CatActionTrust - Help with feral cats

Guidelines on Trapping Ferals.

Go prepared for maybe many hours in the cold and damp - at the crack of dawn, at dusk or even late at night (remember cats are nocturnal animals!). Cats usually avoid getting wet, so trapping in the rain is a waste of time.

Cats are creatures of habit so best time to trap them is before their regular feeding time so that they will enter the trap and eat the bait. Here it is sensible to get the cooperation of their feeder.

The Eeziset trap is relatively simple to operate but the noise of the door shutting may frighten more timid cats. This can be overcome with a strip of padded adhesive on the contact points of the door. To outwit the cats who can sometimes hook out the food without stepping on the treddle, squash the food down hard at the back of the treddle, or suspend it in a muslin bag from the roof of the trap so that the cats must stand on the treddle to reach it. Pilchards are recommended or hang a piece of chicken on a string.

The first few cats are always the easiest to catch so try to catch as many as possible in your first session, having first checked with your vet as to how many he/she can deal with - remember these will be wild, distressed animals. The Trap Transfer Cage (Crush Cage) is essential in order to re-use the trap immediately for the next cat.

Once you have successfully trapped a cat do not attempt to handle it. It will help if you immediately cover the trap with a blanket. This will have a calming effect, as will your talking to it in a quiet voice. Transfer the cat to the Crush Cage with open end to open end of the trap. Also cover the Crush Cage. Male cats neutered early in the day can be returned to their colony the same evening. Females not less than 48 hours after the operation. The vet should be asked to use absorbable sutures. Most vets recommend neutering both male and female cats from six months. Ear tipping all cats while still anaesthetised is essential to avoid re-trapping.

Pregnant females may be trapped and spayed but avoid if at all possible, taking mother cat from her kittens. Ideally, wait until kittens are 8 weeks old before mother is spayed.

Cats quickly become "trap shy" and it may be necessary to disguise the trap by covering with cardboard or newspaper or, a week before trying to catch a difficult cat, put out an open ended "dummy" trap or unset real trap, to get the cat not to fear the real trap. Keep putting food in the "dummy" trap.

WARNINGS: Resist the temptation to grab a feral cat by hand because of the risk of bites; even small kittens can inflict severe injury - hence the need for a tetanus jab.

Be sure to clean out your traps after use - cats are fastidious and will not use a heavily soiled trap. This would also be a hotbed of infection.

Release any cats which have been ear-tipped.

Don't take on all the problems which may come your way. It is reasonable to suggest help from people or even ask for a contribution towards neutering costs.

And finally - encourage feeders always to take their rubbish away and not to over feed. Rotting food will only attract rats and make the cats even more unpopular. If the cats are fed regularly and unobtrusively they will cause very few problems, once they are neutered.