FAQ

FREQUENTLY
ASKED
Questions

About Feral Cats

What is a feral cat?

A cat born and raised in the wild, or who has been abandoned or lost and turned to wild ways in order to survive, is considered a free—roaming or feral cat. While some feral cats tolerate a bit of human contact, most are too fearful and wild to be handled. Ferals often live in groups, called colonies, and take refuge wherever they can find food—rodents and other small animals and garbage. They will also try to seek out abandoned buildings, accessible out buildings (like garages and sheds), porches, raised houses or deserted cars—or even dig holes in the ground—to keep warm in winter months and cool during the summer heat.

What is the average lifespan of a feral cat?

If a feral cat survives kittenhood, his average lifespan is less than two years if living on his own. If a cat is lucky enough to be in a colony that has a caretaker, they may reach 10 years.

Is there a difference between a stray cat and a feral cat?

Yes. A feral cat is primarily wild-raised or has adapted to feral life, while we define a stray cat as someone’s pet who has become lost or has been abandoned. Stray cats are usually tame and comfortable around people. They will frequently rub against legs and exhibit behaviours such as purring and meowing. In contrast, feral cats are notably quiet and keep their distance. Stray cats will also often try to make a home near humans—in car garages, front porches or backyards. Most are completely reliant on humans as a food source and are not yet able to cope with life on the streets.

Will animal shelters adopt out feral cats?

This is a difficult question as a majority of feral cats exhibit wild, shy or frightened behavior, and it’s impossible to predict how or if they will ever acclimate to indoor life. Although this is the case, many shelters across Ontario will adopt out feral cats that qualify to be successful as a barn cat. Many individuals who live on rural properties will seek barn cats to live in their barns and help keep the mice population down. This is beneficial as it also provides feral cats with a safe space to sleep and eat. These people become what we call “caregivers”.

Basic TNR Info

What is Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR)?

TNR is the method of humanely trapping feral cats, having them spayed or neutered and vaccinated against rabies, and other diseases and then returning them to their colony to live out their lives. TNR also involves a colony caretaker who provides food and adequate shelter and monitors the cats’ health. TNR has been shown to be the least costly, as well as the most efficient and humane way of stabilizing feral cat populations.

How does TNR help feral cats?

Through TNR, feral cats can live out their lives without adding to the homeless cat population. “It is very important to have all feral cats spayed/neutered because it is the only 100-percent effective way to prevent unwanted kittens,” says Aimee Christian, ASPCA Vice President of Spay/Neuter Operations. “Feral cats are prolific reproducers.”

Furthermore, by stabilizing the population, cats will naturally have more space, shelter and food, and fewer risks of disease. After being spayed or neutered, cats living in colonies tend to gain weight and live healthier lives. Spayed cats are less likely to develop breast cancer and will not be at risk for ovarian or uterine cancer, while neutered males will not get testicular cancer.

By neutering male cats, you also reduce the risk of injury and infection, since intact males have a natural instinct to fight with other cats. Spaying also means female cats do not go into heat. That means they attract fewer tom cats to the area, reducing fighting. If cats are sterilized and live in a colony that has a caretaker, they may live more than 10 years.

How does TNR benefit the community?

TNR helps the community by stabilizing the population of the feral colony and, over time, reducing it. At the same time, nuisance behaviours such as spraying, excessive noisemaking and fighting are largely eliminated, and no more kittens are born. Yet, the benefit of natural rodent control is continued.

Jesse Oldham, ASPCA Senior Administrative Director of Community Outreach and the founder of Slope Street Cats, an organization dedicated to feral cat welfare, notes, “TNR also helps the community’s animal welfare resources by reducing the number of kittens that would end up in their shelters—TNR creates more space for the cats and kittens who come to them from other avenues.”

TNR Specifics

What is ear-tipping and why is it important?

Ear-tipping is a widely accepted means of marking a feral cat who has been spayed or neutered. It also often identifies them as being part of a colony with a caretaker. Ear-tipping is the humane surgical removal of the top quarter-inch of the left ear. The procedure is performed by a licensed veterinarian, typically during the spay/neuter surgery. Ear-tipping is completely safe and rarely requires special aftercare.

Ear-tipping is especially important as it prevents an already spayed or neutered cat the stress of re-trapping and, more important, an unnecessary surgery.

What is relocation and why doesn’t it work?

Many communities have rounded up colonies of feral cats either for euthanasia or to relocate them to another area. This never works. Feral cats are very connected with their territory. They are familiar with its food sources, places that offer—shelter, resident wildlife, other cats in the area and potential threats to their safety—all things that help them survive.

“Relocation of feral cat colonies is difficult to orchestrate and not 100-percent successful even if done correctly. It is also usually impossible to catch all of the cats, and it only takes one male and one female to begin reproducing the colony,” Oldham from ASPCA Community Outreach states. “Even when rounding up is diligently performed and all ferals are removed, new cats will soon move in and set up camp.”

Relocation is something to consider only if keeping the cats where they are becomes a threat to their lives and all other options have been explored and have failed.

What is a colony caretaker?

A colony caretaker is an individual (or group of individuals) who manages one or more feral colonies in a community. The caretaker keeps an eye on the cats, providing food, water, shelter, spaying/neutering and emergency medical care. In most cases, organizations and vets know these people because of the community service they provide. Some shelters and rescue groups even give out free or low-cost spay/neuter coupons to colony caretakers.

How to Help

What do I do if I find a stray cat?

Stray cats will usually try to make contact with you, even if they are a bit fearful at first. If you find a stray cat, please take the following actions:

• Check with your neighbours to see if their cat is missing.
• Bring the cat to a shelter or veterinary clinic to be scanned for a microchip.
• Notify all local veterinary hospitals and shelters so they can post the information in their lost-and-found resources.
• Check classifieds for lost pets and post a “found” ad of your own. Make sure your description is brief so that callers will need to truly identify the cat.

I’m not comfortable working directly with feral cats. What are some other ways I can help?

There are many different ways to help out feral cats, including:

• Write letters to the editors of local papers and to local politicians about the cats in your community. Let them know about the benefits of TNR and how important programs like Operation Catnip are to the community. OC receives a program grant from the City of Peterborough, it helps us when councillors know that our efforts have the community’s support!
• Help raise funds for local TNR groups. Yard and bake sales, birthday and in-memorium donations, local businesses and artist collaborations are huge fundraisers for us!
• Educate others on the benefits of TNR.
• Spay and neuter your pets! Encourage your family, friends, and neighbours to spay and neuter their pets.
• Keep your pets inside. Animals can easily get injured, lost, or taken – the safest place for your pets is inside.
• Offer your help to established colony caretakers. Donating food, helping to monitor colonies, fostering and socializing kittens for the purpose of finding them good homes, making sure that all cats are spayed or neutered.

Do you have any tips for trapping a cat?

Here are some basic tips to help with TNR efforts:

• Contact a Trap Neuter Return organization, like Operation Catnip, to assist. They have specialized traps for ferals and a wealth of expertise. If there is no TNR group in your area, ask if they would be willing to help you devise a plan and strategy to ensure all concerns with regards to safety and humane practices are considered. A well-thought-out plan will lead to successful outcomes.
• When possible, trap in dry, temperate weather.
• Do not feed the cats for a full 36 hours before trapping, as they must be hungry to enter the trap.
• If you’ll be trapping in an area where pet cats are roaming, please inform your neighbours.
• Human-grade tuna, mackerel, sardines, and salmon work well as bait. Avoid canned cat food, stray cats are used to it. Place the food inside the trap, behind the trip plate, so the cat is sure to step on it when eating.
• To reduce anxiety, place a sheet or blanket over the trap so the cat feels secure.
• Ask that the cat be ear-tipped to help identify the cat as already being spayed or neutered. Snipping part of the ear surgery is especially important in ongoing TNR efforts in larger colonies. This is a risk-free procedure and spares cats who have already been fixed from being trapped and transported to a vet clinic again unnecessarily.