TNR Handbook - Neighborhood Cats

• Hard-to-catch cats
The Neighborhood Cats TNR Handbook
The goal of every caretaker should be to get her colony 100 percent neutered. This
alone ensures no more kittens and peace of mind. But many colonies have one or two
cats who just won’t go in a normal box trap, no matter how long you deprive them of
food or how many different types of bait you try. For these stubborn holdouts, there are a
variety of battle-tested special techniques described below.
Don’t try using a net or graspers to catch a feral cat. These are difficult to use and
dangerous if you actually succeed in grabbing the animal and then have to transfer him
into a cage or trap. They should be used only by trained veterinary or animal control
professionals. Tranquilizers also should not be attempted. A cat could wander off after
ingesting the drug and get seriously injured as it’s taking effect. In addition, you might
not be able to locate the cat after the sedation took hold. Dart guns on an animal as small
as a cat are a particularly bad and hazardous idea. Try one of these methods instead:
Drop trap
The drop trap designed by Laura Burns of HubCats in Boston, Massachusetts, is an
excellent tool for finally catching that cat you’ve been after for five years. The trap
works by falling down over a cat – the cat does not have to enter it, but only walk under.
As a result, the drop trap does not trigger a cat’s natural wariness of entering a confined
space and in most hard-to-catch cases, it will work. Laura herself uses the drop trap to
catch all the cats in a colony, not just the difficult ones. Because it is such a valuable and
efficient tool, Chapter 9 is devoted to its use and construction.
Training the cat to go in a box trap
If a box trap can be left in the territory for one to two weeks, cats can be trained to
enter it to eat. Begin by securing the front door of the trap into an open position. Do this
by running a stick or rod through both sides of the trap just below the open front door or
by tying the front door into an open position with wire.
Place the trap near the feeding station. If the location is accessible to strangers,
remove the rear door of the trap and take it with you. This way, no one can come and set
the trap and cause any harm. Loosely tape a piece of clear thick plastic over the rear door
frame. The idea behind the plastic is to prevent the cat from entering the trap through the
rear, but allow a cat who should not have been trapped to easily break through and get
out. Lock the trap to an immovable object with a chain, if necessary.
The first day, place a plate of food a few inches in front of the trap’s front entrance.
Keep placing the food at this spot until you see it’s being eaten. Then move the plate to
just inside the trap. Again, wait until you see the cat is eating from this position, then
move the plate a few inches further in. Continue this process until the cat is going far
enough in to step on the trip plate. Then set the trap.
This training method should not be used if the area is too public and the risk of theft
or vandalism is high.
56