Mystery cat.

panther pride

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Well this summer I stopped puting out Innova Evo fod for a stray, my dad has heard one night. Figuring racoons were the only critters eating my $$ food.

Well I run into a neighbor at the grocey store and she asks me if I let my cat out at night, I tell her no and then bring it up to my dad as we drive home he says hes heard a gray and white cat outside and Bindi was at the window moewing at it in the darkness. The cat has stopped coming and hasnt been seen or heard in over a month, sense I stopped leaving food out figuring Racoon or coyotes were eating it and not a cat. My question is can I trap the animal, see if its intact ( I know of a no coast spay/nueter in my area
) and find it a GOOD home where it will not run wild outside .

Anybuddy know where I can get a humane cat trap for free or redused cost?
 

sharky

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I would call the local shelter or widlife officials... often they rent traps out free or low cost ... to buy a cat size around here is about 70$...

If you catch a FERAL( Ie not used to humans and not tame) PLEASE let it loose again... YES I know it seems cruel but it really is not... BUT if the animal is semi tame then by all means try to find a local rescue experienced with stray / semi ferals and get it adopted...
 
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panther pride

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Okay, got any local phone num I could call, Would ultering it be a good idea if its feral before release. Also to lure it should I leave food out for a few weeks before getting a trap. I could go to the store and buy... What's a good cheep food I could get to lure the cat back into our area?
 

sharky

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YES TNR( trap nueter and realease ).... call your local humane society

smelly wet food when ready to trap.. but any dry will work ( sportmix and purina naturals are good yet less$$
 

StefanZ

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Nice thinking!

I agree with the others. If he is stray - try to find himher a home.
If its a semiferal - it depends on if there IS somebody who works with semiferals... If not, TNR must do.
If its a FERAL - it is surprisingly often possible to socialize them. But you must be dedicated, know what and how to do, and have time and patience. It may take years in some cases! And afterwards somebody who want to have that cat who is nice to his owner - but shy.
So usually the best is to do TNR with ferals. Exactly as the others say.
And why not!? The feral (and long time semiferal) is a survivor. Shehe will have it a lot easier after TNR. You are NOT neglecting himher by letting it back. And if you can help it some in future... Wow.

The problem is that cat will almost sure be aggresive right during and after the catching. Also many long-time strays shows strong defensive aggresiveness right after catching. Thus the real problem here is to decide if it is a terrified stray / semiferal or if it is a feral...

So it is good if you can observe it before catching. And of course afterwards, when himher cools down, when noticing nobody is mean to it. Perhaps during the couple of days the cat is recovering after the surgery.

This recovery time is a good occasion to see if it is a feral / difficult semiferal, or a cat who is worth the work of socializing it - whether stray or semiferal.

Shy is OK, aggressive is too difficult.

EDIT.
Ps. There may be another variation: The catched feral being totally submissive when you or the vet handles it. It is not proof of being tame and friendly, it is a desperate try to survive...
Of course, such submissive feral is easier to work with, and also to socialize with time, than the defensive-aggressive one; but dont confuse it with shehe being tame...


Good luck!
 
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panther pride

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Keeing another furkid is out of the question, here in St paul the limit is 3 and we are at that limit.
 

StefanZ

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Originally Posted by Panther pride

Keeing another furkid is out of the question, here in St paul the limit is 3 and we are at that limit.
I understand you cant keep it. You are depending of finding a shelter / someone who would do the socializing thing. You had already said it.

But you can surely have the cat several days when it is recovering from the surgery?? Some vets keep the homeless cat these few days, but not all. Mostly dont.
So this is the time you have to decide if it is a tame(able) cat or feral = TNR...

A male dont need to stay in long. Perhaps 24 hour is usually more than enough.

Female depends on the surgeons technique. Incision in the flank and self dissolving stitches is best for ferals, also quickest recovery.
Tell the vet it is probably a ferale, and you cant keep it long. 3 days could do. Preferably longer - but with a little luck not necessary. And if dire necessary Im told it may be shorter too.

A home-shecat needs usually 7-10 days - especielly if cut in the middle of belly as they often are. But these ferals / semiferals are survivors...


So. If you dont have anybody who can help you with the fostering, you must apparently contend yourself with the TNR. Unless the cat IS apparently tame and you have a family waiting for their new friend.

If you do have somebody who can help with the fostering - talk with them before you catch the cat. As you cant know for sure if the homeless cat is a real feral or a stray...
Perhaps the recovery can be made at that shelter / friendly person? so it wouldnt be such hurry at deciding if it is a nervous stray on its watch - or a feral...
 

tnr1

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Originally Posted by Panther pride

Okay, got any local phone num I could call, Would ultering it be a good idea if its feral before release. Also to lure it should I leave food out for a few weeks before getting a trap. I could go to the store and buy... What's a good cheep food I could get to lure the cat back into our area?
I would suggest reading the advice on this site:

http://www.alleycat.org/resources_care.html

Also, here is a link to TNR groups by state:


http://www.alleycat.org/orgs.html

It is best to have this cat trapped and either spayed/neutered and then decide what to do..whether to place it back outdoors or try to find it a home.

Katie
 

tnkittymom

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I agree with what has been said above. You can look on Petfinder under adoption groups to find a group local to your area.
StefanZ makes a good point. You'll definitely need to determine whether the cat is feral or terrified. One of our cats, Hera, was determined to be unadoptable (wild) because she would attack anything or anyone that got near her at the shelter. She is the sweetest one we have. She acts more dog-like than cat-like. She wants to be where we are, will lay with the dogs, etc. She was simply terrified being at the shelter and caged. They were going to euthanize her, so that's why we took her.

You mentioned 3 being the limit in your area. Do they enforce that? I ask this because where I live, we have no limit since we're in the county; however, if you live in the city, there is a limit of 6 (dogs, cats, or combo of the two), but they don't enforce it unless given a reason, such as someone complaining. I don't think you would have a problem keeping a cat for a few days to recover, especially if you crate the cat for a few nights to recover or if you have a room that you can keep the cat in. I'm not saying you won't have a problem or that's what you should do, but it's just a thought.

I wish you the best of luck with this one.
 
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