trap attempt failed-will another attempt succeed

We have been caring for a cat since last October, tried to trap him many times and never could. We have always assumed he is a male but are not sure. Over the last year he has moved closer to the office building and now stays in the parking lot all of the time. He has a very nice shelter and we provide food and water for him. We tried a drop trap on Friday morning and he broke right through it. What a horrible feeling I had as I watched him run through the parking lot into the woods. He was back by the afternoon and was there each weekend morning I came to feed him. He is scared of me right now. He just stayed in the bushes, he usually would let me get pretty close. We are going to try and trap him again in another week or so, especially since he could be a female and even possibly pregnant. Is it common to fail at a trap attempt and get a second chance. We thought over the last year that maybe socializing him might be the way to go, but now with temperatures about to change we would like to get him or her to the vet to get shots and altered before it gets too cold. Of course, if kittens are now in the mix, that is another story. If this cat does not want to be an inside cat, I will invest in an even better shelter and hope that he will let us take care of him where he is now. I am nervous that if we fail this time, we may never see this cat again. Any ideas?

Bless you for trying to get this guy!
There are plenty of people with lots more experience than me but I would say don't give up. I had to try a couple of tiomes to get a feral cat but then again I never had him break out. That seems strange - can you possibly get a better trap?

I will absolutely NEVER give up on him or her. When we started feeding this cat last fall and the weather started to get cold, I would literally go and check on him several times during the weekend days and nights. I hated seeing him outside alone and would constantly worry about him. I feel much better about his safety now that he stays so close to the office and never seems to leave the premises. I had a standard trap and the woman from Fund for Ferals also brought her standard trap. When I explained to her how he avoids the trap, she used her drop trap. He was actually in the drop trap and broke out through the netting. I could not believe it!! She said that the trap was probably brittle because she uses it so often in the cold weather. She is as determined as I am to get him, especially if he is a she and may be pregnant. I sure hope not, the stress of worrying about him is enough, I can't imagine worrying about a female about to give birth. But we are going to do what is best for this cat. I was hoping my dad could let this cat live in a screened in porch but he is a little reluctant-he has 2 little dogs and 2 house cats and he is a little older and not sure he can take another cat. I am just nervous that he will not even go near the trap when we try again. We were so close!!

Bless you for being so dedicated to this cat. Many are not so lucky. I have been helping trap ferals for over a year now. I hope others will come along and give their opinions.

I would keep trying to trap. We would leave the trap out and feed next to it and then in the trap with the door tied open. Then on a random day, set the trigger.

Our best luck with hard to trap cats was with a large dog trap. Leave it out and feed unset for a few days. Most average size cats will be heavy enough for the trigger to work. If the trigger will not throw, prop a stick with a heavy string/twine attached and pull the stick out when cat is in eating. Make the string long enough that you can be out of the way.

This brand trap was the one the cats favored. Yes, we set out multiple brands/types of borrowed traps and they chose these. Go figure.

http://www.animal-traps.com/animal-trap-cats.html

Good luck and keep trying until something works.

Thanks, we are going to try and trap again a week from Friday, please say a prayer all goes well.

I have a quick suggestion for you. Wash the trap - get the smell of fear off of it. Get either kitty litter or potting soil, and pour it over the bottom, so the cat doesn't have to walk on wires - and the trap will lift right up through it.

Also, consider getting some Feliway. Spray just a little on the outside edges of both ends of the trap.

Find branches, sticks and leaves, and kind of cover the trap, so it looks more natural.

Then get a REALLY stinky food - like herring or tuna - or even some KFC with no skin.

That almost always does the trick for wary cats.

We'll send lots of "get in the trap" vibes on Friday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Laurie

Thanks so much for the great suggestions!!! I just love this site!!

Well, let's see if it works! There are definitely wiley/wary cats that are just great at avoiding traps (some figure out how to steal the food without tripping them!).

Laurie

Well, let's see if it works! There are definitely wiley/wary cats that are just great at avoiding traps (some figure out how to steal the food without tripping them!).

Laurie