Question about a feral ...

I trapped tonite. First off sorry Ive been MIA for a while, everyone has been sick here, then it was my dh bday & then our anniversary I tell ya its been 1 thing after another here lately ... Anyhooo....

I trapped our solid black feral we call Midnight. Now a true feral will thrash around & not make any sound & if so its generally hissing & growling. Right?!?

Now Midnight though not happy in the trap doesnt seem like Moose the feral I trapped last month, he was nasty. Midnight is just kinda there, it meowed when I brought him/her in the house. And to my shock let me touch its tail. I ONLY did that b/c before I began TNR'ing our ferals I went around & made sure none of our neighbors owned a cat that they allow outdoors & while doing that, the teenager across the street said he can pick the blk one (Midnight) up when he/she is waiting for him to feed his dog. (lil taco bell dog LOL cant spell it)

So does Midnight sound like a "true" feral or could it just possibly be someones cat at one point? I hope its not a female and possibly has a litter out somewhere. Is there anyway to tell if in fact its a female if she's nursing?

PS the kittens we've been trying to socialize are doing good. They now have free reign of our downstairs. They are bonding wonderfully w/ our cats & to my shock Moo is now meowing when I come to feed them .. thanks to my loud mouth Dygit .. he's a talker! Coal is doing good too. They both are looking more & more relaxed each day. Well gotta bath my oldest son & get him off to bed!

Thanks in advance for any comments or thoughts!

I'm not an expert....he/she could be a stray...but I would still have him/her fixed.

Katie

It depends on his history, one that you will never know. The longer a cat is forced to be outdoors and survive, the more it reverts back to his feralness. If this cat was born of a domestic cat that had either run away or been dumped, then the wildness isn't that evident.

He/She was dropped off this am. Not neutering him/her was never a thought, I was only curious b/c if he/she is in fact a stray then the orginzation C.A.R.E. will find him/her a home. Im paying to have him/her tested for Fel. Luk/AIDS so hopefully that will come back neg. Will keep yall posted.

When I dropped off "Midnight" I over heard the lady working there say they had 80 ferals scheduled for today! Wow thats alot of ferals & alot less unwanted cats!!!

Thanks for your comments!!!

the teenager across the street said he can pick the blk one (Midnight) up when he/she is waiting for him to feed his dog. (lil taco bell dog LOL cant spell it)

Chahuahua

I remember how to spell it by pronouncing it wrong when trying to spell it. It's pronounced "Chi-wa-wa," but, if you were to pronounce it by how it's spelled, it would be "Cha-hoowa-hoowa," and that's how I remember how to spell it!

Thanks Addy LOL

Nise - Congratulations on trapping Midnight! You've been doing great - keep it up!

In my experience, most of my ferals reacted as Midnight did when trapped. They were very quiet, almost afraid to move. Sadly, that's because they were terrified. The best thing to do is to put the cage in a quiet spot and cover it completely so the cat doesn't feel even more vulnerable.

I've also had a few ferals thrash around the trap til they bloodied their noses tried to push their way out. The howling and crying could break your heart.

It's difficult to tell from just the reaction to being trapped if the cat is in fact feral or not. Unless of course, the cat is purring and rubbing his head against the interior of the trap - I had one kitty do that who turned out to be a big doll - he had obviously been dumped by some @#$%!

Remember that even house cats can act angry and afraid in stressful situations, giving the impression that they're feral.

The vet will be able to tell if Midnight is a mom cat. Examining the teeth will also give clues as to Midnight's age.

If the kid across the street can actually pick Midnight up (no true feral will let you even get close enough to do that!) I would guess that Midnight is most likely an abandoned cat, or very sorely neglected by people who don't deserve him/her.

Good work, Nise! Looking forward to updates!

Thanks KTLynn!!! Well the verdict is in .. Midnight is a she! No more then a yr old & fel. luk/aids NEG yippie! I have her in the trap of course in our back utility room w/ a towel over her trap. She's nice & quiet, will be offering her a little water her shortly. Im not so sure now she's the one the neighbor kid could pick up B/C today while she was at the SPCA I looked out my kitchen window & If I didnt know that Midnight was being spayed I would of sworn it was her! I couldnt believe my eyes .... it was a solid blk cat w/ yellow eyes! So all this time we thought it was 1 cat ... now appears its really 2 LOL

Not sure if she was once owned or not & the spca was NO help w/ that. but cant blame them, they neutered about 80 cats/dogs today 27 of which were feral cats. She's quiet & all in the trap & the only noise she's made is the couple of meows in the van on the way to the SPCA this am. When I go check on her she scoot as far away from me as she can O'well, atleast she will live a healthier, happier & hopefully longer life now that she wont be a kitten making machine! I just hope once I let her go that she doesnt disappear like Moose, the male feral I trapped last month ~ he was NASTY!

Will post a picture of Moo & Coal here soon ... their doing so good! Looks like we'll be keeping them

Here's Midnight this am. before I took her to be spayed.




Here are Moo & Coal making themselves comfy on the animalprint pillow I made for under my computer desk for Dygit.

Hi Nise - Midnight is just beautiful - I love ALL cats, but I have a special fondness for black kitties!

Just a suggestion: the next time you trap, cut some cardboard to fit the floor of the trap. It's easier on the cat's feet than standing on the bare wire of the trap. You can use several layers of newspaper also, but if you trap on windy days and it blows around it will scare the cats away from the trap.

I don't know how long you're planning to keep Midnight to recover, but ideally, you should hold her at least 5-7 days to make sure her sutures stay put, she's not showing signs of infection, and is healing properly. Hopefully, they gave you some pain meds for her, too. Spaying is major surgery. Pain meds need to be given for at least the first 48 hrs. after the spay.

I hope she sticks around, too. Do you have a place you could put a small shelter for her? Hopefully she's associated you with food and she'll come back.

It's funny that you didn't realize there were actually TWO black cats. Guess you'll be checking out that other kitty soon...

You're absolutely right about making Midnight's life better (and healthier) now that she won't be constantly pregnant (not to mention preventing LOTS of unwanted kittens ).

You did good!!!

PS - The pic of Moo & Coal is priceless!

Originally Posted by KTLynn

Hi Nise - Midnight is just beautiful - I love ALL cats, but I have a special fondness for black kitties!

Just a suggestion: the next time you trap, cut some cardboard to fit the floor of the trap. It's easier on the cat's feet than standing on the bare wire of the trap. You can use several layers of newspaper also, but if you trap on windy days and it blows around it will scare the cats away from the trap.

I don't know how long you're planning to keep Midnight to recover, but ideally, you should hold her at least 5-7 days to make sure her sutures stay put, she's not showing signs of infection, and is healing properly. Hopefully, they gave you some pain meds for her, too. Spaying is major surgery. Pain meds need to be given for at least the first 48 hrs. after the spay.

I hope she sticks around, too. Do you have a place you could put a small shelter for her? Hopefully she's associated you with food and she'll come back.

It's funny that you didn't realize there were actually TWO black cats. Guess you'll be checking out that other kitty soon...

You're absolutely right about making Midnight's life better (and healthier) now that she won't be constantly pregnant (not to mention preventing LOTS of unwanted kittens ).

You did good!!!

PS - The pic of Moo & Coal is priceless!

Click to expand...

I have GREAT news! It seems as though Midnight was someone kitty at one point in time. Prob. got her as a kitten then realized she was too much work & dumped her or let her out. She seems really skinny to me but then again Im used to my brut 12.8 lbs Oliver She is meowing like crazy & lets me pet her & when I pet down her back she raises up her bum like your average house cat will do! So Drew (dh) talked to the lady at C.A.R.E. & he told her about Midnight & she told him to bring her in on Sat. their adoption day Im so happy that she will be off the streets & have a loving home! Here's a pic. of where she'll be staying til sat.



The SPCA didnt give me any pain med. but Drew told the lady we got distemper which we didnt so Im going to run her to our vet. And will ask her for some pain meds!

Just wanted to share the good news! I know my jaw just dropped when I saw that black cat yesterday

Will try the light cardboard next month, I tried the newspaper last month & the cats werent buying it .. I tell you cats are just too clever sometimes!!!

Ok Id better get! Thanks for everything!

Just wanted to say I called my vet & got a appt for thurs. to have her vaccinated. *already got her rabies* Also I was petting her again & she flipped on her back for me to pet her tummy & she was purring! Im so excited for her!!!

You seem to be doing a very good job. Thanks for helping Midnight!

Took Midnight to my vet today & got her distemper shot. She's 6.10 lbs & my vet guessed she's about 6 months old. My hubby will be taking her to his store on sat. for their adoption day w/ C.A.R.E.

Ps have pictures of Midnight and the kittens on pg 1.