when other methods and tricks have failed to trap a female cat .what's next?

have tried useing traps as feeders for a week .then set trap . had cat go in back of trap and eat bait and leave without setting off trap.does any one else have any other suggestions ? the female will not let me touch her.

Does your trap have a plate that the cat has to step on to set it off? Or is it one of those with a hook for the bait?

The plate kind can be adjusted to make them more sensitive, if you set it to go off at lighter weights she might set it off. Check the manufactures web page for details on how to adjust your trap.

How about using a drop trap?

http://droptrapdesign.blogspot.jp/

Definitely check the sensitivity setting and be sure it is set to near the most sensitive.  Also I find that covering the trip plate with a puppy pee pads works really well.  I have used newspaper too, but sometimes the sound frightens the cat.  I buy a pack of 4 pee pads at the Dollar Tree and fold them to fit into the trap. 

not sure how to check sensativeity of trap plate.

is it possible that the trap is no longer useable because the trap plate has been bent up twice by a raccoon?

If you have a name of the trap, you can search online (youtube is great) for videos on how to set the trap.  It very well may be bent by a raccoon.  You can test it yourself.  Just set the trap and then get a long handled spoon or long stick, and reach in to reach the trip plate and push it down.  If the trap shuts, it works.  If not then it may be broken.

If she will let you be within sight of her when she goes into the trap, you can rig it to spring it yourself.  Weight a plastic bottle with stones and tie a length of twine around it securely.  Place the bottle under the door and bring the other end of the twine a distance away from the trap.  When she goe inside, you pull on the bottle and the door will snap down.

If this issn't workable, you might want to invest in another trap - a drop trap works wonders for skittish cats.

It can be so frustrating, sending vibes your way!

Some people would think I am nuts for how I trapped the kitten feral who was too smart for a regular trap. I got a huge dog crate of ours (We have Newfies) and a bunch of baling twine from our hay. I tied the string onto the top of the crate door and day in back of the pick up truck bed all day. Kitten went in about 4 hrs later and I pulled on it to close the crate door. I did not have the bailing twine taught enough and the kitten escaped. But, to my surprise, the kitten came back out a few hours later to finish off the stinky meal that was in the crate. This time, I kept the twine taught as I ran across the yard. It worked, I snapped the crate shut.

As for trapping the momma, it took 2 yrs of different trap types and the stinkiest of foods to get her caught so she could be fixed then released. (And as of last night I have her in the house which is a WHOLE new topic I will post in a new thread). The ones the Stray Cat group kept giving me would not work correctly and every time it half trapped her, it made it harder to catch her.