Fervour For Ferals.

[1CatOverTheLine]

Don't you have about 10 other "tails" you could contribute to this thread? Please?

@orange&white - If you include the feral TNSRs (Trap, Neuter, Socialise, Rehome) over the years, it's more than ninety. Luckily for those reading this, most of those photos are pre-digital, and in albums packed away long years ago, and no one will be subjected to their stories.

I might add Black Friday and Clawed-Ya, or Puff, Scottiecat, Lance and Peanut or even my darling Katina some time in the future, but I'm getting too much enjoyment out of reading other TCS members' accounts, and seeing their photos right now.
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[Boris Diamond]

Seal was born in a barn near my house and his mom, Molly, since TNR'ed, brought him to my feral feeding station when he was about one month old. I had misconceptions about ferals. I did not think they could be happy as house cats.

Seal cat would start eating when I was ten feet from the feeding station. I had to get further away before any of the others would eat. I would talk to him in the yard and if I called "Kitty, kitty kitty," he would come running but stop 15 feet from me. If I moved he was gone. I felt a connection with this cat and decided to bring him inside in December of 2015 when he was eight months old. I took him to the vet and had him tested, neutered and vaccinated. I put him in my bathroom.

He panicked for a while whenever he would see me. But it went so well after that. He took dehydrated chicken from my hand on the third day. On the seventh day he rubbed his muzzle on my finger. He was behind Venetian blinds and could not see my eyes. My eyes scared him a lot! I promise I don't shoot flames from my eyes!

I started a thread on TCS asking for advice about Seal. I got wonderful advice from the great people on this website - that is part of the reason things went so well. The other reason is that Seal is the most sweet and affectionate creature I have ever met. The wise @mani made the observation that Seal had stolen my heart. She nailed it! He is such a great cat and I love him so much! And he truly makes me feel loved.

I tried to trap Seal's brother (?) but he was very trap wary and he disappeared before I could. I now realize I could have given an effort with Molly, though at the time she was extremely wild. I had feelings for her because she was such a great momma cat, always protecting her kittens by putting herself between them and danger (me!) So cute! She looked very much like Seal's brother. I thought I had trapped the brother, but I had trapped Molly again - her ear was not tipped. She was not happy with me and disappeared after I released her after her second trip to the vet's.

I TNR'ed the cats around here and I have not seen any ferals for several years. My feeding station is mainly visited by raccoons and possums now. I'm kinda happy that I don't see feral cats, but I miss them, too. And the lizard population has exploded!

Here is the precious Seal cat's picture. I find him to be a very handsome kitty.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

Here is the precious Seal cat's picture. I find him to be a very handsome kitty.

View attachment 241742

Boris Diamond - I would guess that you'd find no disagreement in this camp. Thanks for sharing this lovely tale with us!
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[Jcatbird]

I love all the stories here. We all share something wonderful. We have earned the trust of lost kitties. Not an easy thing to do.
I am not sure who to start with. Each cat has their own story. The colony I am dealing with now might be the place to start. Thrasher comes quickly to my mind. Her story got my attention in the middle of chaos. There were over 100 cats here that were being abused and killed. I was in the middle of a nightmare and I knew I had to wake up. I began as quickly as I could by luring in every feral I could to eat within my five foot fenced property. Once there, I guarded them night and day until exhaustion would take me down. I spent every waking moment pursuing cats and burying cats. I sought out help but found none so I just kept luring the cats closer to my protection. It took time since they were all feral and frightened by what was happening around them but at some point they recognized my land as a safe place. They began to find places here to hide and live.
Over a couple of months I set up as many tarps, covers and hiding places as my land would hold and I started bonding with some of the cats. I was working to earn their trust. Among the dozens of cats there was one young female that still remembered how to play. That Fall I sat and watched as she played with the leaves as they fell from the trees. She skittered around in them and plunged into them. She pawed at them and stuck her nose down into the piles. She flitted around delicately. She reminded me of a bird. A bird looking for little bugs to eat from amongst the leaves. She wasn’t a Calico or a tabby or a true tortoiseshell. She was tabby and marked with small patches of brown. She was my Brown Thrasher bird. Thrasher stuck as her name.
Over the next weeks I managed to convince some of the kitties to trust me enough to move in with me and my other cats but Thrasher was hesitant. She came close enough for a light touch but not a real petting. Then I noticed she was pregnant. I increased my efforts to bring her in but to no avail. She had her babies just under the edge of my house. I could hear them cry for her when she went to feed them. I tried to reach them but she had them just out of range so I made sure to keep her well fed and I watched over her.
Then, early one morning I awakened to frantic cat cries. A single cat scream brought me dashing out my back door nust I time to see Thrasher bolt towards the woods. She appeared wet. She didn’t even seem to hear my calls to her. Then I heard her kittens. They were crying loudly. Not a normal cry. I got a flashlight and went to look. A suffocating smell of ammonia overwhelmed me as I crawled to get close to them. I won’t describe what I saw but I will just say that not one kitten survived the day. I found ammonia bottles scattered nearby. I called police and although the officers were disturbed by the scene they could not help me. We could not get to the kittens.
I did not see Thrasher again for a coulple of weeks but when I did I was horrified. She looked like all her fur had been burned off. Her skin was raw and red. I did everything I knew how to do to get her. By the end of the day she vanished again. Over the next weeks she did not show up again. I assumed I had lost her for good. I mourned for her and her babies but I turned my focus to the surviving cats. I was fighting against time to stop further injuries.
That following Spring I was still working to catch, Spay and neuter cats. I had feeding stations well established by then. As I was putting breakfast out one morning I saw a familiar flash of light brown. Thrasher was alive! I spent the next month concentrating on her. She was pregnant again and I blocked off the bottom of my house. I put up several areas that I thought a cat would approve of as birthing spots. It worked. She had her kittens and I finally had a way to bond with Thrasher. I fed her special foods and snuck into pet her babies. Of course she caught me doing this but instead of hissing it biting me she came up and bumped against me. I continued my routine with her and the babies. The kittens were totally tame and when they were weaned I brought them in. Thrasher still would not come in but I knew she was close. All of her babies were adopted out and I focused again on catching Thrasher. She was one among dozens and it was a challenge. I borrowed some traps and set them to catch her. She immediately vanished. I hunted for her night and day. I searched the property and the woods but no Thrasher. Again I was afraid for her. I was still finding other cats tortured and had even seen them fall as they were shot. I was sick. I could not catch them all fast enough. Thrasher had already suffered and I had missed my only chance to save her.
Again, I continued to pull as many cats as I could. Each one saved was a relief but I kept watching and calling for Thrasher. She did return. This time I got traps quickly. She had seven babies. I caught four babies the first day. I thought I would fknLly succeed. Thrasher took her last three babies and left. I was furious with myself. I felt I had betrayed her trust. I searched again in the woods and I found her. I lured her back over the next weeks with the best food I could offer. I started feeding only inside of a large dog carrier. During this time I caught and brought in many other cats and kittens but Thrasher dodged me. Months had passd but then one morning I walked out to find Thrasher and kittens inside the carrier. I closed the door and brought them in. All of her babies were socialized and adopted. Thrasher now sleeps at my feet and loves to be petted. She has only been in for a few months now but she now insists on being a house cat. I recently brought in another feral and babies. While the mother was off being spayed, Thrasher acted as foster mom and babysitter. She is a survivor and I love her. Cats are amazing. In spite of having been brutalized by other humans she has accepted me as her friend. Here are some before and after photos of Thrasher.

Thrasher keeping her babies away from humans.

Catching Thrasher in the yard unexpectedly with a kitten.

Thrasher just after she surrendered. Tired and thin she finally gave me her trust.

Thrasher after a little bit of petting.

Learning to enjoy life.

Taking charge of wild kittens in the house.

Babysitting for a Mom cat named Flowers.

Sleeping with me.

 

[Shane Kent]

kittyrustymommy1.jpg

• Shane Kent
• Oct 12, 2016

That is mommy top, Rusty on the left and Kitty on the right. I have to assume someone dumped mommy in the forest next to where I work. Kitty and Rusty were approximately two months old when I discovered them on the property hiding in a pile of steel beams. I called the Humane Society and I thought it was strange that they didn't want me to bring them there but instead keep them on the property. I was told to keep them well fed with the colder nights, it was the fall. Bring them to the Humane Society as soon as I could to have them checked, shots, spayed/neutered, and id chipped then released back at my work. I was a little puzzled, bring them back to the property at work?

After reading articles on the Internet I realized the Humane Society probably didn't want them because they didn't have the time to socialize them. After discovering they would have likely been euthanized I was very happy that the Humane Society actually gave me the best advice. Unfortunately mommy moved on before I trapped them. Mommy and her kittens avoided me, I had to use a time-lapse camera pointed at their food to monitor them. Kitty and Rusty were very elusive and I wanted to be certain I could catch one after the other as I didn't want one of them to take off never to be seen again.

I was at the point I could get somewhat close to them while they ate and was starting to slow blink Rusty with him slow blinking back. Then Rusty got URI so I crossed my fingers, trapped him and was fortunate enough to catch his sister Kitty afterwards. Put Kitty in my office at work, my vet bumped another person's appointment and in went Rusty. Instead of using up the limited resources of the Humane Society I opted to pay my vet and have everything done by them.

I would say they were semi-feral when I trapped them as I had been feeding them for several months. They were starting to get some human interaction and not running off to hide. I couldn't touch them but was able to get within ten feet of them. I would say the first vet visit took a lot of the feral out of Rusty and more specifically when they started cleaning his infected eye. It went from "how do I get out of here" to "please keep doing that".

I gave Rusty his name because his fur was rust stained when I trapped him. Kitty because she is my Pretty Little Kitty but was a Feisty Little Kitty at first.

I used an empty office as a safe room to socialize them in. The following video is from when I started letting them venture out of their safe room and into the upper floor of the building.


I kept them in the office building for a year before I took them home. I started by taking them to my in-laws cottage to get used to a home environment opposed to the office building with false ceiling they had become accustomed. My other cats were at home with my wife so as to avoid the added stress of meeting new cats on top of adjusting to leaving the building.

The following is them at the cottage.

Rusty and Kitty at the Cottage

• Shane Kent
• Sep 1, 2017

Rusty and Kitty taking a nap on the couch at the cottage.

Rusty and Kitty in Sun Room at the Cottage

• Shane Kent
• Sep 1, 2017

Kitty and Rusty relaxing in the sun room at the cottage.

I setup a safe room for them at home and slowly introduced them to my other cats. Then I proceeded to spoil the heck out of them.

Rusty and Kitty on chairs.

• Shane Kent
• Nov 12, 2017
• 4

Rusty and Kitty on TV room chairs.

They are timid of strangers but they are not the least bit feral anymore. They are not afraid of my father and sister in-law as well as one of my friends. Both Kitty and Rusty are very affectionate and they have no interest in going outside. They are now indoor only cats and have been since the day I trapped them.

This is them with my other cats.
Rusty top left. Kitty top right. Zoe bottom left. Taz bottom right.

Took me a couple of hours of petting and treats to get that photo but well worth the time and patience it took.

Here is a few of Rusty and his older step brother Taz. They play a little rough at times but that is to be expected.

Rusty and Taz

• Shane Kent
• Feb 25, 2018
• 2

Rusty and Taz waiting to play with laser toys.

Taz and Rusty.

• Shane Kent
• Dec 6, 2017
• 2

Playing on the cat tree.

It took me a lot of time and patience to get to where I am at with all four cats but worth every single second.

 

[tarasgirl06]

Every post a wonderful one and my heartfelt gratitude to each one of you who has taken the time, trouble, energy and love to help these cats!
My Baby Su was found wandering under one of our huge, ancient junipers on our Mojave land by my ex, who called me out to see her. I scooped her up -- she was scoopable, thankfully -- and installed her, hissing and growling, in our 12x12 "kitten cabin" where she could be kept warm, fed and watered, and looked after until we could get her vetted. After her initial checkup and Kitten Pack (innoculations), she went back into the cabin, as our beloved angel Moti was very ill at the time and I didn't want her to have to deal with a very rambunctious feral kitten. After our beloved Moti ascended, I brought the baby, still hissing and growling, inside, where she promptly gained the lifelong ire of our Rani angel.
As part of a large furmily, she has still only ever bonded to me, her caregiver from the start. Angel Rani, I am sure, is watching disapprovingly from on high, but grudgingly glad that this kitten/cat, who started life just as uncertainly as she herself did, is being loved, protected and cared for.

An early pic of a young Baby Su and also, angel Maryam, in the Mojave

 

[TobiDaDog]

My sweet Sirvester. You'd never look at this lovable oaf and think that he spent the first few years of his life feral. He was found raiding our dog food storage in the garage. He was so frightened...it took a while to win this boy's trust over. He'd obviously been hurt by people before. Honestly the only reason why he, a wild, fighting tomcat, was plucked up and moved inside at all was because he lost that front paw to a fox trap.
The vet urged us to just put him down. He was wild, he was sick, and he'd NEVER adjust to indoor life. And for a long time he didn't. He would sleep in his litter box and poop in his bed. In the end though he turned out to be the sweetest, most gentlemanly house cat that you'd ever have the pleasure of meeting. He's friendly to everyone he meets. His only testament to his previous life are his scars. To this day though, if he sneaks outside he will attack and attempt to destroy any tomcat that is unlucky enough to be nearby. He actually came home one day missing one of his fangs. Oof.

 

[tarasgirl06]

View attachment 253794 My sweet Sirvester. You'd never look at this lovable oaf and think that he spent the first few years of his life feral. He was found raiding our dog food storage in the garage. He was so frightened...it took a while to win this boy's trust over. He'd obviously been hurt by people before. Honestly the only reason why he, a wild, fighting tomcat, was plucked up and moved inside at all was because he lost that front paw to a fox trap.
The vet urged us to just put him down. He was wild, he was sick, and he'd NEVER adjust to indoor life. And for a long time he didn't. He would sleep in his litter box and poop in his bed. In the end though he turned out to be the sweetest, most gentlemanly house cat that you'd ever have the pleasure of meeting. He's friendly to everyone he meets. His only testament to his previous life are his scars. To this day though, if he sneaks outside he will attack and attempt to destroy any tomcat that is unlucky enough to be nearby. He actually came home one day missing one of his fangs. Oof.

Sirvester is rakishly handsome and obviously has his servants firmly under his influence. *Good on ya, Sirvester*