Feral and stray cats: an important difference

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Feral and stray cats an important difference
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• Quick facts
• Community cat is an umbrella term that refers
  to any member of the Felis catus species who is
  unowned and lives outdoors. Both feral and stray
  cats are community cats.
• Community cats have a wide range of behaviors and
  degrees of socialization. See our comprehensive
  Cat Socialization Continuum guide.
• Observing a cats behavior, including their body
  language, can help you assess their level of
  socialization.
• Understanding a cats level of socialization can
  help you act in their best interest.
• Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) protects and improves
  the lives of all community cats, regardless of
  their level of socialization.
• Feral, stray, and indoor or pet cats are all
  members of the same species they are all
  domestic cats. However, understanding their
  behaviors and interactions with people can shed
  light on the nuances that set them apart. Stray
  cats and feral cats exhibit distinct
  characteristics that may not be immediately
  apparent.
• Whether you are a shelter worker, veterinarian,
  or cat advocate, or you just share your
  neighborhood with community cats, knowing how to
  tell the difference can help inform how best to
  interact with a cat or what, if any, intervention
  would be in each cats best interest.

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• What is socialization?
• When we say a cat is socialized, we mean she is
  accustomed to and enjoys companionship with
  people. To socialize a cat means to acclimate her
  to human touch, human spaces, and human sights,
  smells, and sounds. Its a process thats
  influenced by many factors of a cats life and
  takes time and effort from compassionate people.
• Kittens become socialized by interacting with
  peoplebeing held, spoken to, and played
  withfrom an early age. If a kitten does not
  become accustomed to people holding her and
  petting her within this crucial window, she will
  grow up apprehensive of humans and will generally
  not be suited to or happy living in homes. To
  ensure a kittens well-rounded development, it is
  essential to integrate socialization activities
  and exposure to other people and animals into her
  early socialization process.
• What is the difference between a stray cat and a
  feral cat?
• Pet or indoor cats are socialized to people and
  stray cats have been socialized to people at one
  point in their lives.

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• Feral cats are not socialized to people. While
  they are socialized to their feline family
  members and bonded to each other, they do not
  have that same relationship with people.
• Community cats
• Community cat is an umbrella term that refers
  to any member of the Felis catus species who is
  unowned and lives outdoors. Both feral and stray
  cats are community cats. Community cats have a
  wide range of behaviors and degrees of
  socialization, but they generally do not want to
  live indoors and are unadoptable.
• Stray
• A stray cat is a cat who lived indoors and was
  socialized to people at some point in her life,
  but has left or lost her home, or was abandoned,
  and no longer has regular human contact.
• Over time, a stray cat can become feral as her
  contact with humans dwindles.
• A stray cat may be socialized enough to allow
  people to touch her, but she will become less
  socialized, or even closer to feral, if she
  spends too much time without positive interaction
  with humans.
• Under the right circumstances, a stray cat can
  also become a pet cat once again. Stray cats that
  are re-introduced to an indoor home after living
  outdoors may require a period of time to
  re-acclimate they may be frightened and wary
  after spending time outside away from people.

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• Feral
• A feral cat is an unsocialized outdoor cat who
  has either never had any physical contact with
  humans, or human contact has diminished over
  enough time that she is no longer accustomed to
  it. Most feral cats are fearful or people and are
  not likely to ever become a lap cat or enjoy
  living indoors.
• Kittens born to feral cats can be socialized at
  an early age and adopted into indoor homes.
• Alley Cat Allies does not, in general, recommend
  trying to socialize a feral kitten over 4 months
  of age. Socializing is time consuming, especially
  for older kittens, and results are not
  guaranteed. Learn more about socializing kittens.
• Why does it matter?
• Understanding the many degrees of socialization
  cats can exhibit will help you determine the best
  way to care for, help, and protect them. See our
  guide The Cat Socialization Continuum A Guide
  to Interactions Between Cats and Humans for all
  the details.
• Stray cats can readjust to living with people and
  may be good candidates for adoption into indoor
  homes if people have the time and means to foster
  and adopt.

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• Stray and feral cats can be difficult to tell
  apart, especially when they are trapped or
  frightened. Scared stray cats often need time to
  relax and show their level of socialization.
• Adult feral cats are not socialized to people,
  which means they cannot be adopted to indoor
  homes. As a result, they are likely to be killed
  if picked up by animal control or brought to
  shelters, so it is in their best interest to
  continue living outdoors.
• Trap-Neuter-Return saves feral cats lives, and
  benefits all community cats, regardless of their
  level of socialization. Cats who are part of TNR
  programs are humanely trapped, scanned for
  microchips, spayed or neutered, vaccinated,
  eartipped, and microchipped (if they dont
  already have one). Stray cats who are thriving
  and dont have microchips indicating they are
  lost can be returned to their outdoor home or
  fostered and adopted.
• How do I tell the difference when the cats are
  outdoors?
• Since it is difficult to determine each cats
  socialization during a stressful event such as
  trapping, its a good idea to observe cats on
  their own outdoors using the guidelines below.
• Note There is a lot of variation on the
  Socialization Continuum. Cats may not fit solidly
  in either socialized-stray or unsocialized-feral
  categories. Learn more variations possible using
  our Socialization Continuum guide.

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• Socialization to humans
• Stray May approach people, houses, porches, or
  cars
• Feral Will not approach and will likely seek
  hiding places to avoid people
• Socialization to other cats
• Stray Will likely live alone, not part of a
  group
• Feral May belong to a colony
• Body language

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• Stray Might walk and move like a house cat, such
  as walking with tail up a sign of friendliness.
  Will probably look at you, blink, or make eye
  contact.
• Feral May crawl, crouch, stay low to the ground,
  and protect body with tail. Unlikely to make eye
  contact.
• Vocalization
• Stray May be vocal, meow, or answer your voice
• Feral Wont meow, beg or purr
• Schedule
• Stray Will be visible primarily during the
  daytime
• Feral More likely to be nocturnal occasionally
  out during the day

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• Physical Appearance
• Stray Will probably be dirty or disheveled will
  not have an eartip.
• Feral Will probably have a clean, well-kept
  coat. A male with a big head and thick neck,
  muscular body, and/or scars from fighting is more
  likely to be feral, since these are traits
  associated with intact males (and only 2 of
  feral cats are neutered in the U.S.) He may also
  have a spiky coat from high testosterone levels
  and less time spent grooming may also have stud
  tail, hair loss, greasiness, or bumps at the
  base of the tail due to hormones. Will likely
  have an eartip if neutered as part of a TNR
  program.
• Pregnancy, nursing, kittens
• Feral A female who is pregnant or lactating is
  more likely to be feral, since fewer feral cats
  are neutered than pet cats in the U.S.
• Remember A cats level of socialization and
  behavior is not always black and white,
  particularly for community cats who recognize
  their caregiver.
• They may show signs of familiarity, such as a
  tail up or hanging out on a caregivers porch,
  but these behaviors are usually limited to the
  cats interaction with the caregiver and only
  develop after building a relationship over time.
  Its important to note that this behavior does
  not mean that the cat is a good candidate for
  living indoors.

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• How do I tell feral and stray cats apart once I
  have trapped them?
• When in a frightening or stressful environment,
  such as a trap or a shelter, a friendly stray cat
  may act like a feral cat, avoiding people and
  possibly even showing aggression to avoid being
  touched. Who can blame them? The cat is in a new
  and unfamiliar place.
• Here are some ways that will help distinguish a
  feral cat from a scared stray cat when they are
  frightened, confined, or in a new place.
• Touch barrier
• Stray It may be possible to touch the cat
  eventually or she may tolerate a small amount of
  touching with an object.
• Feral Cannot be touched, even by a caregiver.

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• Cage behavior
• Stray May come to the front of the cage. May
  eventually rub against the cage in a friendly
  way.
• Feral Will likely stay in the back of the cage
  and retreat as far back as possible. If jolted or
  frightened, may shake, rattle, or climb the cage,
  and could become injured banging into the cage.

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• Level of relaxation
• Stray May relax over time.
• Feral Will remain tense and unsocial.
• Responsiveness
• Stray May investigate toys or food placed near
  the cage. May respond to household sounds like
  cat food cans or bags being opened.
• Feral Will likely ignore all people and toys,
  and possibly even food. Will not show any
  familiarity or interest in household sounds.

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• Fear and anxiety
• Stray May hiss or growl to show anxiety.
• Feral Will be aggressive and lash out if
  threatened or cornered (signs of aggression
  include ears back and eyes dilated).

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• What do I do next?
• Make sure you have all the information needed to
  make a good evaluation. Once you have evaluated a
  cat and feel like you have a sense of the cats
  level of socialization, the next step is to get
  the cat neutered. From there, use your evaluation
  to do whats in the cats best interest, which
  may include
• Returning community cats to their outdoor home
• Maximizing a scared strays chances of adoption
• Finding socialized cats a good adoptive home
• Socializing kittens for adoption

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