TNR Handbook - Neighborhood Cats

Camouflage trap
Sometimes blending the trap in with its
surroundings or disguising it will lure a cat in.
One technique is to drape burlap over the sides of
the trap (but not over the rear door) and on the
trap’s floor. Cover the burlap with leaves and
branches, making sure not to obstruct the front
door from closing.
There are many other similar ways to
disguise a trap. Put it inside a cardboard box,
again leaving the rear door uncovered so the cat
has a line of vision all the way through. Lean a
large board against a wall and put the trap behind
it. Rest objects on top of the trap to make it
appear more like part of its environment, like
debris, a wooden plank or a trash bag.
Trap-in-a-box
A unique kind of camouflage trap was designed by
Susan Green (www.americancat.net/fastfood.html).
Build a wooden box that opens from the top and is
large enough to comfortably fit a box trap inside when
the front door of the trap is in a set position. Cut out
two entrances, each at different ends of the box. This
allows for escape from predators or strangers. The
interior of the box can be used as a feeding station or
lined with insulation and stuffed with straw or hay and
used as a shelter. When it’s time to catch a cat, the trap
is placed inside (without blocking the entrances to the
box), baited and set. Put a lock on the cover of the box
to prevent tampering.
The Neighborhood Cats TNR Handbook
Lure into a closed space
If you can lure the cat into an indoor space which has no exits except the door, there
are a couple ways to then get him into a box trap. Before drawing the cat inside, you’ll
need to arrange things in the interior space.
One method for “indoor” trapping is to simply leave a trap in the room that is baited
and set in a normal fashion, then wait it out. If the cat is trap shy, it might take two or
three days before he’ll go in. Leave water available and possibly a litter pan, but no food
outside the trap.
A faster technique takes more work. First, remove everything in the indoor space
which the cat might go hide behind or under. Then take a large board, approximately 5
feet long and at least 4 feet high, and lean it up against a wall, leaving enough space to
put a trap between the board and the wall. When the cat enters the space later, this will
be the only place for him to hide and he’ll naturally go run behind it.
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