people. When the cats are recovering from anesthesia they are unable to regulate their body temperature. It is important that the recovery location is temperature-controlled to keep the cats from getting too hot or too cold. A bathroom will usually do the trick.
2.Put your safety first. Keep the traps covered to reduce the cats' stress. Never open the trap doors or allow the cats out of the trap. Do not stick your fingers through the bars or attempt to handle the cats.
3.Feed and provide the cats with water after they regain consciousness. Drop wet food thru the wire trap. Avoid Dry food it will dehydrate them.
4.Keep cats until they recover. Cats usually need to be kept for 24 hours after surgery, depending on recovery speed. Male cats and often females can be returned to the trapping site 12 to 24 hours following surgery, as long as they are fully awake and do not require further medical attention. In some cases, females may need 48 hours of recovery, depending on their specific circumstances. You may return nursing mothers as soon as possible, once they completely regain consciousness so they can get back to their kittens. Make sure all cats are fully conscious, clear-eyed, and alert before release. If a cat needs further care (longer than 48 hours), you will need to transfer her to a holding pen. You may also need to transfer cats to a clean trap in case the newspaper is soiled during recovery.
5.Return the cats. Release the cat in the same place you trapped him or her. Open the front door of the trap and pull back the cover. Or, if the trap has a rear door, pull the cover away from the back door, pull that door up and off, then completely remove the cover and walk away. Do not be concerned if the cat hesitates a few moments before leaving. She is simply reorienting herself to her surroundings. Sometimes a cat can “disappear” for a few days after she is returned. She will appear eventually. Resume the feeding schedule and continue to provide food and water—she may eat when you are not around.
6.Thoroughly clean the traps with a nontoxic disinfectant when the returning is complete. Whether the traps are borrowed or your own, they should be cleaned before they are stored. Then they will be ready for the next trapping adventure. Even traps that appear clean must be disinfected—the scent of the cat previously trapped may deter other cats from entering.
7.Trap the remaining members of the colony if necessary, after a short break of a week or two, and complete the colony’s Trap-Neuter-Return effort. Be prepared for the fact that you may re-trap cats that are already ear tipped. If you do, it is sometimes best to hold that cat in the covered trap until the cats you are aiming for have been trapped.
8.Relocation of the cats should only be done as a last resort; it should be done only under extreme circumstances when the cats’ lives are in eminent danger.
