Adopt a Pet | Find Your New Best Friend

Also put a smelly sock or shirt or some other object with your scent on it so the cat will get used to your particular human smell. If kitty wasn’t an expected arrival, this preparation can be done while she is at the vet’s office getting spayed . When the tests come back for FeLV, FIV, and FIP, and if there is a positive result, discuss your options with your vet. These diseases are NOT necessarily a death sentence! When there is a positive test result for any of these, ask for a second test to be done if possible. Some of the initial tests only test if the cat has been exposed to the virus, which does not necessarily mean that a cat has the disease.

Try out baby food, catnip, sardines, anchovies, or cooked chicken. Wondering what to do if you’ve found an outdoor cat? If you suspect the kitty has been separated from his owner, or if she’s a stray that needs medical attention, it’s critical you find a safe way to catch her and get her the help she needs. But luring and catching a cat—especially one who’s afraid of humans or feral—can be tricky. We teamed up with the ASPCA to share some tips on what to do if you’ve discovered a cat who’s less than thrilled about getting in a crate or being picked up.

Transfer the cat to the box trap to easier hold and transport her. A cat may have learned to recognize the plate that closes the trap door and how to avoid it. To keep her from tiptoeing over and around the plate, try covering it, and a bit of the trap floor in front of and behind it, with newspaper or cloth. If your new kitty just won’t come inside, you should provide some kind of shelter. “You can make a feral cat box—there are lots of online tutorials—or you could even open up your garage on really cold nights,” Phillips says.

She doesn’t know that you aren’t the same thing that hurt her before. You may feel silly that first time you see her and all she does is turn tail or meekly meow, but it is better to be prepared for the worst and hope for the best. So you’ve decided to give a feral cat a forever home. The good news is that this cat will show you a loyalty like none you have ever known before. You will develop a bond that is nothing short of amazing, but this bond will only happen over time, coupled with patience, a whole lot of work, and love. Feral cats survive by instinct, and that instinct includes not trusting people.

A box or laundry basket lined with towels will work. For more information on a cat’s gestation period or the birthing process, please look online, as there are many great resources out there. The mother cat should be fed high quality kitten food during the pregnancy and through the duration of nursing the kittens. Kittens should not be separated from the mother and siblings until they are fully weaned—generally 8 weeks old as this provides important nutrition and social skills for the kittens.

Gradually increase the size of the bait scraps as you place them on the trigger plate and beyond. Make sure you don’t use too much; you don’t want the cat to get full before she reaches the trigger plate! You can also try using the smelly broth of canned cat food or meats as your bait trail. A larger trap with a taller opening and wider sides can be more inviting to a cat wary of entering an enclosed space. Feed trap-shy cats out of unset traps in their normal feeding locations for a week or two before trapping again. Start with the food right by the entrance of the trap and gradually move it closer to the back each day.

“If a cat is not comfortable with humans, they will mostly scratch or bite if you attempt to handle them. Go slow and always allow the cat a way to leave the situation so that they don’t feel cornered,” says Gouge. If you are set on adopting this stray cat into your home, and you know they do not belong to someone, then you can begin the transition process.

The cat will be forced to step over the stick and her paw will land harder on the trigger plate just beyond it, springing the trap. Some cats can be guided into a trap with a laser pointer, which you can control from a distance. Or try hanging a piece of cooked chicken from a string above the trigger plate to trick the cat into springing the trigger. By placing a dark towel over the trap, without blocking the door, you create a space that looks dark, hidden, and safe to cats. Educate your neighbors and community about outdoor cats. Contact animal shelters, veterinary offices and rescue groups to let them know about the cat you’ve found.

Get practical pet health tips, articles, and insights from our veterinary community delivered weekly to your inbox. It may also involve testing out different types of cat litterto find the one that most closely mirrors what the cat was relieving himself on outside. “There’s actually a litter meant to help transition cats from outdoor to indoor living—it’s called Touch of Outdoors [Dr. Elsey’s Precious Cat Touch of Outdoors cat litter],” she says. “At the vet, the cat should receive basic vaccinations and be spayed or neutered if she or he isn’t already,” Phillips says.

Dogs & Puppies

You want to end things as much as possible on a good note, even if that note is mutual ignoring. If you’ve encountered a cat outdoors, you’ve probably wondered whom the cat belonged to or if they even had an owner. Outdoor cats are sometimes owned cats whose owner lets them out. Often, however, they are community cats—ferals or strays. “Feed the cat at the same time every day so she learns to come at this time,” Nigbur says.

Cats are den animals and they may actually enjoy sleeping in their carriers from time to time. Even if your cat is docile, you can’t necessarily predict the behavior of other animals. Many dogs are not friendly with cats and your cat is better off secure inside a carrier if a dog gets aggressive.

With patience and love she will see again that you only mean to love her. Those old, ingrained habits of not trusting people are hard to get through. Once you’ve established your basic routine with her–what times she will get her food–start spending more and more time in the room with her at those times.

How individuals can help community cats

If there’s any way you can manage to trap the cat in the morning, that’s even better. If she’s not sick or compromised health-wise, ask that she be spayed that same day. Understand vets dislike cats coming in without carriers. Veterinarians and their staff generally dislike it when people bring cats into their offices without carriers.

There is a risk that any medication intended for the big cat may be eaten by another animal also. Leave a nightlight on for her, but not a large overhead light. The relative darkness will give her a sense of security. She knows instinctively that she can see better in the dark than most animals, humans included.

Those who have to survive on their own merits eat every meal as though it could be their last. For some ferals, free feeding is the best option so they know that food is always available. Others can’t handle this and will eat everything in sight, becoming obese. This is something to watch carefully, although most will learn in a short period of time that they don’t have to eat everything in sight. Of course, most of this depends on the individual cat, but there are a few things you pretty much can count on with your feral cat. She will be skittish and distrustful of strangers all her life.

Some vets may actually require cats to be in a carrier. You might want to call ahead and ask first before bringing your cat in without one. Before transitioning your stray cat into your care, you will want to make sure you have all the right cat supplies. Where in the world where she feels she can make a difference. Animals also happen to be her favorite topic to write about! She lives off the grid in Hawaii with her husband, her garden, and her rescue animals including 5 dogs, a cat, a goat, and dozens of chickens.

Read, bring in a laptop and work quietly, write, watch TV on low volume, just be in there with her. Try to be on her level as much as possible by sitting or laying on the floor or on a low chair. You look really, really big to her when you are standing up.