New to caring for a stray/feral and second-guessing myself and need some encouragement and support

[feralvr]

Well..... IF Grey Kitty is not neutered then this could be part of his offensive and invasive behavior. If I remember correctly, you are not totally sure on that one? Even so, some cats just take charge of the territory when there are multiple cats living in the same vicinity. It is only natural and to be expected.

OH dear hno: on that poor abused kitty your friend told you about. So kind of you to offer to help in anyway. AND, I certainly hope that this cat can be trapped and taken to the vet for medical attention. Poor little dear. :shame:

 

[chaucer]

SOMETHING must have happened before I got up this morning.  Chaucer and Henryetta were not waiting outside my bedroom door as normal, nor did they come in a short time later while I was in the bathroom. I saw them coming down the hall as I was going to the kitchen. I fed them, but they kept turning to look into the den. I went to feed Orville but he wasn't outside. I called him several times over the next half hour and he didn't show up.  I carried Henryetta to the screen door and put her down. She hissed a couple of times by the screen door when Chaucer was near and ran over to the sofa.  I have a strong feeling that "Gray Kitty" had been there and he and Orville got into a fight which excited Chaucer who turned on Henryetta. However, she ate next to him and they played with the ribbon afterwards. Neither Orville nor the neighbor's cats have shown up this morning so far.

Not sure what to do about that huge cat.

 

[chaucer]

Orville returned not long after Mr. Gray left. And I think I have made some additional progress with Orville. Yesterday after he ate, he hung around in my back yard for a while and even laid down on the back of the driveway with me out there. He stood behind the very old and no longer used brick incinerator and watched me for a while, too. Progress is much slower with him than with Henryetta who was socialized to humans - I go back and forth as to whether she was my across-the-street neighbor's abandoned cat or just one they fed and kept as an outdoor pet and was semi-feral.

Mr. Gray does not always show up but he is currently outside my glass patio door.  I immediately took Chaucer to the bedroom and closed the door to prevent any fighting with Henryetta.  Henryetta is staying away from the door but is growling from the living room, which is a couple of rooms away!  I opened the glass door to talk to Mr. Gray through the screen and he was still growling.  I don't think it was because of me but because he knows there are cats here and can smell cats in the house.  I finally pulled the curtain over the door to get him to go away.  It's feeding time for Orville, who will NOT make an appearance (at least I hope he won't) while Mr. Gray is here.

I've never encountered such an aggressive cat.  The other cats are very wary of him and avoid him, but something tells me that Mr. Gray has some definite problems and I do think he is someone's cat.

 

[chaucer]

I want to add that I called for Orville just now and Mr. Gray came.  While I made sure to stand way back from him outside, he was very friendly-acting to me and when I went back behind the screen, he came right up to me, so he is clearly someone's pet who does not like other cats. It seemed he was holding up his foot for just a moment. Very sad. The owner should keep this cat in the house!

 

[chaucer]

Sorry. I forget I can't edit posts once they've been posted. 

I've shown his picture before, but this is Mr. Gray (Gray Kitty).  This cat is huge, although it doesn't show as much in the picture. His tail, when puffed up, looks like a raccoon's tail. His tail actually drags on the ground it is so long.  He must weigh 15 pounds but because of his height and length doesn't look it. No fear at all of humans and doesn't seem to want food.

Mr. Gray.jpg

• chaucer
• Mar 24, 2015

 

[feralvr]

:lol3: My cats are just as huge!! Three are 15 pounds or so. Grey kitty is very attractive and I guess he knows it. I don't see big jowls, so he doesn't look like an unneutered Tomcat BUT that doesn't mean he is not neutered because he could be young. The fact that he is friendly, outgoing and bold is going to cause issues and confrontations between Henryetta and Chaucer indoors. Sorry to say. If Grey Kitty keeps approaching the window's/doors then transferred aggression is going to happen between your two. Sometimes, this can even cause a setback in two cats that were once very good friends.

Since he has been coming around for sometime now and is causing issues with your indoor and the outdoor cats, then I would trap him at this point. At the very least, see if he is neutered AND has a microchip. It would be great if you could even go around to the surrounding neighbor's and find out for sure IF he is someone's cat. Sadly, I bet there is nothing you can do even if you find the owner. I am sure they will still keep letting him outdoors regardless of the diseases and dangers lurking. Maybe if you tell them of your cat rescues and what you are trying to do to help the homeless cats in the neighborhood, they will listen and want to help in anyway.

When we feed outdoor cats, we are going to attract many other cats and if a newcomer is aggressive and bold, then he will chase the other weaker/timid cats away. Most times when we have a number of TNRd feral cats, then they will bond together and keep other cats away, hopefully! :cross:

Orville IS making huge progress and I hope that continues for you. I think you have your work cut out for you with having to deal with both the stray/feral cats AND pet cats who have a home and are let outdoors. A real conundrum and one that many of us have had to manage. Not easy. :slant:

 

[chaucer]

So sorry about Pipsqueak!  I just saw he passed away.  It's so hard to lose a pet. They are family members.

Three 15 pounds!  Wow!  Henryetta is probably getting close to 13 but she is stocky. 

Side story about big ferals -When I lived in Dallas, I went to PetSmart after my Himalayan died and saw a gorgeous, friendly Blue-point Siamese mix from Feral Friends. His name was Leopold and he was huge. They said he was 15 pounds but no....this cat had to be closer to 18 and he was so long that his tail hung below my knees and I'm 5'7"!  He would not have fit in my carrier.  I thought about him and then contacted Feral Friends (can I name a rescue organization here?) but was told he had ringworm and was being treated for it. I decided not to take him because I wasn't up to dealing with this at that time. Ironically, Chaucer turned out to be a carrier of ringworm and I got it in two places about six weeks after I got him. Ugh...all that treatment for him was rather pricey. I kind of regret not getting Leopold, but I checked later and he was adopted and in a good home.

It's a challenge with the cats here. Clearly, there are a couple of neighbors who feel that their cats should roam around outside. Mr. Gray has been around since I moved here a year-and-a-half ago and he was the same size. He is probably around 3 or so. None of these cats looked underfed, even before I started feeding them.

 

[chaucer]

Just a quick update on the cat that had been abused:  My friend told me today that  her friend who had tried to feed the cat said that Animal Control had taken the cat and because it was in such bad shape it was most likely euthanized, which may have been the kinder thing to have been done, but I am sad that the animal suffered because of someone's drunken rage.  : (

 

[chaucer]

And today, for those following my experiences with the ferals/strays/neighbors' pets, I talked to the elderly woman who has the two I call Arabella and Olivia. Their real names are Peekaboo and Chloe. I learned that Peekaboo was old (like I thought) and had lots of kittens over the years until they got her spayed but I don't know when that was.  Since the woman has lived in the house for 20 years, my guess is that Peekaboo is the mother of several of the cats that come around, and perhaps Henryetta since she is also part Tortie and since there are male Tabbies around, it stands to reason one of the male tabbies is her father. (Orville?)

I visited the woman who had tried to care for the abused cat today.  She has a beautiful brown Torbie with the most gorgeous aqua eyes that she is caring for and would like to keep. The cat is pregnant and has had several litters but her kittens never survive because she has to stay outside due to the woman's dog being inside. I have told the woman that I will pay to have the cat spayed and that I will pay the fee for the kittens to go to the local shelter if she will call and put them on the list when they are born. I wish I could take in this cat and her kittens but my storage room is not set up for cat care right now like it was for Henryetta.

 

[feralvr]

So sorry about Pipsqueak!  I just saw he passed away.  It's so hard to lose a pet. They are family members.

Three 15 pounds!  Wow!  Henryetta is probably getting close to 13 but she is stocky. 

Side story about big ferals -When I lived in Dallas, I went to PetSmart after my Himalayan died and saw a gorgeous, friendly Blue-point Siamese mix from Feral Friends. His name was Leopold and he was huge. They said he was 15 pounds but no....this cat had to be closer to 18 and he was so long that his tail hung below my knees and I'm 5'7"!  He would not have fit in my carrier.  I thought about him and then contacted Feral Friends (can I name a rescue organization here?) but was told he had ringworm and was being treated for it. I decided not to take him because I wasn't up to dealing with this at that time. Ironically, Chaucer turned out to be a carrier of ringworm and I got it in two places about six weeks after I got him. Ugh...all that treatment for him was rather pricey. I kind of regret not getting Leopold, but I checked later and he was adopted and in a good home.

It's a challenge with the cats here. Clearly, there are a couple of neighbors who feel that their cats should roam around outside. Mr. Gray has been around since I moved here a year-and-a-half ago and he was the same size. He is probably around 3 or so. None of these cats looked underfed, even before I started feeding them.

Thank you.... it has been very hard adjusting without Pipsqueak.

AWW glad that Leopold found a good home and obviously was not meant to be yours! Now you have your hands full with all of these outsider's needing attention anyway. Mr. Grey - guess he is not a kitten afterall!!

Just a quick update on the cat that had been abused:  My friend told me today that  her friend who had tried to feed the cat said that Animal Control had taken the cat and because it was in such bad shape it was most likely euthanized, which may have been the kinder thing to have been done, but I am sad that the animal suffered because of someone's drunken rage.  : (

OMG - I am soooooo very sorry and yes - sometimes - it is best to just end their suffering. Poor little thing.

And today, for those following my experiences with the ferals/strays/neighbors' pets, I talked to the elderly woman who has the two I call Arabella and Olivia. Their real names are Peekaboo and Chloe. I learned that Peekaboo was old (like I thought) and had lots of kittens over the years until they got her spayed but I don't know when that was.  Since the woman has lived in the house for 20 years, my guess is that Peekaboo is the mother of several of the cats that come around, and perhaps Henryetta since she is also part Tortie and since there are male Tabbies around, it stands to reason one of the male tabbies is her father. (Orville?)

I visited the woman who had tried to care for the abused cat today.  She has a beautiful brown Torbie with the most gorgeous aqua eyes that she is caring for and would like to keep. The cat is pregnant and has had several litters but her kittens never survive because she has to stay outside due to the woman's dog being inside. I have told the woman that I will pay to have the cat spayed and that I will pay the fee for the kittens to go to the local shelter if she will call and put them on the list when they are born. I wish I could take in this cat and her kittens but my storage room is not set up for cat care right now like it was for Henryetta.

OH My, it just makes me shudder inside to hear of people having cats and allowing them to have kittens for years and years. I imagine that her cats are the mother's of many of the cats now loose in the neighborhood. I am glad that you were able to get some more information on the her two cats that come around so often and now you know their real names.

How very, very generous of you to reach out to this woman and offer to help her with getting her cat and all of those kittens spayed/neutered. My goodness - we can surely see WHY the cat population problem is a never-ending battle because of people like this. I guess most of them just don't see the bigger picture or get it. I want to send you a HUGE cyber hug for all you are doing. :grphug: :grphug2:

 

[chaucer]

I don't know when Peekaboo was spayed. Her daughter is spayed as well. I often wonder if Henryetta is the offspring of  Chloe (or another Tortie who is no longer with us) and Orville since she is a Torbie.  Most of the females are Torties, but not all of the males are Tabbies. There's a white cat and a light orange (the father of Henryetta's kittens). Henryetta's kittens were all orange and white.  The Torties are most likely the descendants of George - a female Tortie who lived down the street when I was a child. She had so many kittens and was killed by a male cat shortly after she was spayed. He ripped out her stitches.

As far as taking care of the spaying and paying the fee for the local shelter to take the kittens, should they survive, it's nothing. The woman would do it if she could afford to, but she can't.

Orville has a wound on the side of his paw. That may account for the blood I've seen on my carport over the past few weeks.  It's the same foot he was holding up a couple of months ago but I really think this is a new thing. I was able to get close enough to see it is just above his paw on the outer side. My guess is that he caught it on a fence since the fences around her are chain link with those little spikey "x"s on top. They arent particularly sharp but if he was rushing to get over one, he could have snagged his ankle.  He's still skittish with me and I do not think he will go into a trap easily since he is so wary.

 

[feralvr]

Surely, :bigwink:, it is not nothing - your efforts to help this woman. It is something very, very kind and compassionate of you. :heart2:

Again, the only thing I can suggest with Orville, would be to only feed inside of a trap or even carrier ( if he will eat in your presence ). Using a regular trap; The trap door I tie up for this part of the process and only feed inside the trap and then on vet day, you just untie the trap door and set it. With the carrier method, you tie a rope to the inside of the door and run it through the side of the carrier. The rope can be 10 feet or more. I prop the carrier door open for a few days and only feed inside the carrier. This method works for the feral cat that trusts you a bit and goes inside the carrier to eat with you sitting near (holding the rope). On vet day, I just pull the rope hard and swiftly and the carrier door swings shut. With a gloved hand, I pull the carrier to me and latch it shut. Off to the vet we go. Either method, is going to be stressful for the feral cat but it must be done eventually so the cat can be neutered and vetted.

for Orville's paw.

 

[chaucer]

Orville's paw looks healed. He is still skittish but will eat with Henryetta and Chaucer watching through the screen now but I can't get him to come any closer than a few feet. Would love to try the thing with the rope and trap but he seems pretty smart and used to avoiding things, plus it would need to be very early in the morning and he would need to come alone. Some morning he arrives with Peekaboo.

I have spoken with the vet about getting him neutered and she explained that he would need to be kept at least one night at the vet's, which is okay. When a cat is truly feral, which he most likely is, they keep the cat in its trap after the surgery and put food and water in with him and will put the cat in it's cage/carrier in the barn for the night. The vet said it almost always has to e done this way to prevent the cat from really injuring someone or himself or escaping altogether and getting hurt, plus it is easier for the person who brought the cat to take him back and release him without injury to the person. Is this the usual way to take care of ferals at the vet?  This is a really good, compassionate vet who does have a way with animals.

The woman whose cat I'm planning to have spayed had four kittens a week or so ago. I went to see the little things. Cute. I posted them on FB, along with the puppy the woman can no longer keep, and already had someone interested in taking a kitten in 5-6 weeks! The woman's granddaughter wants one, too, so that is two kittens (hopefully) and one puppy to find homes for. A friend has offered to split the cost of the mother cat's spaying, 3 year rabies shot and worming, plus half the cost of the shelter fee if I have to take the kittens to the shelter. I'm not sure what I can do about the puppy. It has a "spraying" problem - marking his territory all over her house. It isn't neutered but I really can only take on the kittens and mother cat. The woman wants to make the mother cat an indoor-only cat after she is spayed. She really loves the cat but it is a question of finances that she can't get the spaying, shots, etc done. I am going to inquire about low-cost vaccinations for the cat so when it is time to do the next one, she can take her then.

Lauren, how are you doing now since the passing of Pipsqueak? Are the other cats adjusting?

 

[feralvr]

chaucer sorry for the delay.... but I do try to keep watch here. :nod:

I am glad to hear that Orville's paw is healing. Wonderful news. Your vet surely sounds absolutely kind and caring. In my experience, this is not necessary at all to keep a male feral cat overnight in the trap after surgery. We always release them after they are fully awake. I take a small carrier to the vet and ask the vet to put the feral cat inside the small carrier after surgery. I come to pick up the cat, take him home, and once he is nicely awake, I release him back outdoors in his territory. I think the less stress the better for them. But, certainly, it won't harm Orville if the vet wants it done this way, I just have not heard of a male feral needing an overnight stay. The females, yes, it is important to keep them overnight. :nod:

Try :cross: to make sure the people who take the kittens will promise to get them neutered. I am giving you a BIG THUMB'S up here for stepping up to help this woman. Your friend too. This is a grand charitable gesture on both your parts. As for the puppy - all dogs with no training will pee anywhere they like!!! He just needs training, that's all. They don't know any different. It is not the same thing as spraying in an unneutered cat.

AWWWWW. I am taking one day at a time here. I still can't really look at his pictures without crying though and have not done a Bridge thread here on TCS. He truly deserves one, someday, but when I am ready. I have convinced myself to be like my Pip. He was one brave, courageous, full of life and gusto and never took a day for granted. He taught me A LOT and I am living on in his legacy by trying to be more like him. And, you know what??? It is working and helping me tremendously. He lives in my heart. :heart3:

 

[chaucer]

 

AWWWWW.

I am taking one day at a time here. I still can't really look at his pictures without crying though and have not done a Bridge thread here on TCS. He truly deserves one, someday, but when I am ready. I have convinced myself to be like my Pip. He was one brave, courageous, full of life and gusto and never took a day for granted. He taught me A LOT and I am living on in his legacy by trying to be more like him. And, you know what??? It is working and helping me tremendously. He lives in my heart.

I have my beautiful 17.5 year-old-rescued at 3.5 years-  Himalayan Sophie's ashes in a pretty cedar box in a glass-fronted cabinet in my family room.  I miss her so much, so I know how you feel.  Looking forward to reading Pipsqueak's story when you feel up to posting it. Let me know when and where you post it.

I am glad to hear that Orville's paw is healing. Wonderful news. Your vet surely sounds absolutely kind and caring. In my experience, this is not necessary at all to keep a male feral cat overnight in the trap after surgery. We always release them after they are fully awake. I take a small carrier to the vet and ask the vet to put the feral cat inside the small carrier after surgery. I come to pick up the cat, take him home, and once he is nicely awake, I release him back outdoors in his territory. I think the less stress the better for them. But, certainly, it won't harm Orville if the vet wants it done this way, I just have not heard of a male feral needing an overnight stay. The females, yes, it is important to keep them overnight.

I agree about the least amount of stress for the cat and I like the idea of taking a carrier and not just leave them in the trap. The vet told me that they like to keep a feral male overnight just to make sure things are okay that first night since once released they may not return to the caregiver's home.  I'm not sure there is a charge for keeping them overnight since they keep them in the trap (or carrier) in the barn with the horses they are treating. When the mother cat goes, she will be there overnight, although I was told Henryetta could have come home with me if I kept her away from the kittens for that night and checked on her. I opted to let her stay overnight at the vet's.

Try

to make sure the people who take the kittens will promise to get them neutered. I am giving you a BIG THUMB'S up here for stepping up to help this woman. Your friend too. This is a grand charitable gesture on both your parts. As for the puppy - all dogs with no training will pee anywhere they like!!! He just needs training, that's all. They don't know any different. It is not the same thing as spraying in an unneutered cat.

I feel sure that at least one of the people interested in getting a kitten will get it neutered. I can't say so much about the granddaughter as she is the one who brought the puppy there to live with them, then moved out and left the puppy (a fairly good-sized one)  with her grandmother who is very strapped for cash. It would be better if we can get the puppy to the local shelter to find another home.  If the kittens go to the shelter, they will automatically be neutered. The shelter works with PetsMart which requires this.

I posted in the behavior forum about Chaucer being a bully to Henryetta but no one replied so I suppose this means his behavior is normal or an Alpha cat.  He has run her off the bed, the sofa and each night we go through the bed thing - jumping on her, biting at her everywhere, her hissing and growling and then jumping off the bed. Sometimes he goes with her; sometimes he just parades around on the footboard's top as if to say: "That's right. I'm Chaucer!  King of the Hill! (or bed, as it is)" They do play together, mostly in my formal living room in the "Box City" I've got for them in there. They eat together and look out the window together, so I suppose this is normal behavior and they aren't just tolerating each other but like each other.

 

[feralvr]

Aw - sorry about your thread in Behavior. If I had seen it, I would have responded! Sometimes if people don't know what to suggest or feel that they don't have anything to offer, then they pass over the thread. Still - I try to keep up with the ones that go unanswered because I know member's potentially feel bad if no one makes any replies - even if they don't have any advice!!

About Chaucer and Henryetta and the bedtime ritual. Can I laugh??? :lol3: Very, very cute and I am delighted and jubilant over how these two are getting along. Cats will be cats and that hissing/growling is definitely part of their playtime ritual with an added bonus of "who is the boss". CHAUCER - KING :king: of the BED !!!!!!!!!!!! I wouldn't worry about these interactions too much because everything else is going so beautifully between them. Good friendships always come with a few little tiffs here and there. This is completely normal behavior!! It always amazes me how much cats rely on these rituals, schedules and times of doing things too. Cats surely like to keep things the same day in and day out!!

We really never get over losing them, do we..... But, I think each and every furkid that we are blessed to share part of our life with tends to teach us something about life and love. I take that from them when they leave OR should I say - they give it to me to keep forever. Somehow that helps me to keep on plowing forward through this journey we are all on. I miss their physical presence but feel their spiritual presence very strongly. I hold and love the ones I still have with me and hugging them, sharing the love, help so much too. :heart2: Your Sophie must have been a real beauty and good friend to you.

p.s. I have to say - your thread is one that I have been extremely involved in from the get-go and it is one that I am now emotionally involved so there is no getting rid of me. Even though it may take me a day or sooooo to reply. THANK YOU for the purraise, very kind- your words.

 

[chaucer]

Aw - sorry about your thread in Behavior. If I had seen it, I would have responded! Sometimes if people don't know what to suggest or feel that they don't have anything to offer, then they pass over the thread. Still - I try to keep up with the ones that go unanswered because I know member's potentially feel bad if no one makes any replies - even if they don't have any advice!!

About Chaucer and Henryetta and the bedtime ritual. Can I laugh???

Very, very cute and I am delighted and jubilant over how these two are getting along. Cats will be cats and that hissing/growling is definitely part of their playtime ritual with an added bonus of "who is the boss".

CHAUCER - KING

of the BED !!!!!!!!!!!! I wouldn't worry about these interactions too much because everything else is going so beautifully between them. Good friendships always come with a few little tiffs here and there. This is completely normal behavior!! It always amazes me how much cats rely on these rituals, schedules and times of doing things too. Cats surely like to keep things the same day in and day out!!

We really never get over losing them, do we..... But, I think each and every furkid that we are blessed to share part of our life with tends to teach us something about life and love. I take that from them when they leave OR should I say - they give it to me to keep forever. Somehow that helps me to keep on plowing forward through this journey we are all on. I miss their physical presence but feel their spiritual presence very strongly. I hold and love the ones I still have with me and hugging them, sharing the love, help so much too.

Your Sophie must have been a real beauty and good friend to you.

p.s. I have to say - your thread is one that I have been extremely involved in from the get-go and it is one that I am now emotionally involved so there is no getting rid of me.

Even though it may take me a day or sooooo to reply.

THANK YOU for the purraise, very kind- your words.

Thanks, I think this is a blog now!

Of course you can laugh. One of my friends loves for me to put the phone near them so she can hear them going at it at night when she calls. She thinks it cute. After I got over the idea that he was hurting her, I find it kind of endearing.  He does it during the day sometimes when she is in her chair - a chair she has claimed as her own and he allows it. When that happens he just wants to play.  I'm proud of her for kind of "fighting" back now. She used to just hiss, growl and run off.  Now she will hiss, growl and bite back or use her claws a little but it's never enough to actually hurt him. His skin is a lot thinner than hers though but he's never cries out and he has never hissed and growled at her. His tail fluffs every now and then but that's it. 

 

[ruaryx]

Again, thanks for keeping us updated.  Sorry if I missed it but what are you planning on doing with Orville once you catch him?  TNR?  Just wondering.  And SOOOO glad Delphine is okay.  

 

[chaucer]

 
Again, thanks for keeping us updated.  Sorry if I missed it but what are you planning on doing with Orville once you catch him?  TNR?  Just wondering.  And SOOOO glad Delphine is okay.  

Thank you so much for your encouragement, too, Ruaryx! 

If I can catch Orville I'm hoping for just a TNR. He's getting a little more comfortable with me but still won't get closer than a few feet.  He's part of the "neighbor's group" now.  In the past couple of months, he is out there with one or both of them in the morning so trapping may be complicated. I am hoping that since Peekaboo is so friendly with me and comes to rub around and wants petting that he sees this and begins to feel even more comfortable with me.  Henryetta is definitely a relative of this group. She has Peekaboo's personality and is a mix of Chloe/Orville. I'm not sure when Chloe and Peekaboo were spayed but I take it that it's been in very recent years. It's funny that Orville hangs around with two spayed females. The two other males, including the kittens' father, don't come around any longer. Orville washed himself and I was able to see.  They are somewhat big, so I doubt he's been neutered.

I haven't seen Delphine again but I was glad to catch that glimpse and I do put out food at night just in case. The food is always gone in the morning but it could be the males or another cat. I'm still sad about the kitten that was out there a couple of times and was run over, most likely the night I tried to follow it and was hit while running out of fear.   :  ( 

The nocturnal diners could be raccoons, skunks or opossums and I'd prefer not to have that. I may have to stay up late and see. I do know that raccoons have been out there before.

 

[chaucer]

A small update for those of you still sticking with this rescue thing I'm trying to get going.  I didn't want to start new threads for the cats since it really is the same type of topic, minus the pregnancy time.

Orville is still around and today he seemed to be hanging around after his dry meal. This was a first. It's been very rainy and I had gone out to check something. He came out from under the car and mewed.  In fact, he tends to answer me when I "talk" to him and he knows his name now.   Anyway, this morning, the neighbor's two cats had already left from their snack time with him so I went back in and got some wet food and put it down for him. While he still won't let me get but a couple of feet away, and some days it's more than that and with a half-hearted single hiss then, he is trusting me more it seems. Sometimes if he is in the area, but not on my property, and I call his name and "Kitty, Kitty, Kitty" he comes running, but always stops short of coming too near.  It may be that he sees the neighbor's two cats being friendly with me and that's helping him begin to trust me. Believe me, it's taken one of the neighbor's cats nearly two years to get near me and she isn't feral.