Have to take away canned for ferals

HI,  I feed many feral cats (probably around 25 or more).  I have always fed canned and dry, but can no longer afford this at all so something has to give.  I am now putting out a little canned in the a.m. and just dry all day and will probably feed them some canned again in the eve., until they are used to it.  They are sitting on my porch (some of them) staring at my door.  They have barely touched the dry.  Their population is also growing as we have no TNR where I live, I just cannot afford this.  So, in order to still feed them I have to give them dry now.  Will they adapt?  I would imagine they would if the alternative is to starve, but is there an easier method to do this or more effective?  I would really appreciate some help here.

Thanks.

They should adapt to the dry in time - its just a case of getting them to try it. Experimenting with different brands may help too. I might consider not leaving food out all day, and offering the dry first thing in the morning when they're at their hungriest. Once they've adjusted to the change, you can revert to leaving food out all day if its needed.

Good luck, and thank you for caring for these sweet babies.

Hi,I have six cats,and have been splitting two ( 5 oz ) cans of Friskies between them for two meals in addition to a small amount ( about a 1/4 cup each ) of dry.They seem to be ok with it. My main task is keeping them from gobbling each others food.When I tried just dry,there were problems.

I know this seems really cruel, but by feeding them and not spaying/neutering you are actually making the problem a lot worse. By giving them a regular food supply you're ensuring that they are all healthy enough to breed at least twice a year, as well as encouraging them to stay in one area rather than spread out and hunt for food.

I know it's really hard not to feed them, but if you can't resist those sweet little faces begging you for food you need to get them fixed.

Talk to vets in your area and ask whether they would be willing to give you a discount on fixing the whole colony. There are very few TNR programs in the country I live in either, but my vet agreed to give my a third of all feral cats I had fixed, as he knew it was going to be at least 30 of them.

The amount of money you will save in food in the future will balance out the cost of spaying/neutering in the long run.

Could you let us know what country/city you live in? We might be able to help you locate a low cost clinic.

Norachan is absolutely right about aggravating the problem by feeding unfixed cats. Have you seen this article?
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Dawn Harvey, Is there a Humane Society or Animal Friends anywhere near you? Both of these organizations have low cost spay/neuter programs, usually for 15-25 dollars a cat, which includes vaccinations and flea medication. If there is one nearby that requires a lengthy drive, perhaps you could arrange to trap several of these cats the same morning and take them there all at once. You don't need to be part of a TNR program--I'm not. I bought a humane trap at Tractor Supply for 20 dollars and my neighbor and I together trapped and spayed/neutered 5 cats two summers ago (I can't say it was a TNR because we ended up keeping and socializing every one of them). Anyone can do this. It helps if you have someone to help you, though, for moral support.

I would never advocate not feeding feral cats who have become dependent on you for food. Once a cat becomes dependent on you for food, I feel it's unethical to suddenly remove that food source. And what are you accomplishing? They'll either starve or move onto a different neighborhood and become someone else's problem. Please purchase or rent or borrow a humane trap and start getting them neutered/spayed.

Regarding wet food. I generally feed all 6 of my cats with one can of Friskies wet food or 2 cans of Fancy Feast. I mix the canned food with water, which stretches it out, and also provides much needed hydration, especially in the winter. You may need to switch to less expensive brands of food (the only dry food I absolutely recommend against is Meow Mix--that stuff is just junk). Also, if you call your local Humane Society, many of them will give food to feral/stray colony caregivers. They offered me food last year when I was briefly feeding a colony of roaming cats near my work place.

Any help you give them is great. All we can do is our best. Good luck.