Looking for Advice for post-op care for feral kitten

graywing · Oct 5, 2016

I'm going to be taking in a feral 5 month old female kitten for TNR. I've been feeling pretty nervous because I understand it's harder on females. I'm using a brown trap and had newspaper saved up in advance. But I was talking to a relative who when she had a female feral TNR'd did something I hadn't thought of before and I'm not sure if I should try it or not. She has a very large dog carrier and when she brought the cat home from surgery got her to go into that instead of staying in the brown trap. It's large enough to be able to have a cardboard box as a litter pan, food and water, and a towel for a bed. I'm wondering then if I should do this as well? It seems like a much more comfortable arrangement than being stuck in a brown trap.

The negative of the situation though is I wouldn't be able to use the divider I have rented with the brown trap.

Willowy · Oct 5, 2016

If you're going to keep her inside for longer than overnight, yeah, she'd be more comfortable in a dog carrier. But if you can't get her to go in, no problem. As long as you change the paper underneath the trap when it gets soiled, she'll be fine in the trap.

msaimee · Oct 6, 2016

The large carrier would be more comfortable and less stressful for her to recover in than a trap. Traps induce a lot of fear and anxiety, and spending days in one can be traumatizing for a feral.

graywing · Oct 6, 2016

Thank you very much! I think then this is what I'll do. And since I'm dealing with a large dog carrier, is there anything else I could possibly give her with it besides a litter, towel, and bowls for water and food?