Disappearing cats, eviction from colony?

bugmankeith

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In the past I mysteriously had 4 or 5 cats from my colony vanish, all I could pet and all were fixed. Most were females but also had 2 males. Most of them did show a slight abnormality (runt, balance issues) but at least 2 looked and acted completely healthy.

I'm curious, even if the cats know I am feeding them, can other cats forcefully evict these cats to the point they never return?

One runt female who was so close she would come in my house vanished one day never to be seen again. Another female who came around for 3 years and I raised vanished without a trace. A healthy male vanished too one day. Another male who when he walked was off balance and sometimes seemed to trip over his own feet was also very close to me and vanished one day, saw him a year later one day, he was chased off by a larger male in the colony, and since then he never came back.

All of these cats had one thing in common that my other colony cats don't, both male and female cats would attack/chase these cats whenever they just saw them. It was harassment to the point some days they never got to eat!

I can see mabye spayed females are deemed worthless to males so mabye that is why they were chased, but not all my spayed females were chased, only certain individuals. As for the males, mabye the ones that left were the less dominant males and even though fixed, left to claim own territory?

Still, it makes no sense to leave when food and shelter is here, and I have never found evidence of dead, trapped, or adopted cats around here, and I know I'm the only one who feeds cats in close proximity to my house.
 

don1945

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I happens to us too.  We have been feeding a bunch of strays who live around our shop for a few years and we have gotten close to a bunch of them.  Some would even come into the shop and lay on a carpet we put down for them and play with their toys.  All of a sudden they started to disappear.   Probably 10 or more have just gone away, and a few had been regulars for the whole time we have been taking care of them.

One cat that we were particularly fond of disappeared for about 9 months and all of a sudden he was sitting at our shop door one night.  He was a completely different cat though, very skittish and constantly looking around.  He came for a few nights and then was gone again.   The other thing that is odd is that all the cats who used to come were friendly with each other and would eat side by side.  Now they seem to not get along at all with each other and one chases the other male cats off when they show up.

All of the cats in this picture used to come by and now all of them are gone.   I don't know if someone or something is killing them or what, but it is very sad.

Don

 

feralvr

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Unfortunately, the social dynamics amongst feral cats of a colony are completely turned upside down when a new cat starts to hang around. They definitely can chase off other cats as well. It is heartbreaking but there is nothing you can do about it. Sometimes if a regular is consistently chasing off other regulars then you could consider relocating the offender who is causing such dissension in the colony. Most times, though, they will come and go as you say. Some never return and some return after many, many months leaving you to wonder how in the world they survived. Pretty amazing little beings :rub: :heart3: :vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes: for your feral kitties.... :vibes::vibes::vibes:
 
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