we are being over run with feral cats!!!!

You had already sayed A, so do say also B.

Ie, if you trap them and give them away, it would be good to spay them. And let them go back, these of them who are her personal friends, her property so to speak.

You dont need to talk too loudly what you are doing. But if she understands, she will probably be happy with it and even grateful, as long as nobody forces her to admit this...


find a cheap vet, if necessary try all the neighbors to help with the fee...
Perhaps the human society can help some with the necessary money for vet fees? Or some other group in your town.

Good luck!

Is there a low-cost spay/neuter clinic or vet near you? Have you searched for one? Do you need help finding one? If you can give us the name of your town or your zip code, we can see if we can help turn up at least something to help you afford to do this.

Basically, if there are no TNR organizations near you, then it is up to you and your neighbors, as you point out. It's the way it is for most of it - we just have to tackle the problem one cat at a time. We trap-neuter-release adults - they get their rabies vaccination but that's it - and kittens we work to adopt out. There's a foster network fairly near us that sometimes can take kittens, but we usually end up talking the vet techs into helping us foster them - and they also usually get adopted out through the vet, though we provide the adoption papers and pay for everything. The adoption fee we charge is more to make sure the adopter is serious - it doesn't offset a lot of the cost (especially if the kittens needed medical attention, often the case).

What part of Kentucky are you in?

You may be able to find a low-cast spay/neuter clinic. We have one where I live that is $35/cat! Rabies is an additional $10 which may or may not be mandatory depending on where you live.

How did the conversation go with the neighbor about doing something about all the cats? Does the neighbor understand the issue? She obviously cares about the kitties, wanting them fed. Maybe giving her some literature about TNR may help her realize that they need fixed as well, for the benefits of the kitties. Meaning, not just so there 'aren't all these cats' but so that the cats are healthier and living better lives - not constantly in heat, taking care of their babies, etc. Maybe the idea needs sold to her...?

If she didn't mind when some cats & kittens were taken away, I don't think she'd mind if some cats disappeared for a day or two to get spayed/neutered. But with the cost in mind, it may be wise to have everyone help out that wants something done.

Thanks for helping out with the kitties!

Most of the cats in my neighborhood are unowned but there are a few cats that has owners but are running around in the street making more cats. One cat in particular lives across the alley from me and he comes over and eats here every day. I wasn't sure how to deal with him since I know that he has an owner so I did some checking with my TNR group. According to them any cats that are free roaming are considered strays and as such I am in my full right to trap and spay and neuter them. Since I feed this cat every day he is one of my charges even though this other family claims ownership of him.

Now, laws differ from place to place so it may be different where you live but I would think that if the cats go into other people's property and you feed them you are in your right to have them trapped and fixed.

As other people mentioned the only way to manage the current kitty problem and make sure that it doesn't balloon into a a hundred cat problem (which is will if you don't act now) is to get all the cats, or as many as you possibly can, spayed and neutered. It's really the only way.

Check around for any TNR groups in your area. There may be one that can help you. If not it will unfortunately be up to you and your neighbors. Maybe you can all pool your money to get the cats fixed. Finding a low cost spay/neuter clinic is very helpful, even if you have to drive a bit to get there. When they are fixed you bring them back to the spot you trapped them on and release them.

Before you start trapping it really helps if you have a feeding routine with the cats. Feed at the same time every day at the same spot. That way you are sure that the cats will show up when you set the traps out and since they are expecting food they are more likely to go into the traps that you've baited with stinky food.
The website www.alleycat.org has lots of great tips on dealing with stray cats and doing TNR. Check it out.
Once you've gotten all the cats fixed the cat population won't grow and eventually the population will get smaller and smaller.

Good luck and thanks for caring.

She sounds like a borderline Hoarder. If she has all these cats because she feels like she is rescuing them, then it should be much easier to talk her into getting them spayed and neutered. Just make sure you can explain to her that spaying and neutering are an integral part of rescuing an animal.

Also, a few things that a lot of people don't know:

If you have government assistance -- food stamps, SS disability, Housing, etc, you can get a government discount on getting animals altered. I know in Alabama at least it was called "Maddy's fund" and someone with these types of assistance were allowed to fix up to 8 animals a year.

Also, Military service members can also get a discount if they live on a military housing development, can even get the procedures done for free. Go to militaryonesource.com if you are military or know someone military who could use these services.

The humane society in my area is absolutely no help, but I can hope that there are organizations in your area that are more helpful. Best of luck that you get this problem nipped in the bud, so to speak.