Advice on Stray Male Cat

ilovecats4ever

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Dec 3, 2008
Messages
32
Purraise
5
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
I wrote before thinking I had a stray female that has been around for a few months but today I realized it's a male. It has taken me awhile to build his trust but today he let me pet him and this is big news because he went from running as soon as he saw me by the window to walking up to me and letting me pet him.

I have an indoor male, indoor female and now I want to take care of him. I can tell he isn't fixed (I think) and I need to know what steps I should take, I am almost close enough to grab him but I am sure he will attack me, he has been hissing at me before he let me pet him. So if I put food in a crate and catch him and take him to the vets and get him fixed and vaccines, will he be safe enough to bring in my house while he heals? How long does it take for a male cat to heal after being neutered?

Any other advice would be great, I am so happy that I have him trusting me because it's SO cold out and about to get colder.
 

proudmamiof4

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Sep 29, 2008
Messages
1,390
Purraise
8
Location
Coastal NC
Are you wanting to bring him in the house?If so I would borrow or buy a humane trap and trap him,take him to the vet for a once over ( they may offer discount if you tell them he is a rescue) after the vet I would isolate him in a spare bedroom or bathroom.For the first few days I would only go in there to feed and give him water (and change and scoop litter) he will slowly become used to your presence and at the same time become starved for attention.After a few days start bringing him goodies and sit in the room and just read or sew or whatever( he will associate your presence with good things) after yet a few more days start talking sofly to him(avoid eye contact....look away and blink alot,this shows submissiveness)also stay low down when you are finally talking so you don't appear so big and scary.Good luck.I would have him tested for fiv/felv before even bringing him in and then again in about a month before introducing him to your indoor cats.Good luck.
 

sweets

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Nov 4, 2003
Messages
1,671
Purraise
1
Location
Living in the land of not enough time
Good luck catching him! See if you can borrow a have-a-heart trap. If not, I put food in a dog crate, way in the back! When the cat went halfway in to eat it, I shove the rest in and slammed the door.

Once he is fixed, you can bring him inside but keep him isolated from your cats. He will be very skittish and willing to fight!

I'm not sure how long healing takes. I've been lucky and missed that with my boys. They were being boarded at the vets when they were snipped.
 

StefanZ

Advisor
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Sep 18, 2005
Messages
25,999
Purraise
10,648
Location
Sweden
Ah, for a male it doesnt take long to heal after neutering. And ferales/semiferales are usually made of tough timber - these are the survivors.

But you should preferably have in some time in a quarantene, so...

Shy ferales are usually submissive to the homecats, even uncut males, - so you can probably let him meet your own cats as soon you are through the quarantene-period.
(Uncut non shy males can in contrary beat up the homecats, so you must often have such one separated several weeks after neutering is done, before letting him join the homecats).



Good luck!
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #5

ilovecats4ever

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Dec 3, 2008
Messages
32
Purraise
5
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
I think I am going to pick him up, I can't find anyone that I know with a trap so he is actually letting me pet him a lot now, he is still very scared but I am going to just lightly pick him up and put him in the cat carrier, I just hope he doesn't attack me & then lose all the trust I have built up over weeks and weeks. I named him Seymour and I love him already. I put a box with blankets in it and he jumped in it.

so if I get him today I will take him up to the vet, I have to call and ask if I can have an open appointment because I don't know exactly when I can catch him and once I do I will need to take him.
 

lovemykitty3

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Oct 25, 2008
Messages
334
Purraise
1
Location
USA
you can also put food in the back of his carrier and when he goes in to get it close the door. good luck! he sounds like a great cat
 

StefanZ

Advisor
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Sep 18, 2005
Messages
25,999
Purraise
10,648
Location
Sweden
Originally Posted by ilovecats4ever

so if I get him today I will take him up to the vet, I have to call and ask if I can have an open appointment because I don't know exactly when I can catch him and once I do I will need to take him.
An open appointment is great.
But if necessary, you can keep him in that carrier 24 hours, even longer if real necessary.
As shy ferale he is surely used to hide himself long hours at a time holding himself.
Here he is at least somewhere in warm and dry...
 

lilyluvscats

TCS Member
Super Cat
Joined
Nov 15, 2007
Messages
791
Purraise
3
Did you catch him yet? We caught Manny in a regular cat carrier. He was real little though. I hope Seymour fits in with your family.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #11

ilovecats4ever

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Dec 3, 2008
Messages
32
Purraise
5
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
I put my arms around him to pick him up and he got really upset with me and it took until today for him to let me pet him again so I have to keep at it, I put a cat carrier out with the food in it but he wouldn't go to it, so I am going to keep working on him, he has come a long way already so I hope to get him soon, at night he is mean to me because the raccoons are around, he hisses at me and even puts his ears back but in the morning he is super sweet and rubs against me, this morning I looked out my kitchen window and he was staring in, waiting for me, I hope it works out soon.
 

krz

TCS Member
Alpha Cat
Joined
Aug 24, 2008
Messages
594
Purraise
13
I am from Pittsburgh too, it is freezing here tonight. I am currently taking care of 2 stray/feral cats. One has a heated box, but the other just comes here to eat. I hope you get your guy soon, he looks alot like one I take care of. You are making alot of progress with him. Good luck.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #13

ilovecats4ever

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Dec 3, 2008
Messages
32
Purraise
5
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
Also I got him to come in the doorway yesterday by coaxing him with food but he kept running back out, then I shut the door and he flipped out and ran around the room like a wild man, I felt so bad, I let him right back out and he came right back to me and ate but didn't want to come in, it's taking a lot of baby steps but slowly I am getting somewhere new each day. He didn't bite me when I picked him up so that's good and no growling, just scared to death.

I thought about buying an electric blanket but they are dangerous so the heated box sounds perfect, please let me know. Thanks
Amber
 
Top