Am I crazy or should I

As many of you know my Zoey was a feral but I adopted her at the local shelter.. hehehe .. I didnt know what feral was I thought stray ..lmao...

Well Zoey is doing amzingly well and I would like to give other ferals( semis too) a chance at a loving home.. Plus Zoey is well behaved but her mannerisms are a mix of cat dog and human since she must not have had a good kitty upbringing...

Am I nuts >???

There is one TNR lady in 7 counties here ... she is out of funds to get a low cost spay or neuter( If I could get a trap I would talk to my vet ) and her traps are all busy for the next few months... My small feral colony is about 7 cats ( 2 very feral and I would release them , 2 semi ferals and two strays and one neighborhood male )... I would like to catch and socialize the strays and semi ferals and adopt them out ( I have places to help with that ) but would I be doing the right thing>??

YES!!!! Good for you Jennifer every single person can make a difference
Also, you may be able to get a trap from another source, I don't know if there is a humane society or SPCA in your area, but they often have traps you might be able to borrow

Originally Posted by sharky

As many of you know my Zoey was a feral but I adopted her at the local shelter.. hehehe .. I didnt know what feral was I thought stray ..lmao...

Well Zoey is doing amzingly well and I would like to give other ferals( semis too) a chance at a loving home.. Plus Zoey is well behaved but her mannerisms are a mix of cat dog and human since she must not have had a good kitty upbringing...

Am I nuts >???

There is one TNR lady in 7 counties here ... she is out of funds to get a low cost spay or neuter( If I could get a trap I would talk to my vet ) and her traps are all busy for the next few months... My small feral colony is about 7 cats ( 2 very feral and I would release them , 2 semi ferals and two strays and one neighborhood male )... I would like to catch and socialize the strays and semi ferals and adopt them out ( I have places to help with that ) but would I be doing the right thing>??

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I think it is wonderful that you are willing to do this...just remember, truly feral cats should be returned (once spayed/neutered).

I do not understand the question. If this you dream about is possible for you to do - of course you shall work on it.
It will cost you a lot of work, time, perhaps some blood and even some sorrows - and a lot of money if you dont have a good sponsor - but you will also have rich retributions. A formidable and wonderful task for a catfriend.

Shy semiferals (and many ferals) arent THAT difficult to socialize - if you have own friendly homecat to help.
To socialize them alone is also possible, but usually more difficult and takes more time.

One tip: not too many semiferals at one time, preferably only one with the homecats...

Sounds like you will be doing a wonderful thing for all those cats! One person can make such a positive difference and you are such an inspiration!! Ask Zoey to give you some head-butts for me!

Anyone have any ideas to get them to eat less expensive food?? right now it is 30 $ for a 20lb bag.... not alot cept for I have the indoors too...

Yes, I think it would be a wonderful thing for you to do, given you can work out the funds....Good luck, keep us posted of course!!! You mean they won't eat less expensive food? Are they snobs? All our ferals would eat anything we fed them. Just be prepared, you might catch a raccoon or skunk in the trap! I caught a raccoon once, and it was HUGE! I put the trap in the garage (there was food and water still in it) until dark and then released him. That was fun!

Originally Posted by menagerie mama

Yes, I think it would be a wonderful thing for you to do, given you can work out the funds....Good luck, keep us posted of course!!! You mean they won't eat less expensive food? Are they snobs?

All our ferals would eat anything we fed them. Just be prepared, you might catch a raccoon or skunk in the trap! I caught a raccoon once, and it was HUGE! I put the trap in the garage (there was food and water still in it) until dark and then released him. That was fun!

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SHould I put big strong GUY on the list with trap and food??

Originally Posted by sharky

SHould I put big strong GUY on the list with trap and food??

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Are you saying I look like a big strong guy? Sheesh!!! No, I let him out by myself, my friend (who is a girl) just watched.

Originally Posted by sharky

Anyone have any ideas to get them to eat less expensive food?? right now it is 30 $ for a 20lb bag.... not alot cept for I have the indoors too...

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Sharky...what about asking supermarkets and petstores to provide you their expired and dented cans and broken and expired dry food.

Katie

I think that's a wonderful idea. I have done the same here although most of the ferals have moved in with me.

Most of the cats I became friendly with and was able to pick them up and put in a carrier to go to the vets. The last one that I had wanted to get my hands on for about 2 years was taken care of early this month. Because he was such a hard feral he had to go to the vet in a trap. When I inquired about a loaner at the local no kill shelter that handles the TNR program they required $100.00 deposit to be able to use one of their traps. I told her if I had $100 I wouldn't need their assistance to get the cat fixed.

At any rate I decided to purchase a trap for half that cost and always have my own on hand which is coming in quite handy for relocating raccoons and opossums.

All but two of my cats were ferals and I adopted those two from a rescue group that has adoption fairs at the local pet supply store.

Integration has gone fairly smooth with the occasional growl and grumble over who should be "top cat". I keep a cat playpen in the house for those waiting to be vetted or for "time outs" for those misbehaving a bit too much.

I can't imagine life without my little furballs enriching it these days. The last two I thought about adopting out to keep the numbers down, but one follows me like a shadow and the other just loves to jump up in my arms and cuddle endlessly. How could I possibly turn them over to strangers? LOL

In regards to the food, maybe try some Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers Soul. That is about a third cheaper than the other quality foods.

Good luck with your new directions!

It is wonderful you want to do somethign like this, I do hope you succeed.

My mom doesnt want me to feed the ferals .... she thinks it stresses Zoey out...lol.. Zoey goes on the couch and stalks them .. I am thinking of moving them off the pouch to over by the side of the house..

Originally Posted by sharky

My mom doesnt want me to feed the ferals .... she thinks it stresses Zoey out...lol.. Zoey goes on the couch and stalks them .. I am thinking of moving them off the pouch to over by the side of the house..

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Sharky....are you planning to have these cats fixed?? Part of working with an outdoor colony is ensuring that they are spayed/neutered.

Katie

Yes I am ... I am working with my vet and soon with another lady who does alot of TNR work... Just working on funding...

Originally Posted by sharky

Yes I am ... I am working with my vet and soon with another lady who does alot of TNR work... Just working on funding...

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Good...just don't want you to become overwhelmed.

Katie

My foster agency does a lot of fund raisers. One person buys that soft fuzzy fabric, and makes it into cat and dog beds and blankets. We have garage sales in the summer. At Christmas, we have Christmas trees in several vets offices with little cat and dog toys and treats hanging on them like ornaments, which people pay $5 each for.

Talk to your local Petsmart and Petco. They donate damaged food bags. We also get free donations of Science Diet cat and kitten food. Maybe you can check out their website.

We even have a dog rescue that gets donations of cat food and gives them to us. I'm sure it takes a lot of work, but eventually you can build up a resource list.

I think it is great to try to stabilize your colony and get the tame kitties adopted out!