Your Thoughts on Feral Cats

[cletus99]

We've got one that hangs around our place that's going to be taken care of soon. It keeps hurting my daughters and the neighbor’s cat. I thought I had it last weekend, but evidently the scope is off on the old .22 of mine. It's days are numbered.

 

[riptides]

As with anything, balance.

Too many cats, animal control works for me.

 

[cletus99]

Animal control won't even mess with Feral cats around here. They don't have the time or resources to be able to deal with them. Too many budget cuts.

As with anything, balance.

Too many cats, animal control works for me.

 

[riptides]

Animal control won't even mess with Feral cats around here. They don't have the time or resources to be able to deal with them. Too many budget cuts.

Ok, then taking matters a step further, trapping, relocation, humane population control. Guess it is all on the land owner or community, then.

 

[keegs]

There's an old geezer lives alone down the hill from us by the lake. He feeds them. Their numbers are kept in check by the foxes though.

 

[NoTrespassing]

Many rats and mice are also non-native species, and followed the human migration around the world.

I don't have any hay at the moment, but a couple of barn cats, within reason, is not a bad idea. Perhaps they would help with the explosion of moles that I'm experiencing. Where is a good gopher snake when one needs it?

We have a Blue Racer (snake) or two around. They must be eating something since they're usually about 5 or 6 ft. long when i see them.

 

[sherpa]

I grew up and was trained like most of you folks, that cats were useless and only good for target practice. About 5 years ago, my daughter, managing a campground nearby found an abandoned kitten that was left in the campground. We took the kitten in, nursed it to good health and promptly gave it away.

She found another abandoned kitten and brought it to us. It was starving to death and in worse shape than the first one. He became a good buddy very quickly, especially when he started riding on my tractor with me, riding on my ATV with me and not to mention all the trips he made up in the woods to be with us when we were harvesting firewood. Being the old mountain man I am, when friends and neighbors came around they would ask “whose cat is that?” and I quickly responded that is “Mr. Cat”. Mr. Cat taught me a lot about cats that I didn’t know. Here are just a few: They know how to survive, even if you don’t take care of them. They are superior hunters with great patience. They can protect themselves and always have their eye open for danger. We like to travel and usually go to Florida to spend the winter. We left Mr. Cat here with the cold, freezing temps and snow for over a month. I didn’t know what to expect when we returned to the harsh winter weather of the North Carolina Mountains, but he was there to greet us when we got out of the RV. Mr. Cat disappeared a couple of years ago; I suspect the neighbor down the road put him down. I didn’t realize how much I liked Mr. Cat. It was tough walking up to the tractor and not seeing him.

My daughter saw how much we missed Mr. Cat and brought us another stray kitten in May 2011. She (Miss Kitty) has turned out to be a great hunter and companion as well. Not only does she keep the mice, moles and snakes away, she has even run off a few dogs. The wife and I both knew she would never replace Mr. Cat, but she sure has found a spot in our hearts. She loves to help harvest firewood, she likes riding on the tractor and ATV and we even let her travel with us in the RV. I think she likes the garage more than we do. I challenge all you folks that don’t know cats to take one in and watch what it can teach you. They are and can be great pets and need absolutely nothing.

sherpa

 

[jerrybob]

Repeating what I have stated before, it should be mandatory to nueter and spay cats and dogs. Anyone wanting to breed them should have to have a license. Too many people letting their animals run free along with back yard breeders that just want to make a fast buck and don't care after that. Same goes for horses too!

Both my stallions have passed on now but when I used to offer breeding, I would turn down people that just wanted to experiance having a foal and had no idea what they were doing.

FWIW, I agree most feral cats don't domesticate well but I have one that did, She had kittens in the barn so which we caught and used to bait her. She bloodied her nose trying to get out of my have a heart trap. Took a long time and alot of patience but she is now my "garage" cat.

I always have the trap set in the barn to catch possums because they have the potential to carry the old age protozoan that causes EPM in horses. The occasional cat I trap gets "fixed" and released. The possums get drowned.

Lastly, I think it should be a moving violation to dump an animal along the road. We get plenty of that too.

Good post....I agree with you. Too bad we can't make it mandatory to spay and neuter some people as well. Maybe there should be a licensing requirement to be a parent.......at least make folks take a test or sign a document that society will not need to support them or their kids in the future?? :2cents:

 

[brin]

Good post....I agree with you. Too bad we can't make it mandatory to spay and neuter some people as well. Maybe there should be a licensing requirement to be a parent.......at least make folks take a test or sign a document that society will not need to support them or their kids in the future?? :2cents:

You know what...You are really coming around...next thing you know you are going to agree with me and be suggesting all people must own property to vote and pass a civics test....I am impressed..keep it up..:thumbsup:

 

[Car Doc]

Amen Sherpa. My wife and I have story's of cats surviving that are just heart breaking. Like for instance stray mama cats trying to raise a litter at 8 months old or less and they are kittens them self's its so sad and they try so hard they are excellent mothers.

We took 2 in last year and one that was nothing but skin and bones and she would sit in my driveway watching me leave at nite and be there waiting on me in the morning to get fed. She finally lost the kittens to a fox or coyote or dog or the 105 degree heat I wasn't ever able to find them.

I took her to the vet got her vaccinated and fixed and she lives with us in the house and she is a great house cat one of 5 we have there. I have a stray at my shop also I took in almost 17 years ago. He is an inside shop cat and still doing great keeps the mice down and is constant company. We feed and take care of 6-7 strays here and there that we have taken to the vet when they needed it and they are outside cats. I have a long haired black female stray that is my constant companion when I am outside at the pond or in the garden all over.

Invaribly she will be where she can see at all times even when she is napping. I can look around and she is somewhere that she can watch me. They follow us around when we do our outside chores great company to be around always finding something to play with be it a leaf blowing or a grasshopper they are full of entertainment and laughs.