How to Trap a Feral Cat for TNR
Вставка
- Опубліковано 11 гру 2024
- Trap-Neuter-Return is the tried and true method for humanely managing cat populations.
Care about kittens? Me too! TNR is one of the best ways to prevent kitten euthanasia, as the majority of kittens euthanized in shelters are those who are found outside (feral or orphaned!) In this video, I show you how you can trap cats in your own backyard.
Like my videos? Wanna support my work? Please buy my merch! The shirt and sweatshirt you see in this video are both available at: kittenlady.bigcartel.com. Thank you!
I have always kept the males inside for 24 hours and females for 72 hours before release. I am completing my first solo tnr of 6 ferals. So happy with the way the Trucatch traps and Tomahawk drop traps work. And so blessed to have a clinic that is great and low priced as I am doing this alone. Every spay and neuter stops so many kittens from being born. If you want a kitty there are plenty in the shelters who need your love.
hello! I am working on tnr-ing two feral kitties living in my apartment complex and i have a question. how do i feed them/ give them water while holding them after getting them fixed while they're in the trap?
@@toridarko when you are trying to trap them you can use food. The vets dont like them to eat after midnight the night prior to their surgery. For example if they are getting surgery on Monday morning use food to catch them sunday but dont give them food after midnight. Water is ok. And keep them in traps separately. Then after their surgery you can offer wet food as long as they have fully come out of anesthesia. If they eat that then you can resume regular feedings. If they don't eat by next day you should contact the vet to tell them. The clinic you are taking them to should also supply you with pre and post op instructions. I think it is great you are doing tnr. If you need any help please let me know. I'll do what I can.
You kept them in traps for 3 days?!
That's the other thing how can they realise them a day later? Seems to me they would hold on to them at least a few days, won't they get infected or something? Once released their is no way I'd be able to see how they are doing.
The one kitty outside is ready any day now to have her litter, then their will be another problem.
Trying to find where she has her litter, then trying to capture all of them in a certain amount of time.
I was hoping for help before she even got pregnant now hoping before she has her babies.
I'm sooo stressed out.
@@kathleenplumley1626 after their surgery I set them up separately in large dog crates with litter boxes, soft food and water bowls and a cat carrier with the door opened and a soft cozy blanket inside. I keep the crate partially covered. I always make sure the kitties are eating and drinking and are urinating and make a poop before releasing. I constantly monitor them checking their eye, walking, the surgical area. The boys heal quickly. I have been told, and I agree, that keeping them in captivity too long causes depression and they heal quicker when they are around their own colony. I had one kitty who needed surgery for a huge abcess at the base of his tail. I had to keep him in his crate for almost 10 days till he healed. He looked so sad but he was feral and he did not want to make friends with me. But he healed fully and was very happy to be released. Hopefully you will hear the babies make sounds and can locate them. If I were close to your area I would help you.i am in lower bucks county PA. I know it can be stressful. Do you have a rescue group you can reach out to?
I'd like to offer a few additional tips to use on this style of trap especially for those cats who are skittish or smart:
1. When placing the blanket over the trap, I drape the blanket over the sides but leave the back end of the trap visible so the trap looks more like a tunnel. If a cat can see the food and see through the trap it's more likely to go inside to investigate than if the sides and back are 'closed off'
2. I recommend using a layer of cardboard instead of newspaper. My experience has shown that some cats are particular about the feel of what they're walking on. They don't really like the wire bottom and while newspaper helps, you can still feel the wire somewhat unless you put down a lot of layers. Plus the newspaper can make noise when the cat walks on it. Or it there's even the slightest of breeze, the newspaper moves around and whatnot
3. You can make the trip plate more sensitive and also increase the surface area of the trip plate by laying a larger piece of cardboard over top of the metal trip plate. I've had cats that were big enough / smart enough to walk in the trap, eat the food and walk back out even when the food is placed at the very back. So if the metal trip plate is 3 -4 inches long, lay a piece of stiff cardboard that's 8 - 11 inches long on top of the metal plate. You can put 2 layers of cardboard on if you wish. The cardboard is stiff enough to hold the cats weight long enough that it will set off the trip plate earlier but not so early that the cat has time to back out after tripping the trap.
4. If you trap a female that's in heat or an active male tom, save the towel(s) you used to cover the trap(s) to use on future trappings. Chances are good that the cat will have sprayed on the towel during its time in the trap. I kept a few of these towels inside a sealed trash bag (to trap the smell) that were part of my trapping 'toolkit.' Sometimes reusing a towel that reeked of cat was enough to bring around more cats.
5. Unless you have the tools, DO NOT try to transfer a feral cat from a trap to an animal carrier.
TNR works. Please get your pet spayed or neutered.
About to attempt my first tnr on a feral cat I've gotten attached to... These tips really helped me! Thank you so much!
@@maggiebeltaa5421 Where can you buy the traps?
Darlene L I got mine on amazon! I’ve heard the best brand is Trucatch
Sappy, do you know how to trap a cat that had already been trapped & is now learn. This cat has a broken leg & I want to catch him & get it fixed (get the leg fixed). But he got out of the drop trap jumping around. He will be drop-trap-shy now, most likely.
With his three-legged hopping, he won't go in a Tru-catch trap for big cats either .
Do you have any ideas?
Would a snare work, or would it injure him? How about a net with a pulley? ( IDK if I could be fast enough, or how I'd get him out of the net into a carrier, even if I could catch him. I am totally at a loss.
Thanks.
Thank you so much, for the great tips.
I trapped a feral cat from our backyard and drove her over an hour to Austin because my city does not have a TNR program. It was well worth it! Occasionally she demands to be petted now, before we couldn't get anywhere near her.
Awesome job Tara! Thank you!
Tara Lents so nice
Tara Lents hey how are you
Tara Lents you probably trapped someone's pet.
boom bob trust me she was no one's pet. If you ever come across a feral cat you know it's feral.
Watched your video probably 7 times to ingrain every step in my head and today I succeeded in getting my first four cats!
I trapped a cat in my neighborhood using my car's tyre. They wiggle for a bit and then they became truly tame and spayed at the same time
I've got a friendly community cat in my apartment complex who'd had a few litters of kittens. She disappeared for a few months but showed up again recently with her ear clipped. I thought she'd got in a fight but now I know it means she's been spayed :)
note, don't take a lactating queen if you catch one, release her so she can return to the kittens, try again in a month. Maybe you can get all the kittens at the same time!
Great point :)
I'm glad that you mention that- it's something to remember! I usually wait to TNR during the winter months (October-November ideally) if I can. It's cold, but less of a chance catching either a lactating queen or a cat who has recently become pregnant.
teampenit do not do it until the kitten's eyes change from blue ish grey to green, Amber, yellow, brown, or copper when the eyes change to one of those it means they are weaned and don't bring a cat that has kittens for TNR because they will abandon or worst kill and eat them bringing cats to TNR in my opinion is rather bad for them because after that they WILL eat more about 3 or 4 times more and that will not change in stray/ feral cats will be no exception and with no owners they won't have much food and you know what that means they will eat road kill and the second it is over it will end in cannibalizing adult cats and then kittens, trust me I studied about this and oh yeah if you don't want pissed of AF cats because when they find out they will be irritated because nature is like that of a human they live to bring on population so I think it is one of the most cruel thing to do.
teampenit do not you need to wait six months kittens can warm them selves until then and their mother will leav after being spayed they lose parental instincts and they will leave the kittens also when they are three months is NATURAL not captive but NATURAL weaning cue and said female cat will dry up.
One very woolly Llama After the cat is spayed/neutered it will no longer feel as strong an urge to mate or have kittens so it won't be irritated if it can't.
I used to trap and teach TNR classes 15 years ago, and I approve of this message. Spreading knowledge via UA-cam is a wonderful thing!
Beverly, since you've done TNR so much, do you have any ideas that might help me?
There is a stray that acts feral with a possible broken front leg. I want to catch him & take him to the vet. He was starting to get used to me feeding him, would let me be 10 ft away while he ate. Nut now that he is injured, he stays 20-30 ft away. He won't go in a standard trap (like Havahart or Tru-Catch).
I borrowed a drop trap. Eventually, I trapped him. But when I put the tru-catch trap up to the drop trap slide-up door, he dashed against the side (like a bull in a china shop) and knocked the tru-catch away & squeezed out.
(If I'd had help or hadn't been my first time, I don't think this would've been such a failure.)
Now, he will be drop-trap-shy. Is there anything else i can do? Would a snare or net work?
I don't want to give up.
Any ideas that you would have would be greatly appreciated.
@@jessicaa.6690 Hi I'm having the same problem. This cat won't go near the trap and we need ideas on how to catch her. Were you able to catch your cat?
@@CarlosRodriguez-qe7ml I only caught him the first time (discussed above). But, what I did that worked was to leave a bite of food every 12 inches or so, leading into the trap. Or leading to under the trap if it is a drop trap.
The food that finally helped me catch him that one time was fried Chicken from a deli. Well it was either fried or baked. I just broke off a few pieces and left a trail of chicken pieces into back of the drop trap, and then a little bowl of food at the very back where the cage touches the ground. (So he would stop there and start eating, not watching his surroundings, and giving me a chance to pull the rope to make the trap drop down.)
I had a rope tied to the leg or whatever you want to call it that you pull to make the trap drop. The rope went from tied around that leg, to inside the house because I found that if I was outside he wouldn't go anywhere near the trap. Then I set up a surveillance camera outside and set it to make a noise notification on my phone if there was motion (motion-activated camera - Merkury Geeni at Walmart $28). But I also watched the video feed on my phone like a hawk.
Also, have everything you need nearby the trap in case you do catch him. Extra towels, weights to put on the traps. And if you use a drop trap you have to be able to transfer him into another portable trap since the drop trap doesn't have a bottom. if your drop trap doesn't have something that mechanically connects it to the portable trap, I would strongly suggest you have another person to help you hold both traps down so when he goes into the portable trap he wont squeeze out between them before you can slide the trap door down real quick, without him getting away.
If chicken doesn't work, try sardines, kipper, tuna in oil, any really smelly fish, try different flavors of wet cat food or meat that comes in babyfood jars, or those little vienna sausages --cut up of course. You could maybe even try milk or cheese. Or whatever wet (or dry) food that he is using fed. Or BBQ some chicken or steak in the yard so he can smell it, then use some of that food.
I hope something helps you catch the one you are trying to catch.
Please let me know if you have any questions. I might be able to explain things a little better if any of this is confusing.
@@CarlosRodriguez-qe7ml also, some people put a cardboard box around the trap. (Cats love cardboard boxes.). If you can't find a box that the trap will fit in, just cut up some pieces & tape them together. Some cats wont walk on newspaper. So instead of newspaper on the floor of the trap, you could try a towel or a very light cardboard piece.
Put the trap where you usually feed the cat, assuming you normally feed it.
Maybe if you gave me more information on the situation I might be able to help with some more ideas. What kind of trap have you tried using so far? Have you tried to drop trap yet? You have to be more attentive with the drop the traps, but the cat I was trying to catch would not go into a regular trap. I think that hopping on three legs made it impossible for him to get inside the trap without triggering it to close too soon, before he got in. (Poor thing.)
BTW I got some of those recommendations from TNR & other pet-related Facebook groups, by calling local Humane Society, PETA & posting in Facebook groups. It question one of the Facebook groups that I was able to find a lady who going to be the top trap and gave me a bunch of ideas. So that might be another source if you are still unable to catch the cat that you're trying to get,
The slaughtered squirrels and birds thank you
My cat Daisy, is a rescue. She was kicked out of her original home, and left to fend for herself on the streets for 2 weeks. My mom found her during one of her runs, and Daisy followed her back home. She stayed with us for three days, and was supplied with cat food, water and a comfortable pillow to sleep on. She is so friendly and nice, we really wanted to keep her. We brought her to the Human Society in our town, and she stayed there for a week and was spayed and vaccinated. She stayed at the Human Society for a week to see if anybody would come and claim her, but nobody did. She is a healthy brown tabby who now resides comfortably in our home. I'm glad we could give our cute kitty a happy home to stay on!
Spaying and neutering not only prevents reproduction but also injuries from fights, and illnesses from coming into physical contact with other cats. TNR rocks!
Of course, many reproductive system infections and disorders are also prevented by TNR! Cats will be healthier all-round, even if they aren’t interested in being our pets!
It's still not the solution to the problem because you're not getting rid of them and not only that but they're still aggressive
@@johnpaige8914 Then what would be the solution? Poison?
@@wanderowa one of the solutions
@@johnpaige8914 I wish it for people like you.
This is my first time doing a TNR. We hope to catch all 5 so I came here for some quick advice. Wish us luck!
I know it’s been 5 months, but how did it go?
@@asher-360 Thank you for asking! We managed to catch the babies. Mama cat was caught two months later and unfortunately papa cat hasn’t showed up since. We pray he’s okay. Mama cat was released back since she was clearly feral. The babies were treated and the two sister’s were adopted into a loving home. The only baby male was adopted by my brother since he needed urgent medical treatment. He had a hernia from a dog bite... we are truly grateful for this video because it helped save his life. They are all big happy kitties now. ☺️
I’ll post a picture of them all on my IG if anyone is interested. Just follow Hamusta.san
If people are worried about them catching pets, it's highly unlikely. You can immediately see whether they have a collar or a cut eartip. Even if they don't, at the vet they can scan for microchips and check to see if they've already been fixed. And, you can generally tell if a cat is feral because they rarely trust humans and are very jumpy. If a pet cat has no collar or microchip, then they are at risk of getting lost, so you shouldn't let a pet out without either of those things. And most importantly, if they aren't fixed, they should not be let allowed out. If they are too young to be fixed, that also means they probably shouldn't be allowed out.
WasabiKitKat some people don't even bother with a microchip for household pets, i've seen it happen.
Not all pets are microchipped or spayed/neutered.
But kittens
@@PianoDisneygal10 then you don't deserve to keep the cat as a pet.
@@sarasthoughts I would agree for the most part. But that doesn't mean the cat isn't someone's pet still.
This is a great video! Thank you! I caught a feral kitten once with my hands and got bit pretty badly. But after a few hours, food, and a warm bath. The kitten kitten started purring, we found him a home and no babies for him 🐱
Thank you!
Kitten Lady I’m your biggest fan
How old was he when caught?
talking to the neighbors helps too....my neighbor asked me the other day "How many cats do you have?" and I was like "I have TWO cats...two! all the rest of these cats were here when I moved here, you just never saw them!". I TNR every one I can get my hands on (eight so far) but I have found that if you catch a cat, stick it in a dark room, don't feed it, take it to a strange place where strangers do odd things to them, bring them back and release them, cold and hungry and sore....they think you are their best friend and show up every night looking for a handout. I am pretty sure the word is out on the stray cat network that I am an 'easy' target..
Buahahaha! That's the funniest finisher XD. Although on a slightly biological note, having their gonads intact makes them perpetually irritable, so cats who have been neutered have way more energy for eating and learning to sucker you out of a meal, so maybe it makes a bit of sense XD
Are you saying don't spay or neuter them???
The dilemma is that once released, someone needs to feed them. What if no one volunteers? Is it still advisable to TNR?
@@happywanderer2874 TNR is only going half way and don't deserve any pats on their back. 99% or more feral s can be socialized and put up for adoption. But that takes love, patience and dedication.
They still need to be fixed though. @@rockie6890
I'm with a group called Mid-Cities Community Cats in North Texas. For 2018 we have done 822 cats. We keep the boys 24 hours before releasing. We keep the females at least 36 hours, So they don't rip open the stiches. She just had a hysterectomy! She needs a few days to heal before letting her back out where she can get ripped open. We are always looking for volunteers and donations. Thanks for reading.
TNR in lreland volunteer here...our vet uses internal and external dissolveable stitches and superglue.....it works!
Why can’t the boys just have a vasectomy ? And the girls their tubes tied ?
@@pamelachung3210 If they do not fully neuter or spay the cats, that leaves them vulnerable and prone to negative health conditions such as cancers and hormonal disorders as well as behavioral issues. Spaying and neutering isn’t just to stop the cats from breeding; it’s meant to improve their quality of life.
I have a bad experience when I had my cat neutered. She was died in operation table. And that's the first time I neutered the cat. It's traumatized me. But I still keep doing it because, let my cat pregnant, fights, escape, infected, is more scary.
2nd times I spayed my male cat and tried to forgot my trauma. I was shaking for whole time in his surgery, but I relieved that he's fine.
Now I have female cat and wanted to neutered her next month. I'm still scared, but I have no choice. I want to keep her forever. Wish me luck!
Finka Riz Good luck ;)
@Avdrxiy oh thank you!
Update: My female cat is fine and healthy, her name is Creamy (1 yo)! She went through a surgery really well and get a long with my older (6 yo) cat named Darky the male cat I mentioned above. Now I have 2 cats, they're my best support, my babies, and happiness, I will keep them as long as they live.
I’ve neutered a dog but I don’t think I’ve ever neutered a cat but my cats that aren’t neutered are doing great
Avdrxiy I’m not sure if I’d ever neuter my cats, maybe once they get too old to breed but they’re doing great, and we only breed them when we think they’re ready to have kittens again so we don’t over breed and the girl who’s has a couple of litters is still doing really well :).
What a great video, thank you for taking the time to do this. I spent two years trapping one street in Miami Beach that had over 60 cats. I managed to get about a fourth of them fixed before I moved. I hope this becomes a common practice all over the world, so we can cut down on the amount of animals being killed just for being born! Thank you Kitten Lady
If we had this program in our country, and all you had to do would be to catch, bring and return them (no payment), i would be catching them all day every day... :(
that would be a weird hobby but still nice of you
There are organizations that DO fix them for free! Like The feral cat project! Please google/look in your area for free/low costing spaying and neutering!
many shelters and organizations will do feral TNR for free or low cost. there is a vet hospital/clinic that does TNR for $12/cat which is very reasonable. and if you are a frequent trapper for your neighborhood, many clinics will be willing to work a discount rate especially if you bring 2 or more cats at a time :)
Same
Amy Smith yjllĺlĺlbn80k0u
We adopted a stray cat 1 year ago. She never used live in our house the whole day. She used to come for food, play with us and then go outside. One day she went missing. And for a whole week. After one week she came back with her eat tip cutted a bit. We thought she might have gotten into a fight with some other cats but it seems now she was taken for TNR and was returned after one week....
4:28
Step on the plate, and
*Door loudly slams shut*
The door will gently close behind them
I found this video SO helpful! You really made it look easy and gave me the confidence to do it. I've trapped 4 cats in 3 days!! It is a little warm here and I think the ferals are starting to mate. Thank you!
I had a big white feral (probably abandoned) cat neutered today. I actually trapped him inside a transporter box, since he was not scared of me and I could push him inside. He had been in heat and although I covered the transporter box completely, he was still furious and insanely jumpy, so I put a carton box over the transporter box to ensure he did not escape. He has been debillitated because of the sedatives for several hours after the surgery. He seemed hungry, so I gave him wet food. He ate all of it, but he threw all of it up after 30 minutes. So I recommend not to feed a sedated cat until they are totally functional.
Hey Marko, great advice and AWESOME JOB getting a feral cat neutered! Keep it up!
Kitten Lady Also, when I had my 5 month-old kitten spayed, she was severely cold (I even had to blow her with a hair dryer and get her a shot of adrenaline because she was in a coma-like state). So I suggest cat rescuers to place the transporter boxes near a source of heat or in a warm room until they get back to normal, since vet rooms are usually pretty cold.
Marko Krmac you mean she was in heat right
When I got my cats fixed, the vet actually told me not to feed the female that evening (I think the male was fine, since they don't get dosed as much as females do). However, she managed to get some of his food, and promptly got sick, and I had to clean out her cone... And then she removed the cone and opened up her stitches -.- She was too clever for her own good.
JaydenLeeann Housewright male cats also act a certain way when it’s mating time.
Tuesday I TNRed my 60th cat!
Congratulations!
Good job your so helpful
It’s a great thing. My question is: if the cats are trapped, neutered and released, they still need someone to take care of them outside, no? What if no one volunteers?
Wow great job!
Where do you live? Are you with a group?
I work at a humane society that has a spay and neuter clinic and we do TNR's every week. It's one of my favorite programs, since we've done around 1,000 traps this year and since I get the services for free, I do a lot of trapping myself. I'll never forget my first trap cat. Since I'm also a RVT, I got to see her surgery. If we didn't get her in there when we did, she would have died due to a pyometra.
We are so blessed in our area to have designated TNR clinics at a great price($25) and they are held 3 times a month…normally. I just started this spring and I’ve TNR’ed 10 and I’m signed up for 10 more in the coming weeks.
TY Kitten lady for all you do. I feed 8 cats in a wooded area in my town twice a day. We are planing on TNR for each cat.
I just got a cat from HRA, who was a feral and had an injury, so they brought her in and she was so nice they decided to adopt her out! she still has weird feral tendencies but is one of the nicest cats i've ever had!
CATCHING A SMALL CAT OR KITTENS - PLEASE READ THIS: This video was incredibly helpful to me. However, there is something you should know about these traps, if the bar across the back of the trap is not absolutely secure a small cat 10lbs or under or kitten CAN SLIP OUT! I just had a small cat slip right out of the trap as I started to walk with it! If your objective is such a small cat or kitten, I suggest a zip tie on each side of the back of the trap, along with the bar to secure it. They can easily be cut but small cats & kittens won't be able to wiggle out or hurt themselves during transport.
Our traps are modified as well, but so far have only trapped adults.
Hope you are still there. Will a 7 or 8 week kitten be enough weight to set off the trap? Found homes but need to trap them in my backyard
@@darlenel7328 did you catch them? Some people put a weight or rock on the trip plate so that the combined weight of it, plus the kitten, will trigger it.
@@jessicaa.6690 yes! Thank you. I found homes for the kittens but then the mom disappeared for awhile. Of course, she came back pregnant, now I have 4 more kittens to find homes for..
@@darlenel7328 I hope you can catch & spay the Mama car. Otherwise you'll be in an endless cycle. ☹️
It's so nice that you are getting homes for the kittens and making efforts to help those cats!!! Hopefully mama cat can get spayed & a home, too, if she can be tamed.
A lady that has TNR'd 200+ cats says she tamed a feral adult cat. I didn't know an adult cat could be tamed... ever.
it took her a while of gradual steps, but she did it! Obviously, she is someone with a lot of dedication and patience.
Anyway, good luck with the kittens & Mama cat.
U know, I just watch these vids for like no reason at all, I just love kitten
Thank you so much for creating this video! What a wonderful resource for us Newbies who want to help all the homeless cats out there. Humane traps are also a great way to transport a stray to a Shelter or Vet to see if they have been micro-chipped. You're the best!
My boyfriend and I recently spotted 5, 3-4 week old kittens that have taken shelter in his backyard. I am leaving them be but I am coming back to this video to learn how to appropriately do this for the momma cat and maybe more. Thank you do much for these videos Hannah! I wish I had these sorts of video about 5 years ago when I found another litter of kittens outside of my house
Is it weird that all of my previous cats (and the ones I have now) were all 'feral' what I mean is my cats were honestly looking like little Fry, outside in winter! So what did I do? I fed them, neutered them and gave them a shelter to be in aka my garage, after winter they wouldn't stop following me while purring so I now have 5 cats that help me with the garden work!
What your describing is how all feral cats can turn out with love and patience. However, I do have a cat I got as a kitten two years ago and I suppose I can still call him feral because he actually fears being touched. He lives in my house, gets fed and loved and I respect his space and were both happy. I can if I'm careful now finally pet his head a little and that's OK with me. I know he is safe and happy because I do it for him, not to be rewarded.
I live in east Houston I have a feral cat that's pregnant I live in a apt complex they are very mean to cats around here I managed to capture one orange tabby and she is fixed and ear clipped she just now let's me lightly touch her I feed 3 feral including the one thats fixed and only one is pregnant i despairely need help with her bfor she has these baby's its so hot outside if someone could reach out to help me I would b so grateful I'm 71 yrs old and I do have my own traps
That is to cute
And they're probably pissing all over your neighbors things. People like you are a problem.
Good for you. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
I'm going on my first TNR trip tomorrow, with my local Cats Protection branch. Thanks for the inspiration Hannah!
That's awesome! Good luck Amelia!
Kitten Lady I tried to bring a cat I think a abbyssinian and that cat was smart he or she walked in noticed a difference in the paper and scattered and there's this tortoise shell cat I could tell it was a a male when he was laying down on his back should I TNR him or not he is most likely seteril and can't have kittens but still.
@@anarchistcocktail3455 yes, spay and neuter every cat you're able to to prevent unwanted kittens
I'm going on my first TNR soon, I'm nervous
Hands down, this is one of the best videos I've ever seen on UA-cam.
You've given me the confidence to help reduce the cat population in my neighborhood.
Thank you!
That's awesome, thank you so much for helping them!
There has been a cat in my back yard for months just relaxing and eating my dogs food. I decided to bring my dog inside for a week and see if I could catch the cat after a week. The first day I used your trap and tips I caught the cat! Thank you for this useful video!
This is I why I respect you, you are so kind and helping kittens and cats every day I got a 5 week old kitten before I knew it was wrong and he is a Scottish fold he was so scared the first day I got him and refused to be bottle fed he I had to dip my hand in the milk and he would lick it your videos really helped me and before I knew it he was my best friend and licks me before he sleeps and plays so much , I would have never built this relationship without you, thank you!
Love this and love what you do! My mom showed me something of yours a few months ago because it reminded her of me and I'm a huge fan now 💖🐱 I've fostered over 30 kittens and got my vet assistant certification this year, can't wait to have the level of experience you have (:
Oh that's amazing! 30 kittens! Thanks for following along, Keana!
Kitten Lady Can't wait for kitten season (:
Keana Astalos your not the only huge fan.
Keana Astalos j
Thank you so much! I needed this because in my neighborhood, there are so many kittens that are feral when I watch other videos, they don’t have this type of information you did a great job
Your work and support for these precious animals is lovely.
This will probably be buried, but as someone who has just started TNRing thanks to Hannah, I wanted to throw in my two cents.
- She is not kidding about latching the back of the trap. I forgot to and the first cat I trapped managed to escape easily. Carabiners from a hardware store are a great resource for making a trap more secure.
- The trap setup + stinky bait really does work, so don't trap too early before your clinic appointment! Feral cats are okay to be in a trap for a few days, including recovery time, but there's no reason to keep them from their outside home longer than necessary.
- Hannah is right to say you should try to trap as many cats as possible. However, keep your own resources in mind; do you have the space for all the cats you're trying to trap? Do you have other animals in the house and can you relocate them away from the trapped cat? Right now, I'm in a one bedroom apartment with a cat of my own. The best place for a caged cat in my home (quiet, private, located away from me/my pet) is my bathroom, which only has space for MAYBE three medium-sized traps. We want to minimize the trapped cat's stress as much as possible, so don't bring in more cats than you can manage.
- Related to above, it's okay if you're nervous about TNRing for the first time and want to trap just one cat to start with. Some TNR is better than no TNR, and you'll get a confidence boost (if you're anything like me, that is) once you've gone through the process and realize how simple it is.
- Review the policies of the TNR clinic you've chosen and plan accordingly. The one I go to allows for a maximum of two cats per day, per household, without an appointment. This is a huge help for me personally, because I've always struggled to manage my anxiety regarding "appointments" of any kind; without having to worry about that part, I can instead focus on trapping cats in a more strategic fashion.
great advice (:
Thank you for this video! It inspired my fiancé and I to do this.
We just TNR’d 2 cats. One male and one female. The male has already been released and hasn’t gone too far away. The female will be released in a day, but she’s looking good and enjoying the AC and treats. 😊
Completely necessary practice and a brilliant explanation and execution of the process. Superb video - thank you!
Good information, well presented. I just recently started dealing with the stray cats around here, and since I'm mainly a dog guy, I have lots to learn.
One thing I've found educational is a trail camera set up near where I'm feeding the strays. It gives me a record of who's showing up to eat, and it lets me see some of their behavior. It also showed me that I have a raccoon showing up late at night to eat the cat food.
We've trapped our feral cat once because my mom noticed that she was sick. We got our cat trap and some tips from our neighbor who has helped with a TNR group.
Nick came back the next morning and even let mom pet her. Just goes to show the level of trust they have!
Bob (our adopted stray) was easy to catch; he just walked right in the house when he was offered food. We were able to get him neutered. Shelter would have put him down (most likely) because he was tested HIV positive so we kept him. All of our cats are pretty happy!
You kept a cat that was HIV positive and it was feral and you were cool with that. Are you kidding me?
@@blkqtpy Nick has warmed up to us. And even sleeps on my mom's bed sometimes. Bob is HIV positive, but he's also our longest living cat at 13+ years so far only getting sick once which was swiftly addressed with antibiotics from the vet
I honestly think there should be animal control that does the TNR instead overburdening non-profits. This is really the fault of local communities that haven't taken care of their cats and not had them spayed. More states need to hunker down on the sale of cats and cat breeding. The same is true for rabbits.
It would be worth it to briefly reduce capacity so TNR was priority for a week across an entire county.
@@ai965 A national bounty week would be even more effective.
Great tips and advice! I've been trapping cats in AZ for four years, and there's pretty limited resources here. Animal defense league, humane society of Sedona, and high country have all been super helpful. Thanks for making these videos!
Ollie and Tuna were too cute! Glad they were able to be helped.
I'm so grateful you support TNR!!! You are one AWESOME Kitten Lady!!!!
Great video. One of my neighbors brought two adult feral cats into the neighborhood after they had been spayed and neutered. She had four kids and a dog, so the very skittish cats didn't take to her yard and they ran over to mine. She thought they had completely run away, and I never knew they were living in my yard for at least two months. Finally, I found one of them sitting on my porch, and she was totally emaciated. I started leaving food and water out for her. She starting plumping up very soon after that. Then the male appears about a week later, also looking very emaciated. Within a month or so, they started looking like normal cats after regular feedings. I had to get used to the fact that they would not let you near them, although the female eventually started to let me near her when I fed her. She was two years old according to my neighbor. The male was very tough and had survived to be 8 years old in the wild, but he was always too terrified to come near so he ate when there were no humans around. I bought them a little house for the outdoors, and they stayed warm in that. I once tried to bring the female into my house, and she totally freaked out, so I just decided to let her live on her own terms....she was definitely an outside feral cat. The kitties thrived in my yard until the male just disappeared one day. He stayed with me for 4 years. I named him Otis. The female lived in my yard for 7 years, but alas she disappeared too. That's the heartbreaking part about ferals...they can just disappear and it's much harder to find them. And being outdoors, you have no control over their survival, you just do the best you can for them. The female, who I named Gypsy, eventually starting sitting near me and would roll over on her back and show me her tummy. She would also bring me dead chipmunks as presents, yuck, hehe. And the last year she was with me, I actually got to touch her, petting her briefly. It's funny how at first I was so sad that I couldn't touch them, but I have bad cat allergies, so it was really a blessing. At least I had cats to care for because I really love cats. I'm thinking about getting another feral cat in the future. I would love for them to live to be 20 years old, but if they live to be 12 and 9 like Gypsy and Otis did, I feel like they got a chance at a fairly long life that they would not get in the wild.
I'm in indian I have 9 cats different ages all feral but not to wild but can't find homes..could u help me?
Kitten Lady, you're amazing!! Thank you so much for making and sharing this video! I've been feeding cats my entire life! I just 'can't not feed them ya know? I've recently got help from an organization here that's going to pay for 6 feral cats to be fixed next week and I'm so so grateful!! I've worked hard at trying to get this help as it's not offered in my county!! So a volunteer at the place their getting fixed at just kept that between ourselves and she also got another volunteer to bring me the cat traps this past week because I'm disabled and without a vehicle. The sweetest girl too!! She's also going to help me take them all in next week and bring them home the next day. I could go on and on about all the feral and stray cats outside that I feed but it's getting late. lol Anyway, thank you once again for the video cuz I've never trapped before and for ALL that you do for cats!! 😻🙏😻
Excellent video. Thank you for you efforts to reduce the population by humane means and spreading the word so that others can become involved as well . To those being snarly about the sound of the trap closing, it is actually very quiet compared to the ones i have used from the SPCA to perform TNR with. The difference is quite significant and I think that is what she is comparing to when stating it closes quietly. I also agree that with a little patience, many feral cats can be socialized and make a wonderful pet. I have two that I have been working with for some time. I now have the mother coming in the house of her own choosing, allowing me to pet her. Her son will come to the front door, though still hesitant to come inside.
This is suuuuuper helpful. I've been really wondering how to do this for the four cats I've seen in my apartment complex.
I'm active with TNR program in my community. One trick that I've found to be very helpful is to is to use a tie on the trap door so that door does not close and set the cats food inside the trap. Do this for about a week and on the day that you are going to trap the cats take the tie off the door so that the door will shut when cats steps on release. In our program will are responsible for feeding and caring for the cats after they have been neutered and released. I take a Styrofoam cooler with a hole cut out and place it inside a larger plastic tote. The cooler will provide insulation for extremely cold weather. I put fresh straw inside the coolers two times a year. I place these shelters in areas where cats live. I feed the cats two times a day and leave the food out no longer that 1/2 hr. The cats will get on a schedule and by not leaving food out, it will not encourage other strays to hang out. I have about 12 cats in my colony. Three of my feral females had kittens before I was able to get them neutered. I was able to handle two of the litters and was able to rehome them with my local Humane Society. The third litter has 3 to 4 kittens and they're very feral. One of the feral kittens was sick and I committed a big "no/no" and grabbed the kitten with my bare hands . Lucky for me the kitty was too sick to fight back. I got the kitten to a vet that works with me on neutering and it was given antibiotics to bring it back to health. The kittens was about 7 weeks old and was eating soft cat food. The vet knew an individual that was looking for a kitten so we were able to rehome the kitten. I now have 2 or 3 kittens under my storage unit that will need to be trapped and neutered when they are big enough.
I got to do this for the first time a week or so ago, it is so satisfying watching them go back out in the wild knowing they can live out their lives without expanding the population. Wild cats aren't really a problem here but we had noticed a small colony starting to form, only 3 cats (3 un-spayed females) at the time but two of them were already pregnant by an un-neutered domestic that lives in our area.
The owner of the male has been ordered to get his cat done now or it will be taken off him, he's already had 3 other cats removed from him because of the same reason. He only got to keep this one because he promised it would be done and it was a kitten not old enough yet at the time. He is well known in the area because of his laziness in regards to cat care.
!l
Mo
Imagine aliens start doing that to humans 😂
0-o
Moah i would be caught right away because of food
Sh!t..
I unlocked a memory I never thought I had...
They would put weed and bear in the traps lul.
I'd wear a shirt saying aliens come get me lol my doctor wont let me get a tubal ligation anyway
Thank you, Hannah and to everyone who helps in the TNR programs throughout the world! You save more lives than you will ever know!
I couldn't afford to do TNR and could find nobody (at that time) who had any other attitude other than "shoot feral cats in the head", so I just trapped one, tamed it, had it spayed and kept it as a pet. It took months of getting the cat slowly used to people, but she turned out to be a really wonderful sweet cat once she was tamed.
:)
hannahelaineeomalley I suggest watching another one of Hannah’s videos on feral cats because it’s actually NOT okay to trap a feral cat and force them to socialize. All you’re doing is stressing them out until they submit. If you want a cat, go to a shelter and adopt.
Amy estrada-tello there are various levels of ferals. Some will socialize and live happily ever after inside a home. Others won’t.
I've done this kind of work for fifty years. Every cat except one I have ever caught has been socialized, and has lived a far happier life being fed and loved. Even that one that I got as a kitten, is fed, happy and safe with his other cat housemates. I just give him his space.
@Rockie
What has been your strategy for socializing a feral? Please do share.
I love these videos. It's satisfying to see a successful tnr. Keep up the good work.
my mother and I have been doing this for years, and we really cut down on the cat population . My two cats are actually from the last litter (two years ago). Unfortunately, it seems that either someone has moved in with outdoor cats as I've started seeing cats with patterns not seen from the last "family". there's one obvious intact male, but appointments are hard to get at my APL and he never shows up on appointment day. we'll keep trying >
Keep it up! You'll get him! :)
Noel Scanlon I wish my husband support what i want to do.
Noel Scanlon why pay to neuter it when you can euthanize it
@@willhorne6263 because every living animal deserves a chance to live.
@@willhorne6263 Also euthanizing the cats wouldn't really solve at the long term since without competition other stray cats might come to the neighbourhood and create a new colony bringing more kittens. By keeping spayed feral cats in the area also helps to prevent others cats to start coming and colonising the zone for themselves.
I’m late since this video was posted 4 years ago but it is still helpful so thank you!! I’m trying to catch a feral cat that has been living in my neighborhood for the past two years. She gave birth a month ago and I’m trying to catch her to be spayed since it’s the second year that she gave birth in my garden. I love cats and seeing so many in my neighborhood makes me want to help them by spaying and neutering them. Thank you so much for this really helpful video !
We caught our lactating queen and her 5 babies. This is her 3rd litter that we know of. We have them in a big covered crate with a box inside so she feel safe. Its on our guest bedroom bed with a tarp under it. The babies are 3-4 weeks, getting teeth. We won’t separate them for another 3 weeks. Mom will be spayed, babies weaned sterilized and socialized, and re-homed. The queen will come back to live in our barn or wherever she wants. Thanks for teaching how. She was crafty it took us 2 days to get her but we finally got them all.
Thank you so much for this video! I'm starting to TNR in South Florida!
Huh. Does it hurt when the cat loses their eartip?
Sophie Johnson a bit but it's really much more beneficial for them to be neutered.
Mother Raven
I guess not just "a bit" 😂
But they are drugged.
It's done painlessly while under anesthesia for surgery, and is a very important part of TNR! It not only helps advocates identify a cat who has already been trapped, but it also protects them from being euthanized at the shelter in many communities. In my county, for instance, a feral cat can be euthanized just for being a feral cat...but if they are eartipped, the law is that they are protected.
Ahh, I see! Thank you for replying and clearing that up.
the same thing as declawing
thank you BEEN DOING THE trap neuter RETURN for over 20 years
OMG! That trap is 100% better than the one I bought a few days ago! No scary heavy mechanism! I love it! Thank you for sharing! I saw one like that in Cole and Marmalade's video the other day but thought maybe it was only in the U.K and not the U.S! I'll see if the trap is on Amazon! ♡♡♡
Thank You Thank You Thank You, Kitten Lady ! God Bless You 🙏 Your video helped us to catch our 🐱 and after 20 days she returns to home. To whom who lost your lovely pet Believe and Pray
funny story.. So my friend got basically the same cages as u did and about to trap some Feral cats. Heres what happened; So when she went out (i helped set up the traps) She found one of them sitting by the trap meowing. Didnt even go inside bcuz the cat was super smart and got suspicious.
This is such a great thing! My question is how do you finance the spay/neuter surgery? Do you pay out of pocket?
I am able to do my work only due to donations through KittenLady.org/donate.
this is what i'm wondering too. i wouldn't mind paying for traps, but the vet bills must rack up!
Depending on where you live, you'd be surprised! There are low-cost or even free clinics in many areas. I paid $20 for each of these cats, but there is another clinic in my area that is even cheaper...$0! Just google low-cost spay/neuter or TNR clinics in your city.
Depends on what state u live in.
RC Hernandez For me in North Carolina I’ve found a place that averages out to be about $50 per cat, including a rabies shot. That’s the lowest I’ve found and they mostly work with TNR cats. I can see in more progressive states it being cheaper due to more people donating and educating themselves but all you can do it what you can afford.
Yeah I fed them everyday for two weeks and they just stay on my property now I have 25 cats that won’t leave
Such a nice detailed video and I love how you handle them so peacefully …zero stress of anxiety happening. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
I'm about to do this for a black cat and her 3 kitties that found their way into our yard months ago. She just had her kitties 5 weeks ago and were going to try to get them adopted out and release mom back in the yard once spayed. Thanks for this info! Extremely helpful!
"FIRESTAR! A TWOLEG HAS TAKEN CLOUDPAW!"
this brought back *memories* lmao
NOO THEYRE GOING TO TAKE HIM TO THE CUTTER!!!
oh
my
god
*WARRIOR CATS YES*
THE MONSTER TOOK HIM AWAY NOOOO!!!!
I am so glad my neighborhood does TNR!! No wonder I can’t find any kittens!!
Thank You!!! I learned alot. I need to do this. I found a mother cat and 2 kittens in our back yard. There are other cats but will start with these three.
*a lot
*backyard
alvallac21 Thats a little nit-picky, but go off.
My neighbor had a cat that killed the birds in my birdhouse. I used your tip to catch the cat and took him for a road trip where he was never seen again. The oil tuna trick worked great!! Thanks!
Damage, Inc.
Delete this one before it comes back and bites you ?
@@yoman5136 Why? City ordinance says any running loose is considered a feral cat.
Damage, Inc.
Don’t give anyone ammunition to come after you
@@yoman5136 Why would they come after me? I should go after them for releasing feral cats.
You are an amazing human being. Thank you for devoting Your time and love to these beautiful Fur babies.
It would be nice if I had your confidence in doing this procedure.
Hi, quick question - does the female cat should not stay longer at your place since her operation is more complicated? longer recovery?
WielkaZolza the cat does not stay longer or need more recovery time, no.
I have a question about this also. When I picked up my feral female from the vet I was told I needed to keep her confined for 7-10 days!?!? I was like really? She is on day 3 and hates it.
@@copwife614 yeah she could easily get her stiches off, fixing a female cat is MUCH more intrusive than for a male cat
Usually on a female cat, the vet makes the smallest incision possible if the cat is a TNR. Ours does this, and puts in sutures that will dissolve. The most stitches I've seen was 3.
*should the female cat not
thank you, people who help cats. 💓
I wish Ollie could live at my house.
Thank you lady, today I caught my first cat with the same trap you had, it was a great advice about the towel. It helps you keeping cat calm while you're walking home
This is an awesome vid! Thank you for the work you do. Currently have grown very close to a feral in my area but he's not trusting. He'll only come up for food and won't enter my porch. I borrowed a trap from my local animal control & am trying to get him TNRd. He's been outside ALL winter & he's not looking too good. 😭😭 Praying for a safe trip to the vet & back. This video helped me so much. Thanks again! 👏👏👊👊
Strangely, I've lived in my neighborhood for over three years now, and I can't ever recall seeing any cats outdoors.
P.S. I always pictured a big car, like an SUV, doing this. Good to know I can in my tiny car- I have the same Prius!
I'm curious, do you ever take the friendliest cats up to shelters to be adopted? I've trapped & taken 2 stray neighborhood cats to the local humane (no-kill) society last year where there were both neutered & adopted out, after taking the time to feed, play and interact with them each for a few weeks. I understand the importance of TNR for most feral cats, but if they're friendly/social enough I think they deserve a chance at a home :>
12:03 that cat is in another universe right now
I caught my first feral cat tonight! TNR scheduled for tomorrow. Time to start helping my neighborhood.
Thank you for helping those cats.
Olley is a stunning cat!!! I'm sure he already knows it. He looks like my Hiccup who has recently been diagnosed with diabetes. I have currently started tnr. Thanks for the much needed tips.
Ty for the video we just went to the local spca and picked up our first trap is it me or does it make you nervous the first time?
How do you know you won't get a pet cat? They will still go for the food and they won't have the cut ears
Artimo that what I'm asking, how you do know or don't know if that is someone's cat you just trapped
Artimo that's why she stresses talking to neighbors. That way the person doing TNR can let people who have outdoor cats what time trapping will be done so they can keep their cats indoors. And the cats are released to the same area they were in, so even if you get a pet cat by accident they will be able to go back home. And intact cats really shouldn't be outside.
even if she did, everyone should get their pets fixed. especially if theyre outdoor pets.
Uep that is why you should check with your neighbors
Collar.
I really admire the work that you do! I wanna start a TNR program in my boyfriend's neighborhood because it's really overpopulated with cats and every spring it just explodes with kittens. My question is where can I buy those traps and the tuna in oil?
I can't help with the traps, but you can probably just find tuna at the grocery store.
Sofia Kaiser I know you can get traps like that at a Tractor Supply or hunting store, like Gander Mountain or even Dicks Sporting Goods.
Sofia Kaiser I googled TNR in my city and it led me to their website only to say they'd stop doing TNR and to get in contact with local organizations. A couple of emails later, I can borrow a trap with a refundable deposit and go to the Texas Animal Coalition for the surgeries for like $40. Hopefully someone in your area is doing it, you'll just have to find them. Good thing we have the internet. Good luck!
Sofia Kaiser don't know about the traps but tuna in oil you get at any grocery store. It can be out of a can.
We got our traps at Tractor Supply. Tuna in oil can be had at any grocery store.
I was able to trap a stray cat that has been coming to my yard for 3 weeks. Charles River Alleycat took it to the vet to get fixed. Thank you for the video.
this is so helpful! about to TNR my first few cats (4, if successful) and this helped ease the nerves, esp seeing them in the cages and how calm they were with the towel coverings. wish me luck
Thanks for the tips. Going to try this in my neighborhood!
awwwwww Ollie was a big boy! how much did they weigh? they looked happy to be back outside and home :)
Hi! I have a question, does it really only take a day for a cat to recover from TSR? I have an indoor/outdoor cat and when I took her to get spayed the vet said I had to keep her inside for 2 weeks.
If you get your huts sliced off, how do you think that will feel for a few days?
Far better a quick bullet, or a non-caustic acute poison that works within a few hours of less is a perspective that somehow some would call inhumane.
I live in Charleston, SC. I've TNR'd 128 cats in the area where my mother lives. I've gotten 70 adopted out . Animal Society S/N's for free. If young enough, they will adopt them out. I've fostered several pregnant ones until after they have had their kittens and they're weaned, then they adopt them out and sometimes the mother if she's friendly. Ordinance here is that you have to bring them back to the area where they were caught. It's a never ending job.
I live in the small city in Texas and just TNRed 3 cats who come and eat everyday in our backyard over 6 months yesterday. I was so nervous about failure so I watched thus video over 10 times. When I request to our local humane society, they recommended me to refer Kitten Lady's youtube! The mother cat was lactating but I couldn't skip her since it was her second litter that I've known of. I released mother cat in this morning, she was very lucid and woke-up. I won't be able to forget the moment watching her running towards the fence which I assume it's her place staying with babies. The siblings who got TNRed together were also born from her. I am planning to release male cat in this evening and the female for tomorrow or the day after. Male cat has become very friendly to us and stays near my back door, so I wonder where he would running towards when I open the trap door. :) This was my first TNR experience and I couldn't even sleep at the night before the 'trapping day', but I believe that this experience worths every moment I worried, felt sorry for cats, and the sleepless nights during their recovery. Thank you so much, Kitten Lady!💕
Is it safe to free the females so soon after surgery? For male cats the surgery is not so invasive. For example, my female house cat had some allergic reaction to the sutures and we needed to bring her back couple of times until the wound could heal... if she would be out on the street, my guess is that the outcome would have been unfortunately lethal :(
Great question Laura. There are of course risks inherent in trapping cats which is why it's important to take precautions, such as keeping the cat overnight and monitoring for any warning signs. In some cases, a person can elect to keep the cat for two nights--of course it's a balance between the very low risk of an issue and the stress that they endure by having to stay in the trap for another day. This is done successfully all over the country so I'd say as a whole, 1 night is a good strategy, but people can use their best judgment case-by-case.
Kitten Lady when I picked up my feral female from the vet they told me I had to keep her confined for 7-10 days?! I was like, but she is feral. She is on day 3 of being confined to a dog crate and she hates it. Is it typical to let cats go after 24 hours? She is eating, drinking using the litter box.
I have had my fair share of female cats fixed and was told the same thing every time, keep them inside and away from other animals for 7 - 10 days. And I know why as well, a friend of mine took in a homeless cat and got her fixed, keep her inside for three days, then let her go after checking to make sure the incision was ok, the day after she let the female cat go she found her dead, her incision had torn open. It might be the case that this happens very rarely but as a person that loves cats I would err on the side of cation and keep them in for the 7-10 days, and if you can't then don't get them fixed.
@@LadyGrelka *caution
In San Benito County, Ca, we work with the SNIP bus, it's amazing.
We do trap, neuter, shelter. The government doesn’t like having stray cats because it kills our wildlife. (I’m in Australia.) we do the same thing but we take them to a shelter where they are tamed and adopted.
Moonstar & Scythe they get a lower chance of getting taken in in a shelter. There is a 15% chance they will be adopted in a shelter, but a 33% chance they will be taken in from outside. Many outside kittens are feral, and it is very cruel to take feral cats to shelters who have grown up in the wilderness.
well in my state I don't like them killing my wildlife too so I shoot on site
Your government actually encourages Trap and Shoot.
Hence why many people boycott the land of savages.
Ronan B so true🤣🤣🤣
@@avam6080 It's cruel to allow these creatures to destroy vulnerable wildlife, yet this thread is full of those who willingly and probably emotionally defend such cruelty. Comparatively, some would say a night in a trap (any kind of trap) then a bullet in the head is sweet.
I'm sooo glad you made this video. My mom and I will be attempting to trap our cat colony this weekend and this video is a huge help to prepare us! 10 cats! Wish us luck!!
Thanks, very helpful! We're getting ready for our very first TNR and want to do it correctly!