Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties:
I know what I need to do, but getting it done is another problem. There’s a colony of feral cats living in my neighborhood. My neighbors have been gracious enough to capture them, get them neutered, and release them back into their territory. But recently I saw one of them limping. I got a look at his back foot and it has some pus coming out of it and he holds it up when he walks. I’ve been able to domesticate a few of the cats and get them to allow me to pet them, but not the wounded cat. What, if anything, can I do about getting this poor feral cat captured and taken to a vet again? I have a feeling he is cautious of traps from being caught before and being fixed. As a side note, the ferals are getting on vehicles. Some neighbors don’t want them to do this and have threatened to remove them. Is there anything that can be done about keeping them off the vehicles?
~ Jeffrey
Thomas: Ah, the ever-elusive feral cat. You’ve definitely set yourself a tough goal trying to get this guy in to the vet, but it can be done.
Bella: He clearly either has an abscess or some other more serious injury, and he definitely needs help!
Tara: As you already know, feral cats get wise to traps, but it’s still possible that you might be able to capture him.
Thomas: First, you’ll want to put out several traps. Set the traps in quiet, out-of-the-way places. Alley Cat Allies recommends trying larger traps because a feral cat who’s been trapped before may feel more comfortable with a larger trap.
Bella: They also recommend that you camouflage the trap by covering it with a dark towel and putting it under bushes or outbuildings.
Tara: Once you’ve got the larger trap and you’ve got it camouflaged, you’ll need to make it really extra-enticing, and you’re going to do this by changing up the bait.
Thomas: Instead of using canned cat food or kibble, try using mackerel or sardines. Obviously, make sure you get fish that’s just packed in oil or water and doesn’t have extra flavoring like mustard.
Bella: Also, before you put out the new bait, think about withholding food for a day. A hungry cat is more likely to take the bait. You’ll also have to keep your neighbors from putting out food for the cats.
Tara: An injured cat probably won’t be able to hunt well, so your wounded feral cat will probably take the bait more easily than the others.
Thomas: Another way you can attract a feral cat into a trap is to boil valerian root and douse the trap in the water. Valerian root has an attraction and effect very similar to catnip, and it can attract cats who aren’t into catnip.
Bella: Did you know that about half of cats aren’t attracted to catnip?
Tara: Ooh, that’s sad! I looooove catnip!
Thomas: So do I!
Bella: And so do I!!
Tara: Anyway, back to Jeffrey’s question. The valerian should work to attract your injured feral cat into the trap.
Thomas: You might end up re-trapping some of the other feral cats, too, and that’s why you want to have a bunch of traps set out.
Bella: Did you work with a trap/neuter/return group to get the feral cats the first time? If so, they may have some other tips to help you re-capture the injured feral cat.
Tara: Now, for your second question: how to keep the cats off cars.
Thomas: That’s kinda tough, because cats will do what they want. Cars make nice sunning spots because the metal heats up with the sun, and they also provide a vantage point where the cats can see what’s going on below them.
Bella: But if you train the cats to go elsewhere, that could help.
Tara: For example, don’t put their food near the cars. If the cars are parked in front of houses, feed the cats in back yards or wooded areas.
Thomas: If the cats have shelters, move them away from the front yards, too.
Bella: Basically, what you’re doing here is moving everything the cats care about away from where the cars are parked.
Tara: We think this will help keep the feral cats off your neighbors’ cars.
Thomas: Good luck trapping your injured feral cat! Please let us know how things turn out.
Bella: What about you other readers? Have you experienced hard-to-trap feral cats? What did you do to get them into the traps? Please share your tips in the comments!
JaneA Kelley is a punk rock cat mom and award-winning blogger. She is a regular columnist for Catster Magazine, and she and the Paws and Effect Gang share a home in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.
If a regular trap doesn’t work, ask a local rescue if they have a drop trap you can borrow.
As for cars, no idea. In fact, our mom loves seeing the paw prints on her car hood….it means our feral girl has been in the garage.
I have a feral cat that I have fed for years on my back porch. Ringo is adorable and would love to catch him but haven’t really tried (shame on me). I almost touched him on the head one day but feared I might lose my hand as I have no idea how he’d react. Really plan to get him this spring. But I have doctored him. I am able to get antibiotic and because it has a sweet flavor I mix it in soft food and he eats it. If you can do this you can at least treat him temporarily. A drop trap works as long as you can get him in a regular trap to transfer him. You might also want to put that “special” food in a very large carrier and get him used to eating in it. Then try to shut the door when he’s all consumed. Good luck getting the cats off the cars. I hope the advice works. Ringo doesn’t sit on the cars, thank goodness, but I know cats like to do that.
I started feeding some ferals after a momma kitty brought her three kits around my yard this past fall. A rescue group came out and trapped the two kits that survived. I had actually gotten them into my back mudroom to eat and that is where they got trapped.
However, Momma Kitty and Mr. Pumpkin wouldn’t even get on my deck if I was nearby. I had to go back inside and close the door. After I got them used to eating here, I borrowed traps and baited it with cooked chicken. I nuked it for a few seconds to make the smell better. M. Pumpkin got trapped first but even momma kitty couldn’t resist the smell and also got trapped pretty fast.
I have no idea how to keep them off cars except to maybe put sheets of sticky stuff on the areas of the cars they like the best. But it has to be done consistently to get them to learn not to jump up there.