by Martha Granger
Are you currently trapping cats or plan to start soon? Help us maximize our impact by keeping your scheduled appointments. Each unused appointment is a missed opportunity to help the ever-growing population of free-roaming cats.
Here are some tips to ensure your trapping is successful:
- Set up the traps as feeding stations the week before your appointment. Simply open the trap door and use a bungee, carabiner, or zip-tie to keep it open. The cats will go into the traps to eat without consequence and will not think twice about it.
- Two days before your appointment, take off the restraint and set the trap.
- Start trapping two days before your appointment at dawn and at dusk (never overnight or in the heat of the day).
- If the cat avoids the trap entirely, try disguising it with a large paper lawn and leaf bag or a big box. It’s usually best to set up a trap alongside a building, fence, or under a bush.
- If you have multiple traps, spread them around to see what attracts the cats into the trap best. You may find that one trap location is the most popular, so when you remove the trapped cat, backfill that location with an empty trap.
- Keep the trapped cats in a safe place, as cool as possible, and feed them wet food in a shallow dish by slipping it under the guillotine-style door. Then pour water into that dish through the top of the trap after they eat.
Some early planning will ensure successful trapping and help the community by not missing any surgery appointments.
I have 3 female and 1male feral cats that need to be trapped and fixed. There are 4 kittens all are eating on their own. I use to do trapping, but now I have been in and out of the hopital with intestinal problems and I can no longer do what I use to do. I would sure appreciate the help. I’m in Cedar Creek.
Hi Lachelle, we are here to help! Please use the contact form under “contact us” to give us your location in Cedar Creek, phone & email or email us at BastropCats@gmail.com
Martha
TNR Coordinator