A starling has made a nest in the knife shop. The area she chose isn’t a low-traffic area. She picked a shelf by the main door behind a tool box. The babies are gone now, fled the nest, flew the coop on to a better more safer place is the hope. There were five to them.

I pulled the chest out this morning to remove the nest as I know that empty bird nests are attractive to the barn cats. I was amazed to find besides feathers, dog hair, & horse hair she also used plastic and a leather and metal post that Mike uses to dry his knives on.

I wish the babies the best of luck in their new life and hope that next year momma decides to go for a more private area of our land to raise her babies.

A hissing cat can be a daunting, formidable creature. When a cat hisses, she draws herself into a crouch low to the ground. Her eyes are riveted on you, wide open as she needs to see what your intentions are going to be.

If her ears are flat, and her tail tucked protectively between her legs, she means business and you best back-off. Your best bet in this situation is to walk away and try again later to make some sort of contact with her. You will know when she is relaxed if you observe her grooming herself (but if she is over-grooming herself, including pulling out clumps of fur) get her to the vet as she is over-stressed or in great pain.

Dash arrived at our home along with four other tuxedo kitties. Found in an abandoned campground in Oregon, the kittens were malnourished and in pretty poor shape. Most worrisome was their refusal to eat any type of canned or dry cat food. Even cat treats were snubbed by these feline friends.

After two days of frustration trying to get them to eat, using every brand known to man on the market today, I hit a wall. I didn’t want to rush them to the vet and risk stressing them out further. But if I didn’t make a dent in the kitty hunger strike, they would all end up with health issues I couldn’t address.

Finally, out of desperation, I decided to serve up a campground meal. Set before the kitties was a campfire buffet fit for any girl scout; raw and cooked hot dog pieces, sliced and cooked potatoes covered in chicken stock, cubed cream cheese, fried chicken, all laid out on a baking sheet before them. One sniff and they inhaled the entire fare! For a few weeks, this became their typical meal, food they were used to finding in waste bins, were now prepared for them unspoiled and untainted. Eventually, I began to mix in wet and dry cat food until the four kitties were eating only cat food with occasional treats thrown into the mix.

They began to gain weight and muscle mass and Dash, at first thought by the vet to be part of the kitten brigade, shot up well ahead of the other three. At the end of a few months it was clear, this kitten was actually an older female, quite possibly the mom-cat. Another vet visit confirmed- Dash was actually a 6 year old female, while the kittens were 7 months old.

Because she arrived here so late in her life, her trust meter when it came to humans was set on low. She trusts no one, even to this day. One of the reasons we call her Dash is because when we come into a room where she is hiding, she dashes out. That coupled with the fact that she has a white dash of color above her mouth, earned her this name. It was a full 8 months before she would allow me to even touch her. It was then I learned that she must have Persian in her, as her coat was matted and thick. It mats every time I even look at her.

When it comes to flea treatment, grooming and medications, Dash and I play the Cat Wrangling Game. I shut down the tunnels to the cat enclosure after making sure she has dashed up the tunnels and is hiding in the house. Then it is a matter of herding her gently into a corner, ignoring her formidable hissing and scooping her up to administer her needs.

Initially, her hiss alarmed me. Making me back-off, letting her have her way no matter how matted she was, or what meds had to be administered. It was through this constant interaction, that I began to understand the hiss- the force field that she used to keep herself safe from me (the predator.) But, I couldn’t let it stop me from helping her.

One afternoon, she was crouched on a low shelf. She was so clearly matted, I knew if I didn’t get the brush and seam ripper (what I use to take out large mats) on her, she was going to become ill quickly. She was in full defensive posture, crouched low, ears flat, tail wasn’t tucked though and her hiss seemed endless.

I took a deep breath to calm myself down. I shut my eyes slowly and then reached out in her direction with my eyes still shut. With my eyes closed, I lowered the threat of attack she was sure was coming. I touched her silken fur and tried not to tense. I’ve been bit and scratched before by wild kitties and I am still alive, so I kept going.

She allowed me to pet her that day. I was able to gather her in my arms although she was hissing the entire time. I removed several large mats from her beautiful fur and in the end, she lay crouched and trembling in my arms, but she did not attack me!

Today, I am able to approach her and although she stays on guard, she won’t flee- her first indication to me that she understands my touch won’t “hurt” her. The defensive posturing and hissing continues to this day, but now the two of us understand each other. It is the first step towards many of bridging a gap existing because someone (some uncaring fool) hurt her long ago and she won’t forget. She can’t forget.

Cats never remember the good things we do for them. But, if you hurt them either intentionally or unintentionally, they will never forget. They are long to forgive humans too once they have been so traumatized and any human who approaches them, are subject to their fears. The hiss stands as a force field between them and those who might harm them in the future.

Felix is now Tarzan because he currently is the King of the Jungle over here. I had to take him to the vet today as his tummy was so bloated and red. He was red from the middle of his belly to his rear legs and when I stimulated him, he would fuss and cry and kick. He was still eating and pooping and peeing, but he certainly was also telling me something was wrong.

Granted he is young, but I suspected he had tapes. I had to go and make another payment on my sky-high vet bill, so I tucked Tarzan into my jacket and off we went.

Ben was skeptical when I asked him for Droncit. I told him that when Tarzan arrived, he was riddled with fleas and was frantically trying to groom himself. So, Ben did give Tarzan a shot of Droncit. He also said that he felt Tarzan’s digestive system wasn’t working right, so he gave me a tube of BeneBac

By the time we arrived home, Tarzan had pooped and there was a pile of tapes in the middle of it all. Poor Kitty! He is looking so much better. The redness isn’t so pronounced now and only on his rear legs (which could also be urine scald.) His belly that was as hard as a basketball this morning now has more give in it when pressed.

Hopefully, it will be smooth sailing from here on in. I have the word out that he is available for adoption in 5 months- so there is hope he will find a good home in the future.

Tomorrow Eddie is bringing over someone wanting to adopt Shimmer, and I got a promising phone call from someone in North Albany interested in Madison! She is bringing her husband on Saturday to meet Maddie

Pretty well known at the local grocery stores around here, after all, who can ignore a lady who comes into the store every two weeks to buy multiple cans for cat food?

While buying cat food this morning an employee tugged at my sleeve. She wanted to show me what they had found just hours earlier. Someone had left him inside the store, had they done otherwise and left him outside, I doubt he would have survived. It has been bitter cold here.

His name for now is Felix, by all intents and purposes he should be a bottle baby, however circumstances seem to have made him hungry for anything. He is eating every 3 hours a mixture of canned cat food and kmr out of a jar lid warmed up.

Mike has promised he will take over nurse duty when I work, but I think I can take him to work as long as I can get my bosses permission. Forgive the blurry photograph, the dog had licked the camera prior to the shot.

Recently, I had oral surgery, never fun to have a tooth extracted. But afterward, I developed a bad infection at the extraction site, so the dentist prescribed Tramadol. I was told by the pharmacist only two things: take with a lot of water, take with food.

My mouth was so swollen, I couldn’t open it very wide, so I halved the pills and were taking them 2 every 6 hours this way. By the second day, when I woke up, I couldn’t breathe. At first I thought Oliver (my 18 pound cat) was sitting on my chest, but when I tried to sit up, I had pain radiating down my right arm. I fell back thinking “is this it? Am I having a heart attack?” Although the pain remained steady, it didn’t get worse and finally I got up. Oliver was nowhere in sight.

All through the day I was struggling to breathe. I got the hiccups and thought I would die. It was so strange. I finally got off of work and came home and talked to Mike about how I was feeling. He was ready to whisk me off to Urgent Care- but I gave up believing in that place a long time ago.

Instead, I went on Drugs.com and read up on the medication that I was taking. Shame on me- I should have done that FIRST. The side effects of this little white pill are horrendous; shallow breathing, serious breathing problems, rashes with blisters, heart palpatations, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, blurry vision, coma, death. One thing you don’t do is crush or halve the pills because it puts to much of the drug in your system and can cause “serious breathing disorders.” So, how do you stop this from occurring? Believe it or not, I found out from a health professionals, I have to go BACK on the drug, take it correctly and wean myself off it slowly. Baloney!

It has been three days now, and I can sit upright finally without pain. I went off all food and started flushing my system with water. Not sipping it but chugging it like I used to do with beer at beer parties long ago. I still have the pain a bit, but it isn’t as intense and I think I am getting better daily.

The cats have been a comfort and except for Charlie, they seem to accept that for now my chest is no longer a sleeping spot for them. Charlie is Charlie and he is stubborn. He will repeatedly jump on my chest, I am just thankful that he is the smallest kitty of the bunch.

I think in a few days, I will be good to go. I had people at work praying for me. One woman told me the first day I worked after the extraction that i looked so pale she thought I was Casper! She grabbed me the minute I walked in the door, led me to the back room, wrapped her arms around my neck and prayed for me I looked that bad! Kathi even sent me home early because I could barely walk much less bend over.

You know we trust these professionals to do right by us. They give us pills with no consequence to the problems they might create for us. Sometimes pills appear on the market as the “end-all be all” for the problem only to be yanked later as causing major health issues. I wonder why the pharmacist didn’t warn me about ALL the side-effects? Are they that busy in their day that they don’t understand some people need to know about this? The only way I found out about the 48 side effects was by using the Internet. God help me, next time I get a pill from a health professionals, the first thing I am going to do is research the darn thing on drugs.com!

Kodie and Echo have quickly found their way with each other. One thing that we are trying to work with Echo on is getting on the couch! His Royal Highness is used to laying all over the furniture and in this home, that isn’t allowed. This morning Echo tried to crawl into Mike’s lap when he was in his chair. Now, if Echo was a 10 pound dog, that would be one thing- but he weighs 90 pounds and the vet said that he is about 25 pounds underweight! I agree because you can feel his ribs, his back bone and tail bone are also protruding. So, we will continue to work with him and let him know that furniture is a no dog zone. Shame on his previous owner though, she didn’t obedience train him, train him to walk on a leash. Supposedly she has had him since he was 7 weeks old, so my question would be, what the heck did you do with him besides teach him that furniture is a lovely place to lay on?

I had to go back to the dentist yesterday. The tooth extraction site got infected so it isn’t healing correctly. It’s another round of antibiotics and pain pills till this clears up. Man! And I thought vets were expensive! They wanted the money up front so there goes the food budget for the next two months. But at least, the animals will eat! 🙂

Yes another new arrival. Sadly, there is never a lack of animals in need of a loving home. I am so appalled when I read on Craig’s List and other lists about all the dogs and cats that people are looking to “get rid of.’ I hate that term- I get rid of garbage, and termites. I don’t “get rid” of animals. They have a heart, they have a soul and people need to look at them in a different light instead of just possessions like a couch or a stick of furniture.

This is Echo, he is 2 years old and although he has never been neutered- he is a cryptoid, he is mellow as toast. We have had him for 3 days he is a product of a divorce situation. The gal has to farm out all her dogs until she decides what she wants to do. We are “fostering” him right now, but I suspect he will be staying forever as he allows the kitties to climb all over him, he is very gentle and he gets along with Kodie until she gets to rough with him. He almost nailed her this morning when she bombed into him.

We have had him now for 3 days and he has already developed a bond with me. Mike, he isn’t so sure of yet.

The cats seem to all like him, although he is so HUGE that when he first arrived, just the appearance of his head in the door was enough to make the stray cat scramble happen! Now, the older cats are all over him and the kittens are making their way with him. Trump and Livingston both have issues with him, but he is a sweet, sweet boy. He still looks sad to me though. I hope he gets his smile back soon.

He has been allowed to be on furniture, something dogs here are never allowed to do- they would squish a cat! besides, at 90 pounds- he takes up the WHOLE couch. Mike is thrilled, he finally has his cherished shepherd.

Quietly regarding me with large, green soulful eyes, Guinevere lies on a lounge cushion placed on the floor. This mere whisper of a cat, deemed “un-adoptable” at the local shelter condemning her to live out her days in a small cramped cage, was now sequestered in our master bedroom. Learning that she was a “special needs” cat didn’t sway me from adopting her permanently.

In her crab-like, hopping fashion, Guinevere follows me around the bedroom. Determined to present me with her special head-bump of the day, she doggedly pursues me in her slow, lumbering manner.

Guinevere is seventeen years old (or so my vet believes). She does not invite my pity. If I start toward her when she is following me, she ducks under the bed. At first, I thought I startle her. But, the more time I spend with her, I begin to understand her. Recognizing, the fight and courage that drives her onward toward whatever her goal might be; the litter pans, the food bowls or my lap. She is a determined creature wanting only the simple things, wanting to stay safe.

Though walking is a struggle she valiantly keeps going she, tentatively exercising tired, damaged limbs. Somehow sensing that inactivity could prove to be risky and action is prudent.

Only when she reaches me am I allowed to kneel down; lowering myself to the floor, crossing my legs waiting for the special ritual to begin. She lurches over, lies down so that her head is resting on my knee. Carefully I lean over, scooping up her back-end and supporting her damaged shoulders easing her into my lap. The activity has worn her down. She closes her eyes and sleeps cradled in my arms.

Her attraction to me was immediate. Perhaps sensing that we are kindred spirits overcoming what might have destroyed others. I know she cannot see the scars. My shirts and jeans effectively cover up the highway of marks that zigzag over my stomach. A freeway of harsh reminders when the clothes are removed and the body is being contemplated in the full-length- mirror.

The marks can be covered up cosmetically. I never chose to do so. They remind me of a life long ago, when a young, naïve girl ran off with a man she was certain would love her forever. But forever’s are for fairy tales and sometimes fairy tales turn into nightmares.

As I watch Guinevere lying trembling in my arms, limbs twitching and her lovely mouth turned into a grimace. I fear she is chasing her own personal demons. I recall what fear tastes like, how love can quickly turn ugly and dark when people, afraid of getting involved simply turn around and walk away.

Do cats have nine lives? I believe Guinevere does. She has remained on earth for a reason. To be a gentle teacher, a spiritual guide. She inspires me daily to look beyond the surface, ignore the outer dressing, to weigh the heart and value the soul. Guinevere is pure white. The color white is said to symbolize; stability, power and trustworthiness; the sum total of my Guinevere.

Although the weather is still a bit cold, soon spring will officially be here and the stray cats will come out of their winter nests and start searching for food in earnest…

Stray and feral cats are described by many labels: doorstep cats, porch kitties, bush dwellers, stray cats, feral cats, fractious cats. Feral cats are commonly thought to be disease-ridden, troublesome, pests, a nuisance something that needs to be eradicated. When truth be told, most “feral cats” are stray cats with feral tendencies.

Cats that lurk around homes and businesses become easy prey for the darker side of humanity. If they are lucky, where they have hidden themselves, they can scrounge daily for food and water. Cats skilled in survival conceal their presence well. Anywhere they can find a space that will not touch the outer tips of their whiskers, they know they can get inside and be safe. So adept are they in hiding, that there is currently no accurate count of how many stray and feral cats there are in the United States. There is just speculation.

Stray cats scavenge for food in dumpsters, behind restaurants and fast food places. If they are lucky, they find a kind soul who will not only feed them, but also trap neuter and rehome or release them into the wild. Without kindly benefactors these cats are left to survive the elements, predators and diseases on their own. Perhaps long abandoned on the streets by clueless owners or dumped out into the middle of nowhere by heartless humans for not being the “perfect cat,” former house cats’ memories of warm houses soon fades, replaced instead by their feral tendencies.

Tomcats roam looking for intact females and submissive males. Slowly, the cats find each other, fighting for dominance the group determines their pecking order, an Alpha takes over as leader, mating begins and the group grows. The cats begin to colonize especially around an easy food source.

Setting dry or wet cat food outside on a regular basis is a sure sign that a cat or two will soon appear. Feeding the stray cat in your yard, though admirable, only creates more of a problem. The cat once realizing that food is plentiful will start to spray your bushes with a pheromone alerting other cats that the house is “safe” for other kitties. This marking of your home or property identifies your home as a easy mark, a place of food.

The cats in the immediate area and over a mile away will pick up on this initial scent by using their Jacobson’s Organ (an organ located inside the mouth just behind the front teeth). As more cats arrive to the feeding bowls, more pheremones are sprayed. Soon, one cat becomes two, then three then ten. Unaltered cats and sadly most strays and feral cats are not neutered will stay near the food source and begin to fight and mate.

If you don’t spay and neuter the cats on your property, soon they will be breeding, fighting for territorial rights. The tomcats will be screaming in the middle of the night as they confront each other and fight for food, the right to mate and challenge the alpha of the group. Alphas are not always surprisingly the males. Females have been known to effectively achieve the level of Alpha in a group.

Cats are fierce predators. Cats teamed with humans when we began the agricultural part of our existence. Farmers feeding livestock grain, soon became overrun with rodents. Cats, realizing that living closely with humans increased their chances of getting a good meal of prey began to seek out human contact, lurking in barns and keeping the rodent population down. The barn cats of today still maintain this predatory role, while their cousins the housecats enjoy a life of being pampered and fed inside the home.

If you feed feral cat, you should also do what is known as TNR (Trap, Neuter and Release). Trapping is not always easy to accomplish. The best way to trap a large colony of cats is to have multiple traps set up all at once to trap as many cats as possible. Once the cats witness other cats being caught in traps, they will begin to steer clear of any trap making trapping difficult.Withholding food 24 hours before setting the traps makes the cats hungry to go in and eat the food that is set out for bait. The traps should be scrubbed out after every capture with an enzyme remover such as urine-off or Zero Odor. Cats, when they are stressed will be spraying the wires with urine. This urine tells other cats to “stay away.”

Some cats do not like the feel of the wire under their paws. Using a thin layer of newspaper to pad the front part of the trap, or once the trap is in place using kitty litter will also work. Just don’t impede the trigger.

For the hard to catch male stray cats, try using a little bit of soiled cat litter. Sprinkle it towards the back of the trap near the trigger to lure them in. They will catch the scent of the strange cat and move in to cover it.

There are several types of traps to use. Hav-A-Heart is a humane trap, they make them in several sizes, including kitten size. The Tomahawk Company out of Wisconsin also makes humane live traps. Traps can sometimes be rented from Animal Control, Animal Shelters, some veterinary clinics, feed stores, and pest control services.

There are drop traps you can build if there are two of you that will be trapping. Alley Cat Allies website has instructions on how to build one. http://www.alleycat.org/pdf/droptrap.pdf
You will need an Adobe Reader to access the information.

You want to place the trap in a secure location that is not out in the open. If you are trapping at a shopping center, your best bet is to place the traps near the dumpster where the cats will typically go to gather food. Please monitor these traps if at all possible, for someone can come along and steal the trap and the cat inside. Have a dark cloth ready to throw over a trap once a cat is caught, as well as something to weight down the top of the trap, for the cat will repeatedly throw himself against the wire in a frantic effort to get out. The blanket or dark cloth you place over the trap, will help to calm the cat quicker than leaving it exposed. It is best, once a cat has been trapped to remove the trap quickly to another area so the other cats don’t become spooked and run away.

Bait: You want smell to bring them into the trap, so mackerel, tuna, stinky cheap fish food, sardines or smelt all create an odor. Dribble the juice of the fish around the inside of the trap and on the trigger, and place a small amount of food in a large jar lid or a plate or a saucer, but not a bowl. The cat needs to see the food, and not just a bowl.

Once you have set the trap in place, carefully place the food at the very back of the trap beyond the trigger, and set your trap. Remove yourself from the immediate area, but check the traps about every two to three hours. Remember patience is key.

You can get creative, and start feeding your cats inside a large cardboard box that is flipped over on its side. Once they get used to going into the box, add a trap and go for the capture. You can also use what nature has provided to camoflague your trap. Pine branches, wood bark, leaves, wedge the trap between two logs, it all depends on where you are trapping.

If you are feeding a large colony of cats, keep a journal (and try to get photographs of each cat) that way you will have a record that you can refer to and be sure that you have trapped all the cats in the group. Record any type of distinguishing mark, color, sex, etc..

Persistence and patience is key here. Once you have the cat in the trap, get the trap to a vet that is familiar with handling feral cats. Don’t call and make an appointment without letting them know that your cat is feral. That is hardly fair to the vet and the vet techs. If you are using a spay day on a spay mobile, make sure you have enough dark cloths to cover each trap while the animal waits for his or her turn. There are a lot of cats on a Spay Day and the more you can reduce the animal’s stress, the better for everyone involved.

According to Lisa Doyle, cat rescuer and volunteer of AzCat the following items are essential to have with you while trapping large colonies:
Humane Traps
Can opener
Cover for each trap
Dish or lid to hold cat food
Flashlight
Tarp or plastic for under traps when transporting in vehicle
Newspaper
Coffee, blanket, radio with earphones (if you are going to stake out the area and watch the traps)

2. Set the traps around the area where the cats are used to being fed. You can also set up in areas where they are seen. In general cats like to be up against walls, etc. so you are more likely to catch them there.

3. Potential Trap problems: Be sure that the trap door has a full, unhindered swing. If you are using the brown traps with the side chain attached to the trip plate (thing that they step on) check to see that the chain is not twisted or jammed when you set the trap.

If your trap is one with a back door look at how it is secured when you get it so you know how to correctly close it. If you do not close it correctly the cat may be able to escape.

4. Put newspaper, folded in half length wise, in the bottom of the trap and put a small amount of smelly food on a lid or other small item in the back of the trap against the door that will remain closed. Sprinkle a very small amount of the food along the newspaper in one or two places. Never put any food outside the trap itself. Suggested food: Tuna fish; sardines; Fancy Feast salmon or other smelly cat food.

5. As you trap the cats and move them be sure to look at the ground. Sometimes the tuna or other food you use for bait will spill onto the ground. Pick it up immediately if you have not yet caught all the cats you are trying to trap. You don’t want it to be eaten by the other cats you are trying to trap.

When a cat is in a trap:

1. Immediately cover the trap completely with a towel or sheet then take the cat away from the area. (Careful as they can move back and forth quickly in the trap and catch you off balance.)

2. Always check to see if the left ear of the cat is ear-tipped. The tip of the left ear is cut straight across so that the tip is removed. That means that the cat was previously trapped, altered, and returned. It can be released. If you have sufficient traps, hold the cat in the trap until you are done trapping, and then release it.

3. It takes a while for other cats to come back in the area after a cat is trapped so be patient. It gets harder to catch the remaining cats with every trap they see or hear go off.

4. Do not feed the cat in the trap you risk escape and the cat is having surgery the following morning and should have nothing in its stomach. (The exception is kittens that are small but big enough to alter. Kittens blood sugar drops when they do not eat causing added risk during surgery so the recommendation is to feed them a small amount of MOIST cat food right up to a few hours before surgery.)

5. Put the trapped cat somewhere where it will not be too adversely affected by the weather and where it will be safe from people and other animals.

Transporting:

1. LEAVE THE TOWEL OR SHEET ON THE TRAP THE CAT IS IN THE ENTIRE TIME THE CAT IS IN THE TRAP. If the cat pulls the cover into the trap get another cover to put on the trap. Cats in traps must be covered.

2. You should put a tarp or other waterproof covering in the vehicle (for example, an old shower curtain.) The cats may urinate or defecate.

3. MAKE CERTAIN THE TRAPS CANNOT ROLL OVER IN YOUR VEHICLE. Gravity-operated (brown) traps will open if turned upside down. If you must stack the traps on top of each other make certain that the handle is not sticking up on the trap that is on the bottom and that the top trap is secure so that it will not tip on either side.

Holding the cat overnight and releasing the cat:

1. Hold the cats in an area where they are safe from predators and protected from the elements. After surgery, cats cannot regulate their body temperatures the way they normally can, so their holding area cannot be too cold in winter or too warm in the summer.

2. You should give the cats water and a little moist food, use extreme caution so the cats cannot escape from their traps. Using the same door you used to put the bait in the trap, lift the door up no more than necessary and never so far up that the cat can fit through the door if it suddenly decided to bolt forward. (The door should come up only a couple inches.) Be sure to secure the door correctly as well. If a cat is very groggy or unsteady, wait. You do not want to risk having the cat drown in the water or choke on the food.

3. Hold the cat a minimum of 24 hours after surgery. If there is continuing bleeding or other problems do not release the cat. Follow the instructions given by the veterinarian.

4. To release take the cat to its usual secure location preferably where there are bushes or other things in which it can hide, open the back door, pull the trap cover back, and stand at the opposite end of the trap to wait for the cat to go out. If it is near an area where there is vehicular traffic wait for a time when there is no traffic because the cat may make a panic run directly into oncoming traffic.

Follow up:

1. Clean the trap with a bleach solution. Bleaching traps helps prevent the spread of any diseases for future trappings.

1 gallon of water to 4 ½ oz. of bleach
2 gallons of water to 8¾ oz. of bleach
3 gallons of water to 13 oz. of bleach
4 gallons of water to 17 1/4 oz. of bleach
5 gallons of water to 21 ½ oz. of bleach

2. Wash the towels or sheets that were used as trap covers. Use bleach.

If you are only trapping one cat, this becomes easier. However, if the cat is older and trap savvy, he may not enter the trap readily.
Once the cat is trapped, transport him to the vet clinic. Be sure and call the clinic first to let them know you have a stray cat in need of a neuter. While the cat is being transported, be sure and keep the trap covered. This calms the cat down, though you may still hear him rush against the sides of the wire in a frantic attempt to get away. This is normal for trapped cats to feel such panic. You also need to prepare yourself for seeing some blood once the trap is uncovered. Many cats slash open their nose or face while attempting to flee captivity. If possible, keep the cat in your car in the covered trap until the vet is ready to see the cat in his treatment room (weather permitting). This decreases the amount of stress the cat is subjected to, shielding it from the other stess pheremones from the other animals waiting to be seen.

Initial Vet Visit

Any cat that isn’t used to being handled is considered feral to the vet and the clinic. This cuts down on the amount of injury to the staff and the cat as well. If the cat is brought into the clinic in a covered trap, the office girl will take down all pertinent information.

The cat should be tested for the prevalent viral diseases in the area. This testing will be undertaken once the cat has been sedated. What tests are taken should be determined by the vet and the owner. The cat is then carried back to the kennel area. His trap is then inverted upright (vertically) instead of horizonally. This minimizes the injuries he can cause himself.

At the clinic, they have an apparatus called “metal fingers.” This is a series of long metal rods that can be inserted into the main trap. The tech’s hands are outside the cage, holding on to the special gripper handle. The metal fingers are then worked through the bars of the trap, forcing the cat down into the bottom of the cage. The fingers, hold the cat securely in place while the vet administers the sedative. Different clinics use different drugs; Telazole, Rompum, Ketamine, Torbugesic or Xylazine are the preferred drugs of choice.

Once the cat has been sedated, he is removed from the trap. If ear tipping has been requested, the vet will surgically remove the bare tip of the left ear. This ear tipping is performed if the cat is being re-released back outside. Then all routine exams are performed, bloodwork taken to test for viral disease. If the cat is healthy, he will then be neutered, returned back to his trap or a waiting cat carrier if the owner provides one.

This type of treatment, no matter how gently it is carried out by the vet and the staff, only proves to terrify a stray cat more. Used to being able to escape in all directions, the cat wakes up in discomfort and on edge. It is imperative that when transporting the cat home, you keep the carrier or the trap covered at all times. Pain patches should be applied to help with the level of pain the cat will experience during the recovery process.

Because you have trapped this cat, cut off all access of freedom for him, you move quickly in the cat’s eyes from “rescuer” to predator. He is not going to trust you for sometime and may even do you great harm. Handling him right off if you don’t know what you are doing must be done minimally, especially if your goal is to just release him back into the outdoors.

It is the start of Spring Break and this morning while walking to the barn, the ground crunched underneath my feet. The surrounding mountains show a light dusting of new snow in the background. Canadian Geese honk overhead as they search in vain for the wetlands that once existed down the road apiece, now replaced by a modular home tract.

They circle the pasture several times honking their dismay. Then, they notice the creek at the back of our land and diving down from the sky; they end up settling near its banks. It is called Little Creek, but this time of year, it is swollen with rain water and run-off. They should be able to find food because the small fishes hide in the grasses below the water. I feel sorry for them. The farmer down the road recently passed away, and his land was sold, instantly grabbed up by developers. Deciding that apple, pear and plum trees have no merit in today’s world, the orchards were quickly cut down. The large pond where the wildlife met daily, they drained and filled with gravel and sand.

It was a man-made pond. We would see the farmer and his boy out there every summer fishing from their small boat. Now, cement foundations wait patiently for the resurrection of more houses. More money into developers pockets, all in the name of progress.

The horses are spirited this morning. Perhaps sensing a change in the weather is imminent. Tired of slogging through the mud, getting stuck at times- wanting their itchy winter coat to finally be shed so they can play in the sunshine and sleep in the dry grass, they paw at the gate impatiently for their food.

When I open the barn door, I see to my dismay that the last of the winter hay has vanished. Today’s offerings will be only the loose hay that has fallen from the loft- still; it makes a sizeable meal for them until I can order more bales today. It has been a cold winter- the hay didn’t last as long as normally it would. But at least, because of the cold snaps, the breeding season of the strays were halted. Now, there will be some relief for me until the kitten season starts up again in a few months.

Shimmer leaves soon for her new home. Her infection of her spay site has healed nicely. I am thrilled that she is going to be an only kitty in this lovely home and be cherished by the entire family. All the kitties here deserve to be an only kitty. The halls are quite crowded now; Mike says I am running a boarding house for runaways! I suppose if you think about it, I am.