Food For Ferals

[Ram Keswani]

What should I feed ferals? I do not have cat food or meat. Can I feed milk? Will they come over if I offer water?

 

[MissMolly08]

I'm sure others have more experience with what to offer but I've heard NO to milk. Despite common belief, cats cannot tolerate milk.

 

[Norachan]

If you are going to feed feral cats or even if you are just providing water and allowing them to stay on your property you really need to do TNR. Feral cats will increase really quickly and this will cause all kinds of problems for you.

If you can't get the cats you are feeding spayed and neutered then please don't start feeding them.

Everything You Need To Know About Tnr (trap-neuter-release)

10 Facts You Should Know About Feral Cats

 

[Kieka]

Feral cats need commercial cat food or a balanced meat diet just like any other cat. While they can, and do, survive on things they can catch if you are providing a feral cat with food it needs to be actual food. Most cats cannot process milk so it is not a good idea to offer cats milk, cream or other dairy products. It can make them sick and for a feral cat; sick can be deadly. Most cats can also not process herbs or spices well so you wouldn't want to feed them scraps of human food unless it is unseasoned meats.

 

[shadowsrescue]

Cats need to be a balanced diet that comes from cat food. It can be either canned food or dry food. Please do not feed them milk. It will give them diarrhea. Also just tossing out scraps of meat is not a balanced diet. The cats need to be fed daily.

Yet please do not feed the cats if you are not going to get them spayed or neutered.

If you want to help the feral cats, you can look for a rescue group, humane society or ASPCA in your area that might assist you. Just do a google search on rescue groups in your town/county.

 

[dahli6]

I have food dishes set around my property and I sometimes give them raw meat scraps. All raw meat scraps are rinsed. It is a rare treat though.
Only chicken and pork. I don't give them turkey(except the grain free food)or beef(ever).

 

[susieqz]

i have used milk as a training aid.
i suppose it may not be good for them, but they love it.
i use it to get them to know i'm trying to help.
as to regular food, they do need cat food, but not much.
i feed inexpensive friskies kibble n my cat thrives on it.
it is only a suppliment. she feeds herself mice lizards n locusts.
when you add a little food to what she catches, she will thrive.
make sure they have clean water at all times.

 

[Ram Keswani]

i have used milk as a training aid.
i suppose it may not be good for them, but they love it.
i use it to get them to know i'm trying to help.
as to regular food, they do need cat food, but not much.
i feed inexpensive friskies kibble n my cat thrives on it.
it is only a suppliment. she feeds herself mice lizards n locusts.
when you add a little food to what she catches, she will thrive.
make sure they have clean water at all times.

Why do others tell not to feed milk. Oris it that your cats are lucky?

 

[himawari]

Most cats are lactose intolerant so they shouldn't be given milk. I believe the only milk okay would be goats milk but they are pricier than cow milk bought in your local grocery stores.

 

[susieqz]

oh, milk doesn't hurt them. we had barn cats n all they ever got was milk.
on dairy farms you always have milk that can't be used by people so the cats get it.
this made them stay around.
but, the milk was a small part of their diet. mostly, they ate mice, which was their job.

people on this site say milk is bad. it may be for house cats.
animals that catch their own food are different.
are you in a vegitarian household where you can't get meat scraps?
if so n if you can't get cat food, then milk is better than nothing.
if you wish to feed only one cat, you must feed only at the same times every day, when he comes.
do not leave food out or many cats n other animals will come.
i feed my feral cat at the same times every day n anything she doesn't eat in 15minutes goes back in the house.

 

[Norachan]

oh, milk doesn't hurt them. we had barn cats n all they ever got was milk.
on dairy farms you always have milk that can't be used by people so the cats get it.
this made them stay around.
but, the milk was a small part of their diet. mostly, they ate mice, which was their job.

people on this site say milk is bad. it may be for house cats.
animals that catch their own food are different.
are you in a vegitarian household where you can't get meat scraps?
if so n if you can't get cat food, then milk is better than nothing.
if you wish to feed only one cat, you must feed only at the same times every day, when he comes.
do not leave food out or many cats n other animals will come.
i feed my feral cat at the same times every day n anything she doesn't eat in 15minutes goes back in the house.

Actually, milk does hurt them. If your cats were barn cats you probably didn't notice that milk gave them diarrhea. If a cat is healthy and is getting enough food from another source then having diarrhea a few times probably won't cause any long term damage. If a cat is already undernourished, has intestinal parasites or is suffering from some other health problem diarrhea can be very serious.

R Ram Keswani if you only have limited funds it's better to give the cats cheap dry food and water then spend the money on milk.

 

[susieqz]

while i agree that dry food is a good idea, the OP said he couldn't get it.
it's possible that cats can build a tolerance for milk.
what i know for sure, is our barn cats were a very stable population. the same cats were there, year after year.
they lived long n happy lives.
they got milk every single day of their lives.
i have seen this with my own eyes,
with our own barn cats.
your information is incorrect.

 

[maggiedemi]

I know in the olden days at farms, the milk was unpasteurized, so it still had the lactase enzyme in it to help digest the milk. When they pasteurize it, it kills the lactase enzyme. If you get lactose free milk like Lactaid, the lactase enzyme is added back to help you digest it.

 

[orange&white]

I do think that cats can tolerate raw milk and goat's milk. It's the "standard" pasteurized milk that's not good for cats (or humans for that matter). Of course, no cat will live on nothing but milk.

Put some water out. If the cats are thirsty they will come for water. Then pick up some cat food, if you can. If they are living off live prey, then they won't be very thirsty for water. They're designed to get their water out of the food they eat.

How many cats are you trying to attract?

 

[susieqz]

thanks, maggie n orange. that must explain it, as the cats got raw milk, right from the cow.
this is not just olden days tho.
modern family dairies still have barn cats that get raw milk.
you know, i grew up on raw milk. before the cream is seperated out, it's much yummier than what you can buy.

 

[Ram Keswani]

I do think that cats can tolerate raw milk and goat's milk. It's the "standard" pasteurized milk that's not good for cats (or humans for that matter). Of course, no cat will live on nothing but milk.

Put some water out. If the cats are thirsty they will come for water. Then pick up some cat food, if you can. If they are living off live prey, then they won't be very thirsty for water. They're designed to get their water out of the food they eat.

How many cats are you trying to attract?

1 or 2 for a start.

 

[orange&white]

Is there a TNR program in your area? One or two cats are fairly easy to care for. If you want to manage a colony with multiple cats, you're likely to need help unless you're wealthy. Food is often donated to feral rescue groups and volunteers (or one colony manager) sign up to go out to the colony of cats and feed them regularly.

It's manageable if you want to take care of only one or two cats without feeding the whole neighborhood. You'll want to put food out only when the cats are there and not leave any out at other times. One or two cats being fed will bring a lot of others to your house.

I have one feral who started coming up to my patio to drink rainwater out of a bucket. I trapped her and had her spayed. Now I feed her 3 times a day and sit with her while she eats. She hardly leaves my patio or backyard anymore. It can work. Spaying her reduced her desire to roam and feeding her good meals is keeping her here.