Feral in danger?

andrewrichard5 · Nov 10, 2008

I started feeding a feral about a week ago on my campus after seeing how desperate he was for food, looking at everything to see if it was edible, he was eating french fries and bread that had been dropped on the ground by other students. I know it is a feral as I saw it last year follow its mom all over campus as a kitten plus he won't let anyone near him and is very skittish. I started feeding him cat food under my window and ever since then he has started sleeping under my windowsill about 6 feet below my room in a corner. There is little cover from surrounding plants, etc and I am afraid he may freeze as there is nothing to keep out the wind and cold air. It is supposed to get to 27 degrees tonight here in Central PA. Anything I can do to help him? I made him a shelter in a box, but I can't do much because he sleeps exposed to the rest of the campus under six feet under my windowsill. Anything I put up in his sleeping spot will be seen and removed by campus officials. He would find a warmer spot to sleep before he would freeze to death, right?

ktlynn · Nov 10, 2008

First, I want to thank you for helping this poor little guy. He could use a friend.

Shelter is very important and cats will do their best to keep warm.

Unfortunately, they'll sometimes go places that are dangerous, like under car hoods to stay warm on the engine block. You can imagine what could happen to a cat if the car is started while he's still under there... (in cold weather always knock on the hood of your car before starting it, or blow the horn first, for this reason).

See if you can find a better spot to hide his shelter that's still fairly close to where you've been feeding him. A group of low evergreen bushes would be ideal since you could hide the shelter underneath, tucking it back under the branches as far as possible. Try to elevate the shelter too, putting it on bricks or a wood palette. Make sure it doesn't rock, since the cat will be afraid of it if it seems unsteady when he tries to go in. Don't use towels or blankets inside, since these things absorb moisture. Use fresh straw or bedding hay. Put lots of it in there, the cat will make a "nest" in it and it will compress some with his weight, so you need a good layer of straw or hay.

In the meantime, feed him as good a quality canned food as you can. Try to get him on a feeding schedule too.

Do some research and see if there are any local TNR (trap-neuter-return) groups in your area. Find out what the University policy is toward feral cats. Some actually have managed feral colonies - hopefully your school will be one of them.

Thanks again for caring about this kitty. He's lucky. Please keep us updated!

andrewrichard5 · Nov 14, 2008

The box is covered in leaves and branches and is stashed behind an evergreen bush. He was joined last night in sleeping under my windowsill by his mother whom I had seen occasionally every few weeks or so. She is a gorgeous long haired black cat with white legs, while he is a very smooth short haired tortoiseshell with white feet. She is much healthier and seems to know more about how to find food then her son does, who looked on the verge of starvation before I started feeding him.

Luckily, we have a local cat organization called PA PETS that promotes controlling the pet population through spaying and neutering. They have been very helpful so far and are going to provide me with a trap in order to catch the cats and have them fixed. All I have to do is pay the $8 for the rabies shot and take the cats to the vet and back to my campus to let them go.

ktlynn · Nov 14, 2008

That's great that you found a safe spot to hide the cats' shelter. Sounds like you did a good job of camouflaging it! It's also a bonus that the mom cat has joined her son - they'll help keep each other warm, and it's always good for kitties to have company.

Are you certain that they are both feral? How close can you get to them?

I'm so glad that you found an organization to help you spay/neuter and you sure can't beat the price. There are a couple of things to keep in mind:

Both cats will need time to recover from the neutering, especially the mom cat. As you know, spaying is major surgery for a cat, so she absolutely can *not* be released before she's had time to heal. Ideally, it's best to keep the female cat confined for 5-7 days to ensure there's no infection and she's healing properly. I realize that this is probably impossible for you to do. Ask if one of the volunteers at PA Pets would be willing to keep momcat for at least 2 days so she has time to recover. The male cat, as well, should be allowed to rest at least overnite before he's released. Making sure the cats are not under the effects of the anesthesia is extremely important. Ask if mom cat will get at least one shot of pain meds after the surgery. She should.

Too often, feral cats are released before they've fully come out of anesthesia, or female cats aren't given even a day or two to heal, because unfortunately, sometimes ferals are not given the same level of care as housecats. All cats deserve a high level of care. Ferals are cats first, feral second.

The other thing you need to think about is this: who will continue to feed the cats when you graduate? The cats depend on you, so you'll need to find someone who can continue to care for them. If you haven't already done so, check to see if there are any groups on campus that care for ferals or if PA Pets can eventually help when the time comes for you to leave
school.

You are wonderful to do this for these cats!!! They are truly very lucky.
Thank you for caring about them, and please continue to let us know how it's going.

krz · Nov 14, 2008

You are doing such a wonderful thing for these cats!! Good for you!!I am not sure what campus you are on, but there are several college campuses that take care of feral and strays. Perhaps you could start a club or organization and get others involved. If you google feral cats there should be a link to help you out. Good luck and keep us posted.

andrewrichard5 · Nov 17, 2008

Originally Posted by KTLynn

That's great that you found a safe spot to hide the cats' shelter. Sounds like you did a good job of camouflaging it! It's also a bonus that the mom cat has joined her son - they'll help keep each other warm, and it's always good for kitties to have company.

Are you certain that they are both feral? How close can you get to them?

I'm so glad that you found an organization to help you spay/neuter and you sure can't beat the price. There are a couple of things to keep in mind:

Both cats will need time to recover from the neutering, especially the mom cat. As you know, spaying is major surgery for a cat, so she absolutely can *not* be released before she's had time to heal. Ideally, it's best to keep the female cat confined for 5-7 days to ensure there's no infection and she's healing properly. I realize that this is probably impossible for you to do. Ask if one of the volunteers at PA Pets would be willing to keep momcat for at least 2 days so she has time to recover. The male cat, as well, should be allowed to rest at least overnite before he's released. Making sure the cats are not under the effects of the anesthesia is extremely important. Ask if mom cat will get at least one shot of pain meds after the surgery. She should.

Too often, feral cats are released before they've fully come out of anesthesia, or female cats aren't given even a day or two to heal, because unfortunately, sometimes ferals are not given the same level of care as housecats. All cats deserve a high level of care. Ferals are cats first, feral second.

The other thing you need to think about is this: who will continue to feed the cats when you graduate? The cats depend on you, so you'll need to find someone who can continue to care for them. If you haven't already done so, check to see if there are any groups on campus that care for ferals or if PA Pets can eventually help when the time comes for you to leave
school.

You are wonderful to do this for these cats!!! They are truly very lucky.
Thank you for caring about them, and please continue to let us know how it's going.

They are definitely both feral. I cannot get within 10 feet of them. I glance out my window once or twice every night and I sometimes accidently scare them with just a look even though I avoid looking into their eyes. I know the son has always been feral as I saw him follow his mom all over campus last year as a kitten. He still likes to play with leaves and twigs and anything else he can grab when he thinks I am not watching him.

I can certainly find a place for them to heal for a little bit. If nothing else, I can hide them in my room for a few days. It is also extra important I realize in allowing them to heal because of how cold it is outside. It is currently getting into the 30's every night and every once in a while the 20's. I would not want them to freeze after going through surgery. I hid baby rabbits and two feral kittens in my room last year without anyone knowing. I saved the baby rabbits because they were being eaten by a cat. A week later and the day after I released the rabbits I found the kittens whose mom was the one that was killing and eating the rabbits, so that is sort of a neat little side note. Two of these kittens are living at my house currently.

I am certain that I can find someone to care for the cats when I graduate. I already have someone living in the town that I go to school in volunteering to feed them while I am gone over Thanksgiving break. Someone who works cleaning at my school is also a member of PA PETS and has volunteered to help me. It is also extra important I realize in allowing them to heal because of how cold it is outside. It is currently getting into the 30's every night and every once in a while the 20's. I would not want them to freeze after going through surgery.

I will find a way to make sure they are taken care of after I graduate.

I go to a very small school, Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, PA so it will probably be hard to get a large group, but I am sure that two or three other determined is certainly possible.

laureen227 · Nov 17, 2008

you can make an inexpensive shelter from a sterilite or rubbermaid tote - waterproof, too! the sterilite ones come in a transparent version, which would be easier to hide, i would think. there are directions here
the best thing for cutting the holes is a hot knife - i got one here, altho i've also seen them in hobby stores [think Hobby Lobby or Michael's].
good luck!

ktlynn · Nov 18, 2008

Originally Posted by andrewrichard5

I am certain that I can find someone to care for the cats when I graduate. I already have someone living in the town that I go to school in volunteering to feed them while I am gone over Thanksgiving break. Someone who works cleaning at my school is also a member of PA PETS and has volunteered to help me. It is also extra important I realize in allowing them to heal because of how cold it is outside. It is currently getting into the 30's every night and every once in a while the 20's. I would not want them to freeze after going through surgery.

I will find a way to make sure they are taken care of after I graduate.

I am so glad about this!!! Caring for ferals requires real commitment, which you obviously have, but because you will eventually leave school, the future of these cats was cause for concern. I'm very happy you'll be able to provide the kitties with the ongoing care they need.

When you bring mom cat in for her spay, remind the vet that she's an outside kitty. Ask if they can please shave as little of her hair as possible to help her stay warm. And remember to request pain meds for her.

It's great that you'll be able to keep the cats for at least a couple of days so they can recuperate. That's important.

I'm curious about the kittens you mentioned that are at your house now. How old were they when you brought them home? How old are they now, and how are they doing? Are they the first cats you've ever had? It's terrific that you adopted them. They'd surely be part of the feral population on campus if you hadn't.

Thanks again, on behalf of mom cat and her son, for making their lives so much healthier and happier.

PS - I'd love to see you start a feral cat care/advocacy group for the cats on your campus. Do you think there any like-minded students that would work with you on this?

skimble · Nov 18, 2008

You are doing an awesome job. Their lives have been saved with your efforts. Hang in there.

Originally Posted by andrewrichard5

he is a very smooth short haired tortoiseshell with white feet.

If this is a tortise shell and white, most likely it is female. Others will know more about this than I do.

Best of luck to you.

andrewrichard5 · Nov 19, 2008

Originally Posted by Skimble

You are doing an awesome job. Their lives have been saved with your efforts. Hang in there.

If this is a tortise shell and white, most likely it is female. Others will know more about this than I do.

Best of luck to you.

Excellent observation. I suppose it is a female. I went on petfinder to look at the tortoiseshell cats for adoption and the first 100 on there were all females. I guess HamCat would be a female too. Thank you for the correction and the help.

andrewrichard5 · Nov 19, 2008

Originally Posted by laureen227

you can make an inexpensive shelter from a sterilite or rubbermaid tote - waterproof, too! the sterilite ones come in a transparent version, which would be easier to hide, i would think. there are directions here
the best thing for cutting the holes is a hot knife - i got one here, altho i've also seen them in hobby stores [think Hobby Lobby or Michael's].
good luck!

HamCat was using the shelter last night. It is pretty well concealed as it has leaves and evergreen branches covering it and is behind an evergreen bush so it blends in really well. I was able to shine a flashlight in the box last night while hanging out my window and saw HamCat's back turned toward me inside the box. The only way to see the box is to hang out my window, because there is a wall protecting everyone else from seeing down toward the box. Thank you for the advice though and I will certianly keep it in mind if a problem arises with this one or I need another box for some reason.

krz · Nov 19, 2008

This is awesome what you are doing!!!

Do you have the shelter stuffed with straw? That would certainly help with warmth for them. I am so glad these kitties are going to be taken care of, getting others to help you out is a blessing. Keep up the good work!!

andrewrichard5 · Nov 19, 2008

Originally Posted by KTLynn

I'm curious about the kittens you mentioned that are at your house now. How old were they when you brought them home? How old are they now, and how are they doing? Are they the first cats you've ever had? It's terrific that you adopted them. They'd surely be part of the feral population on campus if you hadn't.

Thanks again, on behalf of mom cat and her son, for making their lives so much healthier and happier.

PS - I'd love to see you start a feral cat care/advocacy group for the cats on your campus. Do you think there any like-minded students that would work with you on this?

We rescued the kittens when they were around 5 weeks old according to the vet. They are very social and loved playing with people from the very start of when we found them. Right now they are little demons that love to sleep on your lap and just run around and play all day like normal kittens. They are very mischievous, having chewed through my cell phone charging cord, chewed up sneakers and flip flops and one of them likes to take the paper out of the printer after each sheet has printed. The same one also likes to drink out of the faucet in the bathtub like it is a bottle. When he hears the shower turn on he goes running into the bathroom to try and get to the water. He is really weird.

When we first took them to the vet they had worms, but that was it. They were also very healthy for having lived outside. They ate dry food right away and we had to give a lot of wet food because of constipation right away. We almost went to get kitten formula, but they were eating the other food.

They were living in a deep window well and were trapped in there. Someone found the kittens when the mom was scratching at the glass and growling when someone got close. There is no way the mother could have been able to get the kittens out of the window well because of how deep it was and with the kittens weight. The kittens were sort of trapped there because they were either born in there or were moved into the window well when they were smaller. They would have been born around April 1st so she may have given birth there because it was warm and secluded. The window well was only covered with stones on the bottom and when we found the kittens they were in a pile to keep warm.

The mom was an absolute beast of a cat and was always seen on campus hunting or drifting into a bush. She was all black and was hard to get a glimpse of, but she was a great mom.

All in all they were just like normal indoor born kittens because we socialized and rescued at such an early age.

I have two other cats at home and have had cats since I was a kid, usually 3 or 4 at a time. I used to tame feral cats when I was in elementary school by bringing there food closer and closer to me and the house and watching them for an hour or so every night. I must have tamed a dozen in this way from elementary school to middle school. I also rescued a few regular strays during this time. So I am not new to cats or feral cats, just wasn't technically aware of the terminology.

As for the club, I will see what I can do, but next semester because it is a very busy finish for this semester right now.

chrismikael1 · Nov 19, 2008

Hmm, sneak him indoors, lol.

andrewrichard5 · Nov 19, 2008

I currently have the box stuffed with shredded newspaper because I couldn't get any straw. This seems to be working for them just fine so far.

As for sneaking them inside, I would if they would follow me inside, but they are much too feral for that.

ktlynn · Nov 21, 2008

Originally Posted by andrewrichard5

I currently have the box stuffed with shredded newspaper because I couldn't get any straw. This seems to be working for them just fine so far.

Keep trying to get straw. Most nurseries will carry it, as well as feed stores.
Straw is great to use because it insulates, the cats can form a comfortable "nest" in it, and it doesn't absorb moisture, which is very important.

Bedding hay will work too, though it's not quite as good as straw.

Newspaper will unfortunately absorb moisture, so until you get straw or hay, keep checking the shelter and replace the newspaper often.

Thank you for telling us about the kittens you rescued - they sound adorable and I hope you can eventually post pictures of them. It was lucky that someone noticed them in the window well; luckier still that you gave them a home!

BTW, what happened to their mom?

laureen227 · Nov 21, 2008

Originally Posted by KTLynn

Keep trying to get straw. Most nurseries will carry it, as well as feed stores.
Straw is great to use because it insulates, the cats can form a comfortable "nest" in it, and it doesn't absorb moisture, which is very important.

i got a little 'mini-bale' of straw @ Hobby Lobby - look at crafting stores.

andrewrichard5 · Nov 23, 2008

I talked to the person that is going to be taking care of them for me over Thanksgiving break. She has a small doghouse that she is going to give me and fill it with straw so all five of the cats that are currently coming can sleep in it together instead of in the corner of the building in a little pile like three of them did last night. I have to contact my school and see if they will allow me to do this, so wish me luck. This will be the first time I have contacted the school about any of what I am doing.

As for the mother of the kittens, according to a secondary source one of the secretaries that helped rescue the kittens was finally able to capture one her and have her spayed. So that is very good. As for what happened to her after that I do not know. I asked if she had been taken to a shelter because I realize being feral that she wouldn't have much of a chance of being adopted. I was then told by this person that the secretary would never allow an animal in her care to be killed by a shelter. The person I talked to seemed to know her quite well so I believe him that the cat is still alive somewhere. I will try to find out what happened to her, because she was a beautiful cat and one of the best feral mothers of all time.

ktlynn · Nov 23, 2008

Originally Posted by andrewrichard5

I talked to the person that is going to be taking care of them for me over Thanksgiving break. She has a small doghouse that she is going to give me and fill it with straw so all five of the cats that are currently coming can sleep in it together instead of in the corner of the building in a little pile like three of them did last night. I have to contact my school and see if they will allow me to do this, so wish me luck. This will be the first time I have contacted the school about any of what I am doing.

It may not be the best idea to inform your school about your cats yet.

Unfortunately, you don't know if the school officials are "animal-friendly" or not. If they aren't receptive to what you've been doing, you'll have a very bad situation on your hands if they tell you they do not want you caring for the cats. This is not the time of year to risk the cats losing their shelters if the school tells you to remove them.

It's better to try to find out first, and anonymously, what the school's attitude is toward feral cats. Speak with the secretary who got the other mom cat spayed - she may be able to find out if the school is sympathetic.
You can also make calls to whomever you think would make decisions about this issue, without identifying yourself, and inquire about their policy, if there is one, toward cats on campus.

Most of us who care for ferals have learned to (sadly) assume that many folks will not be sympathetic to what we're doing. That's why we try to keep "a low profile" by not drawing attention to the cats. We feed in hidden areas, and hide the shelters as best we can. The bottom line is the cats' safety. Sometimes we luck out, and we find kindred spirits who care about the cats too. But you just don't know.

That's why I would urge you not to call attention to the cats at this point, unless you get completely reliable information that school officials will look kindly on what you're doing.

andrewrichard5 · Nov 23, 2008

Originally Posted by KTLynn

It may not be the best idea to inform your school about your cats yet.

Unfortunately, you don't know if the school officials are "animal-friendly" or not. If they aren't receptive to what you've been doing, you'll have a very bad situation on your hands if they tell you they do not want you caring for the cats. This is not the time of year to risk the cats losing their shelters if the school tells you to remove them.

It's better to try to find out first, and anonymously, what the school's attitude is toward feral cats. Speak with the secretary who got the other mom cat spayed - she may be able to find out if the school is sympathetic.
You can also make calls to whomever you think would make decisions about this issue, without identifying yourself, and inquire about their policy, if there is one, toward cats on campus.

Most of us who care for ferals have learned to (sadly) assume that many folks will not be sympathetic to what we're doing. That's why we try to keep "a low profile" by not drawing attention to the cats. We feed in hidden areas, and hide the shelters as best we can. The bottom line is the cats' safety. Sometimes we luck out, and we find kindred spirits who care about the cats too. But you just don't know.

That's why I would urge you not to call attention to the cats at this point, unless you get completely reliable information that school officials will look kindly on what you're doing.

Excellent idea. I was thinking that myself as well that they may not want all of the cats. I will see if I can get in touch with the secretary that helped out. Thank you.

Feral in danger?

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