Not sure if this should go on this forum or the feral cat one.
There is a semi-feral cat at my parent's house -- she's tame enough that she doesn't run away from people who are feeding her, but she runs away if you try to touch her. I bought a house somewhat recently and can now take in more cats, so I have been planning on catching her, getting her spayed, and keeping her assuming she adjusts okay to being an indoor cat.
I've been putting off buying a cat trap for a few weeks because I was originally hoping my parents could just coax her inside with food, but they were too afraid of her freaking out and damaging the furniture before I could get there. I finally bought a trap yesterday. We hadn't physically seen her for about two weeks, but we knew she was still coming around because my parents have a trail camera outside and she was showing up on the camera. She finally came back during daylight hours this morning, acting a lot more friendly than usual... and she's pregnant.
Should I still put out the trap tonight and attempt to catch her? I am afraid that if I do catch her, the process will stress her too much and it will hurt her and the kittens, or, if that alone doesn't cause problems and she has the kittens after I catch her, she will freak out and eat the kittens after they are born. Is it worth the risk, or should I put it off?
Also, do pregnant females normally get extra friendly just before the kittens are born? I'm also worried she might literally have the kittens today. What are the signs I should look for to figure out how pregnant she is or if she is about to have them?
Thanks.
There is a semi-feral cat at my parent's house -- she's tame enough that she doesn't run away from people who are feeding her, but she runs away if you try to touch her. I bought a house somewhat recently and can now take in more cats, so I have been planning on catching her, getting her spayed, and keeping her assuming she adjusts okay to being an indoor cat.
I've been putting off buying a cat trap for a few weeks because I was originally hoping my parents could just coax her inside with food, but they were too afraid of her freaking out and damaging the furniture before I could get there. I finally bought a trap yesterday. We hadn't physically seen her for about two weeks, but we knew she was still coming around because my parents have a trail camera outside and she was showing up on the camera. She finally came back during daylight hours this morning, acting a lot more friendly than usual... and she's pregnant.
Should I still put out the trap tonight and attempt to catch her? I am afraid that if I do catch her, the process will stress her too much and it will hurt her and the kittens, or, if that alone doesn't cause problems and she has the kittens after I catch her, she will freak out and eat the kittens after they are born. Is it worth the risk, or should I put it off?
Also, do pregnant females normally get extra friendly just before the kittens are born? I'm also worried she might literally have the kittens today. What are the signs I should look for to figure out how pregnant she is or if she is about to have them?
Thanks.