Taming feral cats

[jessmarimba]

Hahaha, me too!

I am definitely looking into organizations that will help with them.

And I have no intention of putting them in a situation where they might think to bite! Trust me, I've tormented my own cat enough to know better.

Their mom is the one that I really need to catch and get fixed. She seems to be the only cat around here to have kittens routinely, but very few of them seem to make it

[Biciclista]

I tamed a couple dozen feral kittens and never got an infected bite. (I'm sure i got a little bite or two) You can be cautious and take your time with these kitties. good luck!

[bmccasland]

Their mom is the one that I really need to catch and get fixed. She seems to be the only cat around here to have kittens routinely, but very few of them seem to make it

Can you borrow a live-trap (such as Hav-a-Heart) from your local shelter or feed store to trap Mom? If you get the kittens, some nice smelly tuna might lure Mom in. Seems like on some of the animal rescue shows, they covered the traps with a towel or blanket so kitty doesn't see the trap parts, and is driven by the scent of the food. Just a thought.

Can you also make pre-arrangements with your vet that once you trap Mom, you can just drop her off and they work her in? That's what I did when I was trying to get my porch kitty taken care of.

[Biciclista]

that's how i caught my first litter of ferals. I caught mom in a trap, then i shifted her into a cat carrier.
I put the cat carrier out with mom in it butted up against the hav a heart trap. i caught 4 kittens that way.

[indysteel]

We got a live trap at our local tractor/farm supply store. We put a small bit of canned food at the end of it and then sprinkle of a few cat treats near the opening of the trap. So far, it's worked for three cats. We trapped our last one today--a male. I was really holding my breath, as it was raining and I needed to leave at 6:45 to make it to the dropoff location on time. Well, he showed up at 6:40. My husband coaxed him into the trap and away we went. We cover the traps with a blanket or sheet once they're trapped, and that calms them down at least to the point of not thrashing around.

I considered not fixing my male ferals, but for a couple different reasons, I think it's a good idea. For one, that means there's one less male cat that can impregnate any stray unspayed female they encounter. For another, it generally makes them less aggressive, which helps lessen the chance they'll get in a fight with another cat--a cat that may be infected with a variety of things.

I'd add that one of the other women there has multiple litters of kittens that were born to stray moms this summer before she'd had a chance to get them. Bless her heart for getting all of them spayed and neutered. It's costing her a pretty penny.

Good luck, Jess. You're doing a good thing.

[Irulan]

I considered not fixing my male ferals,

Other than cost, why wouldn't you fix a feral cat, male or female?

[indysteel]

Other than cost, why wouldn't you fix a feral cat, male or female?

Well, I didn't consider it for very long--like for about five seconds. Cost, hassle, stress on the animal, their unpredictable behavior (my adult male comes and goes for weeks at a time). I can't speak for anyone else, but I'm sure there are feral tenders out there that just make it a priority to spay their females. From a cat population standpoint, that's not a horrible approach. It's not the best approach IMO (and sometimes not legally compliant), but it's better than not doing anything I suppose.

[Biciclista]

I grew up with un-neutered cats, leaving them entire seriously shortens their lives. They are so driven by sex and territory that they don't take enough time to hunt and eat. But Indy, I hear what you're saying, if you're having to pay for it!
The cat ladies around here take anything that will crawl into a trap.

[badger]

you might want to contact the local shelters to see if there are any spay/neuter programs for feral cats? We have the staff of spca volunteering one day a year to spay and neuter trapped feral cats. Last year it was canceled due to low number of cats (though I don't quite believe that).

I would try what others suggested, in trapping and getting them fixed yourself. You can always borrow traps from veterinarians or shelters.

In Japan, hardly anyone ever spays/neuters their cats, so they are totally overrun with cats. My mother's trapped a lot of the cats in her neighbourhood and had them fixed and then released again (all out of her own pocket).