TheCatSite.com › Forums › Ferals and Rescue › Caring for Strays and Ferals › For the feral colony feeders
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

For the feral colony feeders

post #1 of 10
12/3/09 at 6:13pm
Thread Starter 
Just wondering what your views are on how you do things. There's another lady and I who feed cats in the same area, and we look after each other's cats if the other is away. There's a few things we disagree on, and I was curious at to what other's views are.

Do you feed enough to fill them up for a day, or just enough to "supplement" their diet?

If you can't feed one day for whatever reason, what do you do?

Do you feed on the ground, on plates that you reuse each day, or do you get them a new plate each day?

Do you try and spend time with them, and try to pat them, and REALLY gain their trust?

If one of them seems a little more friendly than the others, and will sit in your lap, purr etc. do you try and make it adoptable, or leave it where it is?
Reply
post #2 of 10
12/3/09 at 6:23pm
Thread Starter 
This is what I do:

Quote:
Do you feed enough to fill them up for a day, or just enough to "supplement" their diet?
I feed enough to supplement their diet. I don't want them to become completely dependent on me in case something happens and I can no longer feed them and nobody else can take over.

Quote:
If you can't feed one day for whatever reason, what do you do?
I don't worry about it. If I can get there early the next morning I do that, otherwise I just feed them the next night.

Quote:
Do you feed on the ground, on plates that you reuse each day, or do you get them a new plate each day?
I just feed on the concrete. I spread dry food out in a line, and portion out tinned food on top of the dry so each cat gets a chunk of wet food each.

Quote:
Do you try and spend time with them, and try to pat them, and REALLY gain their trust?
They have started trusting me more and know me well, and are at the stage where they're wary of me, but not scared of me. I'm torn about this. I don't want them to be too trusting of humans, because there's mean people out there, but if I can touch them, I can put flea treatment on them. One pat I can pat while she's eating now, so I'll Advantage her soon. I figure if I can just touch them enough to de-flea them, I'll do that and leave it at that.

Quote:
If one of them seems a little more friendly than the others, and will sit in your lap, purr etc. do you try and make it adoptable, or leave it where it is?
Unless it's a kitten, I leave them out there, although I haven't had a cat get this friendly. They are feral cats used to being outside, and the 2 colonies we take care of are in pretty safe areas, where the cats have a warm place to sleep, and enough of a food source to keep them happy. I see them as "urban farm cats".

The other lady just got very upset at me because she apparently asked me a long time ago to look after her cats this weekend, and I have no recollection of it. She asked me about another date which I put me in my calendar, but I don't remember this one. There will only be one night that they won't get fed, and I said they'll be fine and she went on about how they build up trust and if you don't feed them every night, then they lose that trust. She feeds them enough that they don't have to search for other food and gets VERY emotionally attached to each cat, which I don't necessarily think is a good thing. She's always trying to take cats home with her (she already has a houseful), and I have to keep gently reminding her they are fine where they are.

She got upset last time I went away because I feed directly on the concrete. She uses containers, but never changes them, or washes them, so I don't really see the difference. My way, the cats can all eat together which they like to do, and they drink out of puddles and eat mice, so I think they have a pretty good tolerance for eating a bit of dirt. They polish off the food I give them, and if they don't the racoons finish it off, so the food never sits out for too long.
Reply
post #3 of 10
12/3/09 at 7:35pm
I have a hole in my shed in the back yard. I make sure that i keep a bowl full of dry cat food inside. Every day at least once, twice when it gets cold, I put out a can of wet food on a frisbee.

We also have raccoons and possums that come into the shed. I have been putting a plate of apples and pears for them to eat. They tend to eat them and leave the cat food alone. If i don't put any thing for them they will finish off the cat food.

I have bought a couple frisbees from the local dollar store, and i wash them out with a different brush then the ones i use for our dinner plates, just making sure nothing gets cross contaminated.

I try to sit out there and talk to them, as much as i can. Most the time they will sit and listen.

I have brought inside a total of five cats. The mommie of them all, you could never tell that she was an outside cat. She the most affectionate cat i have ever seen. She gives me kisses, and sleeps with me every night.

I feel bad that i can not bring them all in. I have even found myself leaving an event because i have to get home and feed my outside cats.

I have a camera in my shed, and as i type at 10:35pm one of my cats came into the shed to eat. It makes me happy to see them, and worried when i do not see them.
Reply
post #4 of 10
12/3/09 at 7:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sarahp View Post
Do you feed enough to fill them up for a day, or just enough to "supplement" their diet?
We sort of played around with the quantity we feed them until we found something that they can eat in one meal. (We had trouble with skunks competing for the food.) I think it's something like 2 cups of Kitten Chow for 3 adult cats.


Quote:
Originally Posted by sarahp View Post
If you can't feed one day for whatever reason, what do you do?
When we lived at our old place, the ferals were right next door so our lovely cat sitter fed the ferals as well. If we're going to be gone for an extended period of time, we might hire a sitter to feed them. We haven't been in that situation since moving, but I think we have missed a day or two here and there. Our cats wait by the feeding area around feeding time, so if we show up at a different time, they probably aren't there. If we can't make it to feeding time, we drop by to see if any cats are around and leave food only if one of them is there (again, because of the skunks). If they're in the vicinity, they'll usually come out when they see/hear our car.


Quote:
Originally Posted by sarahp View Post
Do you feed on the ground, on plates that you reuse each day, or do you get them a new plate each day?
We bought a few food and water bowls, so they get a clean bowl each day. We're able to do this because we only have three cats in our colony, so we don't need a ton of bowls. The area where they live, the ground is either dirt or parking spaces, so that's another reason for using bowls.


Quote:
Originally Posted by sarahp View Post
Do you try and spend time with them, and try to pat them, and REALLY gain their trust?
When the skunks started to come out at feeding time, we kept watch while the cats ate. The skunks eventually stopped coming by, and now we just drop off the food and leave. Since we don't have the resources to socialize, I think it's safer for them if they continue to stay away from people.


Quote:
Originally Posted by sarahp View Post
If one of them seems a little more friendly than the others, and will sit in your lap, purr etc. do you try and make it adoptable, or leave it where it is?

We haven't had that happen, but it would depend on whether we had space, time, and money. We did take in 3 kittens and adopted one out. We kept the other two. We also recently took in a new stray who was hanging around the colony and are working on adopting her out.

I'm emotionally attached to our ferals, and like bszaronos, I have left an event to feed the cats.
Reply
post #5 of 10
12/3/09 at 8:14pm
Quote:
Do you feed enough to fill them up for a day, or just enough to "supplement" their diet?
I feed to fill them up. I've found many of the "ferals" in the area are dumped housecats who don't have the survival instincts, but do not trust me enough to let me touch them.

Quote:
If you can't feed one day for whatever reason, what do you do?
I have others around me who also feed the cats, so I don't have a problem. However I am talking about a farm place, with farmer neighbors - and they just wander back & forth to see who has the best food!

Quote:
Do you feed on the ground, on plates that you reuse each day, or do you get them a new plate each day?
I use the same platter every day.

Quote:
Do you try and spend time with them, and try to pat them, and REALLY gain their trust?
Yes & no. I need them to let me trap them again, but there are some (and I know it will sound bad) that I don't bother with - as they are "too feral".

Quote:
If one of them seems a little more friendly than the others, and will sit in your lap, purr etc. do you try and make it adoptable, or leave it where it is?
I just leave it - there are far too many cats at the shelter here - I feed them, I'll vet them when needed - this is better than the alternative.
Reply
post #6 of 10
12/3/09 at 8:20pm
Do you feed enough to fill them up for a day, or just enough to "supplement" their diet?
I feed them twice a day, but not quite enough to fill them up.

If you can't feed one day for whatever reason, what do you do?
I have someone I know come over and do it.

Do you feed on the ground, on plates that you reuse each day, or do you get them a new plate each day?
I feed on the ground. I tried a cookie sheet but not everyone got a fair share when I did that, so I spread it out.

Do you try and spend time with them, and try to pat them, and REALLY gain their trust?
I try to, I've gained the trust of most of them.

If one of them seems a little more friendly than the others, and will sit in your lap, purr etc. do you try and make it adoptable, or leave it where it is?
I have before, I plan on moving the whole colony with me when I move someday and putting them in a cat enclosure I'm going to build.
Reply
post #7 of 10
12/4/09 at 3:40pm
Quote:
Do you feed enough to fill them up for a day, or just enough to "supplement" their diet?
We didn't worry about which it was. When we realized we were feeding the forest, we started putting the food out for about 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the evening. What got eaten got eaten, what didn't got put back in the container.

Quote:
If you can't feed one day for whatever reason, what do you do?
If it's just one day, we didn't worry about it. When we left for a few days or more, we paid a neighborhood kid to take care of it before and after school.

Quote:
Do you feed on the ground, on plates that you reuse each day, or do you get them a new plate each day?
We ended up building a slatted wood table with inset legs to discourage raccoons, possums and skunks. We used paper bowls and just lined them up.

Quote:
Do you try and spend time with them, and try to pat them, and REALLY gain their trust?
Not a fair question for us, because it was just out back of our home. But at feeding sites we started elsewhere, we didn't spend any time there.

Quote:
If one of them seems a little more friendly than the others, and will sit in your lap, purr etc. do you try and make it adoptable, or leave it where it is?
If a kitty got friendly, we either fostered or found a foster and got the kitty adopted out.
Reply
post #8 of 10
12/4/09 at 8:43pm
Quote:
Do you feed enough to fill them up for a day, or just enough to "supplement" their diet?
I feed them to fill them up. Since I live in the city there isn't much else to eat but garbage and I don't want them to eat that. At the feeding station behind my house I feed in the evening and let the food sit out so that the cats can come and eat when then want to but when it's gone it's gone and the cats knows what time there is food here.

Quote:
If you can't feed one day for whatever reason, what do you do?
If it's just one day I don't worry about it. I've never been gone for a longer period of time since I moved here but if I did I'd get someone else to feed them. I'm with an organization so I could get another caretaker to help out.

Quote:
Do you feed on the ground, on plates that you reuse each day, or do you get them a new plate each day?
Actually I do a little bit of all of it. I'd like to have bowls to feed them in but they have a tendency to disappear so sometimes I feed them on paper plates and sometimes on the concrete. I take the bowls home and wash them once in a while.

Quote:
Do you try and spend time with them, and try to pat them, and REALLY gain their trust?
So many of my cats are tame dumpees so I try to stay and pet them a bit which they really like. With the ferals I just try to get them to where they are not terrified of me. Some will come up and eat while I'm there but others hide until I'm gone so I just see them running.

Quote:
If one of them seems a little more friendly than the others, and will sit in your lap, purr etc. do you try and make it adoptable, or leave it where it is?
I would love to take all the tame ones and place them in homes but that's not possible so the majority stay where they are. But many of my cats have had homes in the past and want to come in (they try to come inside with me). With them I do take them in to adopt them out. I have taken in several tame cats that hangs around my house. It depends on the cat. When it comes to the ferals and the cats that have lived outside their whole lives they are probably better off where they are.
If a cat is having medical problems I always take them in if possible.
Reply
post #9 of 10
12/5/09 at 3:40am
Do you feed enough to fill them up for a day, or just enough to "supplement" their diet?

I feed enough to fill them up since my colony is across town and I'm only able to get there once a day.

If you can't feed one day for whatever reason, what do you do?

I usually have someone fill in for me or don't worry about if it's just one day. A couple of the folks who live on the street where my colony's located also put food out, so the cats won't go hungry.

Do you feed on the ground, on plates that you reuse each day, or do you get them a new plate each day?

I have feral cat feeding station set up so the food is off the ground and protected from the elements. I use the same bowls, but we sanitize them regularly and replace them as needed.


Do you try and spend time with them, and try to pat them, and REALLY gain their trust?

I spend as much time with them as I'm able. It's a challenge sometimes since I feed either on my way to work or on my lunch hour.

If one of them seems a little more friendly than the others, and will sit in your lap, purr etc. do you try and make it adoptable, or leave it where it is?

I try to place any cats that are adoptable and definitely make the effort to socialize any feral kittens, although there haven't been any in three years. I haven't had to return any tame adults yet, but may be facing that decision shortly, since the rescue I work with is so overcrowded.
Reply
post #10 of 10
12/5/09 at 4:00pm
ETA: We only feed them once a day, in the evening when they typically come down from the other field and they are very close to home so it gives me more time with them

Quote:
Originally Posted by sarahp View Post
Do you feed enough to fill them up for a day, or just enough to "supplement" their diet?
I supplement them, like you, I dont want them to become completely dependent on me

When I first started feeding them there was two other women who fed them, both on Mondays only, one in the morning and one at night and they gave them enough food for a week but they dont sleep where we feed (there is a chinese takeaway and they come down to find yummy garbage) so its not like they are storing it - it becomes raccoon food.

Quote:
Originally Posted by sarahp View Post
If you can't feed one day for whatever reason, what do you do?
Its one of the reasons that I only supplement them, between the three of us there are very few occasions over the past few years that we couldnt feed them but if we cant, we cant.

Quote:
Originally Posted by sarahp View Post
Do you feed on the ground, on plates that you reuse each day, or do you get them a new plate each day?
They are fed on the ground, unless it is wet food in a trap

Quote:
Originally Posted by sarahp View Post
Do you try and spend time with them, and try to pat them, and REALLY gain their trust?

If one of them seems a little more friendly than the others, and will sit in your lap, purr etc. do you try and make it adoptable, or leave it where it is?
I did work with them and adopted out most of the younger ones, but it is now at the point where I have taken all of the ones that can be socialised, the others were adults already 3 years ago and were already past socialisation then but I did TNR them and its rare to see a new one show up unless its a stray dumped there in which case I take them to the shelter
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Caring for Strays and Ferals
TheCatSite.com › Forums › Ferals and Rescue › Caring for Strays and Ferals › For the feral colony feeders