Living in a rural area of the mountains we have a feral momma cat-"Karl" who was trapped once but escaped the have a heart through the food slot, she won't go near a trap even with the tastiest food inside. We are able to trap her kittens and find them homes but I worry about Karl having so many litters. Our local shelter has tried to help some, we do have a Spay Nueter Release program but how can we get her spayed if we can't trap her??
-
Too many ads? Join our community of cat lovers now to reduce ads by 90%! Click here to join for free!
Trapping the untrappable
- Thread starter miss lucy
- Start Date
I think @ShadowsRescue and @catwoman707 might have some advice about retrapping ferals.
HIGHLY unlikely you will ever retrap her using the same type of trap.
Especially a female.
You will need to locate a drop trap. Set it up and prop it up with something that won't allow it to drop down on her, and feed her ONLY under the drop trap at the back.
She will go in it to eat but only when she is sure there is no danger, meaning nobody around and hasn't been for a long time, maybe a half hour or longer.
Set it up with food, and leave.
Do this for a few days until you know she ate under it.
Then set it for real but do not be seen or heard at all.
It will have a long string with a post attached for propping it up, go as far away as possible and out of sight and sound, the wait, she will come to eat, once under and in the back with her head down, pull the string which will drop the trap on her.
However! Some drop traps are lightweight, too light and once dropped and cat starts jumping around trying to find an escape, it will lift the edge enough that they see and using their nose, shove it under and escape.
Before I created my own drop trap, I borrowed one and lost my first catch with it due to the weight, so next time attached a heavy bag of cat litter sand to the edges
Worked beautifully, weighing the edges down.
Also needs to drop down to flat, so test it first to make sure the frame lays flat all the way around to prevent escape.
Good luck!
Especially a female.
You will need to locate a drop trap. Set it up and prop it up with something that won't allow it to drop down on her, and feed her ONLY under the drop trap at the back.
She will go in it to eat but only when she is sure there is no danger, meaning nobody around and hasn't been for a long time, maybe a half hour or longer.
Set it up with food, and leave.
Do this for a few days until you know she ate under it.
Then set it for real but do not be seen or heard at all.
It will have a long string with a post attached for propping it up, go as far away as possible and out of sight and sound, the wait, she will come to eat, once under and in the back with her head down, pull the string which will drop the trap on her.
However! Some drop traps are lightweight, too light and once dropped and cat starts jumping around trying to find an escape, it will lift the edge enough that they see and using their nose, shove it under and escape.
Before I created my own drop trap, I borrowed one and lost my first catch with it due to the weight, so next time attached a heavy bag of cat litter sand to the edges
Worked beautifully, weighing the edges down.Also needs to drop down to flat, so test it first to make sure the frame lays flat all the way around to prevent escape.
Good luck!
Here's an old thread that might have some ideas for you.
http://www.thecatsite.com/t/206271/trapping-for-2nd-time
http://www.thecatsite.com/t/206271/trapping-for-2nd-time
Why especially a female? Are they typically smarter, or less adventurous, or what?
HIGHLY unlikely you will ever retrap her using the same type of trap.
Especially a female.
You will need to locate a drop trap. Set it up and prop it up with something that won't allow it to drop down on her, and feed her ONLY under the drop trap at the back.
She will go in it to eat but only when she is sure there is no danger, meaning nobody around and hasn't been for a long time, maybe a half hour or longer.
Set it up with food, and leave.
Do this for a few days until you know she ate under it.
Then set it for real but do not be seen or heard at all.
It will have a long string with a post attached for propping it up, go as far away as possible and out of sight and sound, the wait, she will come to eat, once under and in the back with her head down, pull the string which will drop the trap on her.
However! Some drop traps are lightweight, too light and once dropped and cat starts jumping around trying to find an escape, it will lift the edge enough that they see and using their nose, shove it under and escape.
Before I created my own drop trap, I borrowed one and lost my first catch with it due to the weight, so next time attached a heavy bag of cat litter sand to the edges
Also needs to drop down to flat, so test it first to make sure the frame lays flat all the way around to prevent escape.
Good luck!
They usually are smarter. I've seen female cats chase other cats away from a set trap, warning them.
Yes, sounds comical but seems true.
They are either smarter, or less forgiving/forgetful, and definitely more stubborn personalities.
This is also true in taming feral kittens, take a pair of siblings, the boy will tame much easier/faster than the girl will.
