Relocating a stray

theforgottencat

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A quick background, I live in a gated community and am the caretaker of 18 feral and stray cats. There are another 9 cats I have spotted and I know there are more out there that I haven't seen yet because the neighborhood is terribly large. I have had 12 of the cats spayed/neutered and am working to do more each week. 

Anyway there is a cat I refer to as Stinky on the other side of the neighborhood who is definitely a stray with very feral tendencies. I used to live on that side and he'd hang out on my porch all day. I moved in March and he found an new house to live at and the woman there even made him a shelter to use but she has since moved and he still hangs out there. The new occupant is okay with him being there but isn't feeding him or providing a shelter. He goes into the storm drains at night now (where all the other ferals and strays seem to live) and I would LOVE to relocate him to my yard on the opposite side of the neighborhood. It's taken a year but he now allows me to pet him and I know he'd be so much happier here.  I've tried, unsuccessfully, to trap him to have him neutered but am thinking about trying to get him to walk into a lg dog crate at mealtime instead. 

My questions are, how would I prevent him from bolting when I release him? (If you have done TNR you probably know what I am refering to) Should I set him out in the crate to look at his new surroundings first? Does anyone have any experience with relocating ONE stray? If so, what did you do and how was the outcome? Winter is approaching quickly and I just know Stinky would adore a shelter with a heated blanket inside  <3
Here's a few pictures of my favorite guy...

 

And the first time I was able to pet him! 
 

ondine

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If you have a covered porch, you can keep him in a large crate until he learns the new yard is his new territory. That usually takes about a month. A garage or shed can work, too, although I would use the crate in them as well to minimize the chance of an escape.

I used to wire two crates together in my shed. They each have to be two-door crates. I opened the side doors and used zip ties and wire grids (the kind they make kids bookshelves out of) to secure the two side doors together. This formed a "tunnel" between the two crates and gave the cat space. One crate had a carrier with straw or a blanket and the other held the litterboxes. I was able to access either crate through their front doors.

He will need to be confined for a period of time until he feels home. As I said, this could be a month or more. It's been done successfully.

Of course, if there is the possibility of him moving inside, that would be wonderful. He is a beautiful cat.

BTW - thank you for all your work with these colonies. Not enough people step up to the plate like that.
 
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theforgottencat

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You are so clever. I never would have thought to use those wire shelves like that but I have a ton of them I don't use for anything else. I do have a covered porch I could use, I would just have to make sure the wind isn't a problem.... think think think... 

He is beautiful isn't he?! I know his coat is a mess but that's to be expected. I would LOVE, like realllllly love, for him to be an indoor cat but we already have a mostly blind foster kitten living with us and quite ironically, I'm allergic to cats haha. When I lived on the other side of the neighborhood Stinky would come inside my house to eat but the moment I would close the door he'd panic. It makes me so sad because I'm sure he was a lovely pet at one point and was just dumped. 


Everyone was so quick to complain about the cats when I moved here a year ago. Or more commonly, just ignore their existence. I've found 3 or 4 other people who put out food but in a neighborhood of 1500+ houses and probably 40 or 50 cats (being hopeful that that's all haha), that's just not enough. I know animal control was called out a few years back and about 20-30 cats were caught and euthanized but surprise! More showed up. I'm doing everything I can to prevent that from happening again because it's not benefical to our neighborhood and these are wonderful, healthy cats. Since I am still new to this feral cat world it's a slow and steady wins the race kind of thing. A local rescue just reached out to me through my community cats FB page recently and is providing transportation to and from their low cost spay/neuter appts which is such a blessing! Anyway, thank you for your kind words and help! It's soooo appreciated! 
 

ondine

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If the wind hits part of the porch, you can cover one of the crates. Is there any possibility that you can build a catio for him? It will keep him safer outside.

That is great news about the rescue. So much easier when you help and support.
 
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theforgottencat

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I don't think our landlord would permit one
 I'm still trying to convince my husband that the cat should be in our yard (it's smalllll) but even if he was out there I doubt hubby would notice lol
This stray only leaves the house he currently sits in front of to go into the storm drains at night and sleep. Otherwise you can almost always find him sleeping in the front flower bed. 
 
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theforgottencat

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Oh and yes the rescue is being such an amazing help with transporting. Our low cost spay/neuter clinic is about 30-40 mins away depending on traffic and I have kids to get ready and off to school hard to do with a 730am drop off time for neuters!! 
 
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