Feral Cats

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Feral Cats

• Mary Casey

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VET PHARMACY

• Presentation
• for
• Dr. Jan Hastings

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What is a feral cat?

• Total feral No positive human contact usually
  they are hidden and mistrusting.
• Semi-feral Some positive human contact but
  afraid of human touch.
• Converted feral Past positive human contact,
  often a scared abandoned pet.

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The condition

• Too many cats and not enough homes.

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The cause

• Human neglect, particularly the failure to
  spay/neuter cats as well as the tendency to dump
  inconvenient pets.

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The solution is TNR

• Trap
• Neuter
• Release

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Trap

• Establish a feeding routine one week before
  trapping.
• Obtain and prepare one trap for each cat.
• Withhold food from the cats you intend to trap 24
  hours before trapping.
• Transport to the veterinarian.

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Neuter

• The veterinarian will examine the cat.
• Test for FIV/ FelV and immunize.
• Spay or neuter
• Ear tip the cat to identify it as a managed
  feral.

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Universal Identification

• Ear tipping is the removal of the distal
  one-quarter of the ear.

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Release

• Release the cat in the same place that you
  trapped him or her.
• A cat will need to be held for 12 to 48 hours
  after surgery.

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Cat Management

• Feed the cats nutritionally complete food.
• Feed on as regular a schedule as possible.
• Trap, neuter, and release cats you feed as soon
  as possible.
• Provide shelter as needed.

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What are the benefits of TNR?

• Decrease the overall population of feral cats by
  preventing the birth of more kittens.
• Decrease objectionable behavior like yowling,
  roaming, and spraying urine.
• Improve the overall health of the cats in your
  neighborhood.

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• TNR is more cost effective than trapping and
  killing cats. According to data compiled by
  Alley Cat Allies, the average cost of
  sterilization is 50, while the average cost of
  euthanasia is 105.
• TNR is the most effective and humane solution to
  the problem of cat overpopulation.

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Why not just eradicate the cats?

• No eradication method is 100 percent effective.
• Eradication is a temporary fix.
• It leads to a vacuum effect and new cats move in.
  
• The cat population soon attains its former
  numbers due to the presence of edible refuse and
  rats.

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Why not just feed the stray cats in the
neighborhood?

• It has been estimated that a pair of
  breeding cats can exponentially produce 420,000
  offspring in a seven year period.

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Do feral cats kill wildlife?

• Cats are poor hunters of birds. They kill very
  few birds compared to small rodents and insects.

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Are feral cats a reservoir for disease?

• Research has shown that a vaccinated, sterilized
  feral cat colony will
• deter unvaccinated cats from moving into an area.
• buffer the human population from wild animals,
  such as skunks and foxes, that are major vectors
  of rabies.

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What about cat diseases?

• Results of a study published in JAVMA during
  2002 showed that prevalence of FeLV and FIV in
  feral and stray cats is similar to the prevalence
  rates reported for owned cats in the United
  States.

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Location of feral cats at Texas AM University
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Flow chart
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Arkansas Source

• Arkansans for Animals 1 800 956 7289
• Program to help spay/neuter animals of low income
  and elderly Arkansans.
• Referral to veterinarians that work with feral
  cat projects.

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Resources

• Alley Cat Allies www.alleycat.org
• Fix our Ferals www.fixourferals.com
• Feral Cat Coalition www.feralcat.com
• Best Friends Animal Sanctuary www.bestfriends.org