trapping one cat and not another cat

How do you all deal when you need to trap one cat and other cats feeding in the same location have already been TNR'd?   I know I can just let out the TNR'd cat if he goes in, but I worry the other cat will be spooked by seeing this and the TNR'd cat will be even harder to catch again in the future if needed.   What do you seasoned rescuers do?

Bastfriend, I ran into this situation a lot.  In my case, sometimes I needed to trap just one cat, but not the other eight I'd already TNRd.  I would set out food at the normal eating time, sit close to the cats while they ate, shooing away the cat I wanted to TNR.  I needed the new cat to be hungry.  The cats I'd TNRd before were generally curious when I set out the trap but remembered what that trap was for and rarely went into it again.  (The exception was Twiddledee, but he was just dumb--he went in twice within fifteen minutes.)

You might also feed the one cat you TNRd and then set out the trap much later at night; the cat that hadn't been fed would more likely to be looking for food late a night.  In my case, in part because it was also quieter late at night, I would set out traps aound 4 a.m.  This was not a normal time I fed the colony, so those cats weren't around--only the new cat(s) were.  Also, some cats are very wary of new routine, including food.  So you can experiment with the bait for the trap--either different from what you normally feed or the same.  One cat I'd tried to TNR for two months was suspicious of really good food (mackerel) but did take the bait when it was her normal Friskies.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

PS:  I never get the cats tested for FIV/FeLK, only rabies shots (required by law in my area) and deworming.  If I removed cats from the colony for resocialization/fostering, then I took the cat to be immediately tested. 

Thanks for the ideas Ritz, doing two feeding makes a lot of sense.   Hercules (the tnr'd one) still isn't back to his regular schedule since his release Saturday - I haven't seen him yet just evidence he's eating.   But hopefully once he gets back on it I can do that later feeding trick.   I know Oscar has been around late in the quiet night hours.    I bummed though that except for a slow kitty (love that name Twiddledee) that your others wouldn't go in the trap - what hope do I have of ever retrapping Hercules three months from now?

I'm  a little confused, why do you need to retrap Hercules in three months?

If the cat is hungry enough, he'll usually go in the trap. 

(There is also a Twiddledum in my colony, presumed litter mates because they showed up at the same time.)

I think it's because she's going to be moving.

What I do is feed everyone so they're not prowling around disturbing the kitty I need to trap. Then I pick up the food, and bait and set the trap. I've never had an issue before - I have retrapped a couple of cats, but once that happened once, they don't go back in there. :lol3: But we're having a heck of a time trapping Tommy right now.

To get someone to the vet that's been trapped before, I start putting food in a crate. Of course... this only works for the ferals that get used to me. The serious ferals that remain completely elusive... there's nothing I can do for them other than hope and pray.... :heart2:

Bastfriend said:

Thanks for the ideas Ritz, doing two feeding makes a lot of sense.   Hercules (the tnr'd one) still isn't back to his regular schedule since his release Saturday - I haven't seen him yet just evidence he's eating.   But hopefully once he gets back on it I can do that later feeding trick.   I know Oscar has been around late in the quiet night hours.    I bummed though that except for a slow kitty (love that name Twiddledee) that your others wouldn't go in the trap - what hope do I have of ever retrapping Hercules three months from now?

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the times that i have run into that situation i sort of played sheep dog. i used numerous plates of food placed far away from where i would place the trap and got my tnr'd cats eating. then i would use my favorite bait (sardines in water) in the trap and set it. after setting it i would position myself in between the trap and all of the other cats so that if they started to come towards the trap i could cut them off and offer them treats to keep them distracted. only once did i unintentionally re-catch one of the already tnr'd ones and after letting him out i was able to get my "target" shortly thereafter.

one other option is to use a drop trap. i don't know if there is a tnr group in your area but if there is they could probably let you borrow it and offer some assistance with the trapping. i will say that, in my very limited experience with drops traps, it is a two person job.

Ritz said:

I'm  a little confused, why do you need to retrap Hercules in three months?

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if i am not mistaken, Bastfriend is moving in three months and is contemplating socializing Hercules.

Hi Ritz, love it tweedledee and twiddledum!   Yep I hope to move out of this insanely overpriced apartment I'm in - new management came in and decided to turn what used to be a bargain complex into a money-maker.   I would have moved already if not for health problems.    So it sounds like you've had success retrapping cats?

LDG, would you mind posting a link to what this kind of crate looks like?   I've seen people post many times about crates but I'm not sure....is this like a dog training cage thing?    Thanks for the tips, sounds like a two stage thing for sure - since the real Oscar seems more feral than Herc maybe this could work out. 

Whaler, that sounds like quite an operation!  Operation Sheepdog.   Your ferals must be pretty comfortable for them to eat with you out there - so far I have to leave while Hercules (or Oscar) watches me.   Still that may change I hope as more time passes.    And yep those are the reasons the move and possible socialization and also in the mix is waiting for my health to improve.   I'm really just exhausted from the recent TNR activities which went as well as I could have hoped other than the kitty being a GIANT!

Bastfriend said:

Whaler, that sounds like quite an operation!  Operation Sheepdog.   Your ferals must be pretty comfortable for them to eat with you out there - so far I have to leave while Hercules (or Oscar) watches me.   Still that may change I hope as more time passes.    And yep those are the reasons the move and possible socialization and also in the mix is waiting for my health to improve.   I'm really just exhausted from the recent TNR activities which went as well as I could have hoped other than the kitty being a GIANT!

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"operation sheepdog" :lol3:

yeah, my little crew is very comfortable with me but believe me it took time. one of my ferals, mommie, would at first not go to her dish if i was within 100 feet. over time i would put the dishes down and walk away but only not as far. week by week we had improvement and now she will let me rub her while she is eating.

give it time, i bet that soon enough Hercules will come to let you hang out with him.

It's just the regular crate we use for taking our cats to the vet!

It does mean one of two things:

- either the cat is comfortable enough to eat with you present OR
- you feed where you can be close enough to use a string to pull the door shut, yet far enough away the cat will go in to eat

For #1, I feed in the crate for a few meals (if it's not an emergency) so they get comfortable going all the way in to eat and I can just... quickly close the door.


But I always forget about the drop trap! You can make one yourself. Shoot - the thread that had the fabulous easy-to-understand pictures no longer has the pictures in it, the links are broken. But they're pretty easy to make on your own with PVC piping, thick netting, and building in a door for transfer to a trap or crate. I'm sure I can find instructions somewhere....

That is SO good of you to want to take Hercules with you to your new place.

I haven't had a lot of experience retrapping cats, but I have had to trap one specific cat with other cats milling around.  "Sheepdog operation" sounds like  really good solution, too.  (Dress warmly!)

Some cats forget about being trapped before; others don't, but hunger wins out.  Feral/stray cats (versus house) know how to hunt and dumpster dive for food; otherwise, they don't survive long.

I was trying to trap one house cat I'd trap nine months ago at a different location (20 miles away, long story).  I ended up trapping six cats, but not this cat.  The cat eventually found her way back to her Forever Home on her own.

On the other hand, Twiddledee went into the trap twice within 15 minutes.  Later experiences taught me he is VERY food focused.

There was another cat who we retrapped in order to remove from colony and socialize.  Nine months later he was ready to go into a Forever Home.  My friend put him into a cat carrier, he freaked, escaped her house, and two weeks later found his way back at my colony, two miles away.  He was at this point friendly enough so that I was able to scruff him (versus trap) and put him into a cat carrier.  Two months later, he was adopted into a Forever Home where he is living happily.

LDG said:

But I always forget about the drop trap! You can make one yourself. Shoot - the thread that had the fabulous easy-to-understand pictures no longer has the pictures in it, the links are broken. But they're pretty easy to make on your own with PVC piping, thick netting, and building in a door for transfer to a trap or crate. I'm sure I can find instructions somewhere....

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dr.pierson has a how to as well as some other tips http://www.catinfo.org/?link=remotecontroldroptrap

i love the remote control trap, someday i will have to modify one of mine.

I think a cat who was TNRed that recently isn't going to go back in the trap so soon! :lol3: I doubt it'll be a problem this time.

In my experience its kind of rare to retrap one if you are feeding them enough to keep them full. We used to call ones that get retrapped a lot "trap happy".
But you have to look at this from the cats experience. They have been trapped, confined in a small space takened for a car ride, neutered, and then released. Retraps are probably the least of the problems.
I have trapped the one out of the 8 who were previously trapped/neutered because the others are leary of the trap and not as hungry.
Of the 8 I trapped, neutered and released it has taken almost a full year but 3 will now actually come to be scratched, 2 others will tolerate being touched/scratched prior to eating but not after they are full.
One, the smallest, is coming around and the other 2 will probably always be wild.
Catching the last one of anything is always tough...be patient..it took three solid days of running the traps every 3-4 hours to catch the last female who was the wildest... and by the way is laying at the foot of my bed as I write this...yes a weak moment!
Another than is to use more than one trap...I used 3 at one time...kind of increases your odds.
Good luck...its worth the effort when you realize they will no longer be fighting, being constantly bred, and bringing more kittens into a world to be killed or starve.

Thanks Trudy for sharing your experiences.   How did you get that wildest kitty lying at the foot of your bed????   I guess this might take the thread off topic, but just curious.   I did the traditional taming the feral cat thing with my indoor feral, keeping her in a bathroom many weeks, and even seven years later while she's much friendlier she will never allow me to pick her up or lie down at the foot of the bed.    She was someone's cat before she was abandoned and reverted feral, and I suspect she was abused while in human care.   It took her a couple years not to anticipate me to hit her or throw something at her.   I wonder if a feral that's never experienced abuse has a better shot at being tamed?

To everyone in general....my current plan is to wait on catching Oscar for now until I have his relocation plan set up.   That may take 3-4 months but I'm thinking now that I don't want to have two cats that will be hard to trap because I trapped them already, one has me worried enough already!    Oscar's turning out to be very wild and elusive, only eats late at night - turns out it was Hercules that I was seeing 99% of the time. 

Guess I should read me email sooner
We trapper her when she was very young, just a kitten because we knrw if we didn't she would get bred, tec.
We put her in a dog wire kennel with a blanket for a cover in the kitchen
First time I picked her up she got spooked and bit me clear through my thumb nail...wow a long time since I felt that kind of pain!
But you know a lot of petting, holding and making her feel like top cat and in about two weeks the battle was over. She was spayed and gets aloong fine with the other three...the feeling is nit always mutual since she is young and wild.
We were never able at least at one year to tame the wild nature out of her...she woild try anything to get out and finally did. From then on it was battle to keep her in..i.e. up at four am to go out and cries to get back in around eight...eat and out again. Guess this is the way it will be unless she "grows out of it" highly unlikely!
All our four cats are rescued ferals and all have their "quirks". Guess it just goes with coming from a survival lifestyle.
Even the cats at the barn colony...some will actually let me pick them up and some still run when they see me come to feed...this has been over a year.

Just give love and it will be returned...however always on "cat time"