poor little stray

well, it's 1:12am. I just came back in the house. Both brothers were on the porch. The tame one rubbed and loved and ate food. The still feral guy sat down 5 feet form [again] and just watched. I help my hand out and he shifted his feet a little but no luck as yet.

WEll, I left a msg at:

Spay Neuter Assistance Program, Inc.
P. O. Box 14354
Springfield, MO. 65814.
(417) 823-7627

We will see if they get back to me. It is nearly 9am at this time. I told them I had been feeding three feral, one stray mama and that I have her babies in my house taking care of them and they all need fixing so they won't keep reproducing. I gave them my husbands income info and our phone numbers and we'll see if they can help us out. This place is the one approx 30 miles away or so. Springfield is a large area so it could be further than that. I am just kinda guessing on the distance but it is close enough that I could get there. That is the town husband has surgery in when he needs it.

The babies are just slightly [I think] over three months old. Is that too young to fix?

Here is some updated pics I took this morning of them..

This is the feral male cat with the hurt foot. And it looks much better now.


This is him coming up on the porch closer to me just a moment ago.


And this is the whole crew outside with one of my dogs. Well not the whole crew, but some of them.

Dovey and Cookie are to the far left. The male with the hurt foot is in the middle. His brother, Muffin and Cow are on the right. And if you look close, you will see Socks in the bushes.... Muffin thinks she is a cat and the real cats totally accept her running around with "their group" She hangs out......and loves it.

I just went out there and got behind him while he was laying down and I got some foot pictures from underneath his foot. It looks as though he lost a pad.....

resting..........


Here is his foot.


And his brother

Here was something interesting I got on film.

The brother is not allowed to eat with them while they are eating. After they are finished it is fine. Star and Angie will NOT allow it. They control who eats out of the food bowl. But the brother is not first to do so. While this was going on, the feral brother was watching from the steps.

IN this picture, you can see the brother looking away as Angie and Star begin growling at him to get him to move on. They want to eat first.


Star is walking around the food bowl here still growling at him.


And here she was met with success so she can finally eat. When she is done, she could care less if he eats. He can have all he wants then but she is first.


It is funny how Star relates to things and other animals. She lived on her own so long with wild cats that she does things differently. Several of the sem-ferals are the same way. But Star keeps the ferals in line. The others swat a them a little half heartedly but still accept them. But Star means business.

Thank you for all the posts and updates!

And I'm so glad you're finding the resources helpful. And I sure hope the place 30 miles away from you can help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Once Gary and I got involved with ferals, we were just like you - absorbing as much info as we could, and boy was that new and eye opening for us too!

Poor hurt foot - that really looks like it was nasty! But you're right - it looks like he's healing well, and he sure fought that off - could have been a nasty infection, etc. Ferals are truly amazing (and wonderful!) animals!

And while the statistics quoted say that ferals live on 3 years on average - that may be the case if they're not cared for. In colonies, they often live long and wonderful lives - especially if their caretaker gets them medical care when needed.

I think it is so wonderful that you're building an enclosure for them!!!!!!!! But did I understand correctly - you're going to be moving?

Our neighbor down the road (we live in a rural area too) also rescues. She has six inside and five outside kitties. They're moving from NJ to NC and she's planning to take all of them with her. We let her know that if she's not able to trap all of the outside ones by the time they're making the move to let us know, and we'll take over.

Keep up the good work - and sending out vibes for good news on the clinic!



Laurie

Yes we are moving 14 miles away. We bought a cabin we have been working on. The bedroom is ready to texture now. We are doing that tomorrow. We rent right now. We currently live in Missouri, in the SW corner. We moved here from Arkansas about 10 months ago. I bought all the ferals, semi-ferals and house cats with me. They all adjusted to the move perfectly. I kept them in for about two days and then took just a couple outside at a time and I put food and water on the porch. They all stayed home but one cat. Yellow. He knew we lived in the new place but he kept roaming. He would be gone for a week and then come home and this is a fixed male. Then a few months back he left and he was gone 6 weeks. We thought he was dead. I called for him the ENTIRE time hoping he was just lost in the mountains and would return. Then one night nearly two months later, I opened the door and he ran in. Someone had been caring for him. He was fat, clean and in good shape. He purred and purred and was so glad to be home. He escaped from wherever he was at. We have kept him in every since then. So he is going to LOVE an enclosure. One time he left and came home witha broken tooth in his side from a fight. He was a stray that walked up and has an old break in a front leg that healed crooked. I call him Gimp Kitty lovingly. He answers me when I say it but he is the Yellow Man.

And back to the feral, the cut on his foot when I first saw it was very nasty. At that time, I could not get near him. I have absolutely no idea what happened. It is possible some wild animal and him got into a scuffle. A snapping turle maybe. I am not sure if raccoons or possoms bite. But there are other predetors here as well. We have large birds and one might have tried to grab him. It's hard to say. But we live in a very clean area and I have never seen any glass laying around. It is all pretty much wilderness.

And one more thing... Star when we moved from arkansas was the only cat I could not handle. I have been feeding this group of cats for several years.. It has just slowly grown. Toe was my first. Then Cleo who was a feral youngster my son tamed and then gave to me. Then Yellow. The others were outside. They were Sock, Tink, Cookie and pregnant Mama. When Mama had her babies, I brought them in at one day old and gave her a bedroom. Dovey and Angie are her babies. Socks, Cookie, Tink, Star would not come inside. I also fed a blue feral georgeous male I called Blue. He disappeared before I could get him gentle enough to capture.

When we moved here, JJ and Cow were area strays that took to eating on my porch. Cow had three babies that I have in my housel right now. JJ got fixed yesterday and had a leg removed at the vet. And Jimmy was a feral I adopted from a member of the forum. He was a street cat in a rough neighborhood in Ohio and we both drove half way so I could get Jimmy. He had been in foster care for over a year.

But this is a link to where I plan on posting my enclosure as it goes to pass. It should have great progress in the next month because we are ready to get in our little cabin ...

And I appreciate the links. I have contact two of them regarding fixing the two black/white feral males outside and cow and her babies as well. When we move, they all have to go with us. Cats are no trouble and since we feed them now, it won't be any differnt financially... If I don't take them I would have to drive back and forth to put food out for them.

Our enclosure is not going to be fance. Just safe...and hopefully interesting to the kitties... I have future plans and immediate moving enclosure plans.

At this time we are only building a small area for safey and then expanding on it once we are inside and living there.

But here is the link.. Keep in mind that I have several plans drawn out and some are more elaborate than others, but we are only building one room. The rest will come later on.

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...TING+ENCLOSURE

I am fixing to upload more picture to this link. Kitty door is cut out now and the house is coming along.

Thanks for the tips on spay/neuter. I needed them.

Jenn

Ok, I now don't think the male with the hurt foot is a true feral. I think both brothers were dumped or something. He let me pet him today twice.

It was only for a moment but I did get to look at his foot. The middle toe on the toe looks as though the claw has been ripped out taking a piece of pad with it. This was from a quick observation only. So there might be more going on here. I did not attempt to touch it. This was visual only.

But when I called the cats to eat, he came with them and when I petted him the first time, he actually arched his back in pleasure. That is not characteristic of a true feral. At least I don't think so. Jimmy and star are not like that. Do ferals arch their back when petted for the first time?

After the first petting which lasted around 5 seconds, he went to the other side of the porch. When I approached him he ran........but he came back and that's when I petted him again. At the food bowl again. The he dashed under the porch. I will see what develops with this this evening later on. I got work to do first.

This boy wants some loving....... He is still scared and skittish but he's going to be alright now. He took the first step......

So is he a stray that was turning feral???? or what? In my experience which is meger, it took over a year with Star and it will with Jimmy too. But it's only been a few months with this cat? Is he feral? or stray?

Well I managed to get frontline plus on the tamest brother cat. The other one is out there but I will have to plan my stretegy for this...... All my cats are done too except for Star, Jimmy and Turtle. I'll get two of those tonight, and I might try talking Jimmy into it. It could work...........but it would surprise me if it did...... I could wear groves........

Now am I dreaming or what????

I just caught up with this.

This really does sound hopeful. I will keep my fingers crossed.

(You all ready know that you all are in my thoughts and prayers )

Yes I do Satai, and I sure appreciate it........ Keep them prayers coming too. They seem to really be working these days. ahhhhhhhhh.... That was a sigh of relief......

Jenn

FINALLY GOT A PICTURE OF THE GREY FERAL. He is so elusive. But I tiptoes outside moving very very slowly and got this. He was about 30-40 feet from me and I zoomed!



Poor little guy...

I have made arrangement through one of the low cost spay neuter programs to get the mama cat, her three babies and all three male ferals fixed for 15.00 each. I can't do them all at once, but Friday i am mailing 30.00 for two certificates to get the mama and one male cat fixed. The male is the one I can touch. Yeah...

She also said that I can get the babies in a bit when I can afford it. And the two wild ferals [tuxado and grey], when I catch them I can pay the vet the 15.00 and get them fixed and then the vet will send off for the certs. That way I won't run the risk of the certificate expiring if I cant' trap them.

Thank you LDG...............!

Jenn

Originally Posted by jcribbs

I have made arrangement through one of the low cost spay neuter programs to get the mama cat, her three babies and all three male ferals fixed for 15.00 each. I can't do them all at once, but Friday i am mailing 30.00 for two certificates to get the mama and one male cat fixed. The male is the one I can touch. Yeah...

She also said that I can get the babies in a bit when I can afford it. And the two wild ferals [tuxado and grey], when I catch them I can pay the vet the 15.00 and get them fixed and then the vet will send off for the certs. That way I won't run the risk of the certificate expiring if I cant' trap them.

Thank you LDG...............!

Jenn

Click to expand...

Yay! Low cost spay and neuter is DEFINITELY necessary when you are dealing with so many kitties!

yes it is!!!! The feral male with the hurt foot and the grey feral..........I will have to trap to get them fixed.

I am worried about these two eating after we move. The brother cat is going with us and I want to take these two as well. Since we have to have our enclosure finished before we move, I guess I can "attempt" to retrap these two to move them as well.

It's going to prove extremely difficult I would imagine.

Since they will probably remember being trapped, it might be easier to trap them and move them and THEN get them fixed. It might be hard to trap them TWICE. Once to fix and once to move.

Anyone have ideas on this?

Maybe you could trap, neuter and then bring them home to the new place?

Originally Posted by sheilad

Maybe you could trap, neuter and then bring them home to the new place?

Click to expand...

That's my thinking also, if it could be done. Definately less risky than trying to trap twice.

I am so glad you found a low-cost service!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The big question - is it a place that will keep them overnight? Or are they going to charge you for that?

There's another problem with moving ferals. As you know, cats are territorial, and when they're outdoor cats and you move territories, they freak (not that indoor cats don't, it's just their still confined to the house). The advice given when moving ferals is to keep them in large cages (protected from rain) for at least a week. Cages large enough for litter, a bed, food and water. Then to feed them wet food, and keep putting that out for a while after you've let the doors open. The idea is that they then associate the new place with food and will continue coming back to it for the food - in the process making the new territory theirs.

But moving trucks, etc. might scare them off - which is why it would be best to trap them before movers come. And which is why it would be best to them relocate them to the new place after the movers are gone. But that means staying at the vet or shelter or boarding or something inbetween.... unless you have superhuman movers that are moving from one place to the other in one day.

Any more details to see what we can brainstorm?

((((((((((((((hugs)))))))))))))))))

Laurie

Originally Posted by jcribbs

The babies are just slightly [I think] over three months old. Is that too young to fix?

Click to expand...

Ooops - I remembered I forgot to answer this. It is definitely NOT too young to fix! It is safe to spay/neuter as early as seven weeks. Many vets (if they're not regularly involved with ferals) won't due it because they don't know the research on it and haven't spayed or neutered a cat that small, but here's a link: http://www.winnfelinehealth.org/repo...ly-neuter.html

Most organizations that provide low-cost spay neuter services will already know this and be willing to spay/neuter the younger kittens.

And as to the questions - stray or feral - sometimes it can be really hard to tell! A feral that's never had a bad experience with a human can get friendly pretty quickly (though that's not the norm). Trusting a human can take forever with a housecat that was abused by humans. Strays can become "feral-like" pretty quickly. Here is a really well written article by someone who's worked with ferals for a long time: The Many Differences Between Feral and Tame Cats.

Interestingly, none of our ferals talked. Lazlo was the exception, but he was the first one we rescued and that was because he was abandoned by the family on their first excursion, and he cried up a strom. But once inside, the only time he would ever "talk" was a meals. And that was just a quiet meow or two. But no one else ever talked. Until Flowerbelle. She was rescued at a very early age as a teeney, teeney kitten, and she's deaf. But she's not mute. And her mom probably never taught her not to talk - don't think she was with mom long enough. And she talked any time she wanted (or didn't want, lol) something. THANKFULLY it's the cutest little chirping kind of thing.

However - once she started talking, after about a month or so, one of the other cats started talking when he wanted something. It was the rustiest "I've never used my voice before" kind of sound, lol! I don't know how long it took, but eventually, of course, they all started talking. Not a lot - but something every day. So now instead of the quiet peaceful home we had, we've got six talking cats.

That's a wonderful story! Star's meow is very very high pitched and kitten like and she does it very soft. She is timid about it also. The only time she does it is when she is in and needs out. It's a sweet little meow. I've only felt her purr once or twice and it's very slight...

It's special when the ferals do stuff regarding communication and love.

All the others, except Jimmy are very vocal.. JJ is extremely vocal.!!! He has a low gruff meow that rings through through the air!!