Resources for Feral Cats near Pittsburgh, Pa?

My nana has had a feral cat colony move into her backyard. She has taken care of them but is pretty unaware of TNR. Many of them are very friendly and only a few are strictly unadoptable. I know one cat has had a litter of kittens but I have not seen her yet. They are super pretty and most are brownish-red with white markings. So, is there a TNR program in the suburbs of Pittsburgh?

THANKS IN ADVANCE!

Thank you for wanting to help the cats in your Nana's back yard!

Here's how to search:

Alley Cat Allies and Best Friends are the two national feral cat advocacy groups.

To contact Alley Cat Allies to find out if they know of TNR programs in your area, go here: http://www.alleycat.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=444

To contact Best Friends No More Homeless Pets Campaign to see if there are any in their network in your area that can help, the e-mail to contact them is here: http://www.bestfriends.org/nomorehom...ts/thenetwork/

You can also search through http://www.pets911.com/local-shelters-and-rescues There are two helpful links you can search by zip code here: both the Feral Services and the Find Local Shelters and Rescue. If there are no Feral Services, then contact the shelters and rescues in the area. Sometimes there aren't groups, but rescues will know of individuals that may be willing to help - or of organizations that aren't listed in the search.

You can also search through http://www.petfinder.com. Just search for "cat" in your zip code. All the listings have an affiliated organization, and all the organizations have either a link to a contact page or a website, all which will have contact info somewhere. Call, send e-mails, and generally just ask! Plead!

The other thing you can do is call around to local vets to see if they know of or work with anyone working with ferals. They make think you're crazy - and you may feel crazy - until you find that one that says "Oh yeah, we have a 'crazy cat person.' Why don't you give me your number, and we'll call him/her to see if he/she can help." Well - in our case, that would be crazy cat couple.

If you start an e-mail campaign to locate help, don't expect responses right away. Most orgs are under-staffed and under-funded. In fact, so many places don't have TNR groups, that most of us ended up figuring out how to procure traps, learning how to trap, and locating a vet or clinic to work with.

Laurie

Thank you! Everything has been going great. They gobbled up the raw hamburger, bread, and hotdogs I gave them and they love bagels, too. They are so going to get fat. LOL. I've befriended a patched tabby kitten and a gray solid color. I might have gained the trust of a few other ones, but they all look alike. I really appreciate your advice.

It really is best just to feed them cat food. Especially since you may need the goodies to lure them into a trap.

Laurie

Hi!! I am from Pittsburgh and am happy to tell you that the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society, located in the North Side, and the Animal Resuce League, have teamed up in efforts with a program for TNR. Several teams go out together to locations, trap the cats, spay and neuter at the clinics and then they are released with caretakers looking after the colonies. I am not sure where you are, but if you contact either of these agencies, they would be happy to help you. There is also a Fund for Ferals located in Pittsburgh that is also a wonderful group and are very helpful. Good luck!!

Originally Posted by LDG

It really is best just to feed them cat food.

Especially since you may need the goodies to lure them into a trap.

Laurie

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I would but we don't have any. They have been fed it before though. They go crazy for any food.

If you're going to feed them, with the goal of having them be spayed/neutered, best to buy it for them if you can.

Laurie