I'm a Slave to a Feral Cat Colony

[MichSwampbuck]

interesting article on melatonin used as a type of "birth control" for cats:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26323798...production

Ah, the pill for cats! What a great idea! I have three boys that need fixing, the rest are gals (other than the current litter), so if I fix the guys and keep the girls on "the pill", that sounds feasible, perhaps even cheaper than fixing the whole group. Excellent suggestion, much thanks.

ETA: A simple search produced another study that gives recommend dosages and times in reference to the cat's breeding cycle. It is related to hours of sunlight triggering it in the spring. When the heat is coming on is when the the melatonin is at its lowest level. So, boost up the melatonin with a subcutaneous chip or 5mil doses twice a day in their diet, and it fools their body to not go into heat.

This is for real, so simple and less expensive. You sir deserve a beer at the very least.

[argentus]

We have been dealing with feral cats for the last 30 years, so I acutely feel your problem.   The first two, we took two male kittens before their eyes were even open, because their littermates and mother had been killed by dogs.   Had to teach them how to use a litterbox, by digging a little hole and dropping one of their turds in and then burying it.   

Every feral after that --11 of them -- found us.  Some of them transitioned into in and out cats, and some stayed out permanently.   They were all good kids.  Some males will continue to fight even after they're neutered, but if there isn't a female in heat to jack them up, they fight less.  

One thing that helped us a lot was buying a live trap squeeze cage.  Makes it such that the vet doesn't have to transfer them to another cage to knock them out, and if your cat is going cray-cray in the cage on the way to the vet's, you can restrain them with the squeeze cage.  We had one sweet male feral cat that slept with us every night, but when I took him to the vet, he went so crazy that he broke the plastic POS carrier, I tried to stop him and he turned my hands and arms into red gauntlets.  He got away, called and called.   No Frisco.   Our house is about five miles away.  He showed up at 5:00 a.m. 28 days later, not even looking skinny.   Got the squeeze trap after that.   He lived a good old age, for a feral cat.

Don't let anybody judge you.   You have to do what's right for your cat community and yourselves. Killing cats is sometimes necessary.  Doesn't make you hard, it makes you brave.  It ain't easy.  Our last old boy was slipping fast, and I smothered him in my arms.   MF put up quite a fight at the end.  He had renal failure and couldn't do anything.  Hope there's somebody at my end to give me the same grace.

p.s. Our trap was made by Tomahawk, but I see that model isn't offered anymore.   They're now called a 
"drop trap with squeeze panel".

[MichSwampbuck]

After Byrd's post about using melatonin for birth control, I'd thought I share something that will save you from a vet bill.

If you have a pet with mange, you can treat it with a solution of Borax and hydrogen peroxide applied to the infected skin. You lather it on and after a certain amount of time, you have to rinse it off. I don't remember how much time or what ratio I used as the internet didn't tell me much so I just came up with something. But it worked great. After so many treatments the skin looked better and the fur started to come back. Never hurt the dog or made her sick, worked like magic.

[MichSwampbuck]

@argentus

Thanks for your support and suggestions. It is nice to know that someone has experience and advice.

Concerning DIYS euthanasia, considering what horrors I've witnesses and the urgency of dealing with it, there were times I should have put some of them down on the spot, but I didn't. That upsets me as much as pulling the trigger. It has been very upsetting and ultimately it contributes to the hardening of my heart to see such suffering. Mercy often comes from the end of a gun when there is nothing else to be done. That last line would make some great lyrics for a country song.

[argentus]

@argentus

Thanks for your support and suggestions. It is nice to know that someone has experience and advice.

Concerning DIYS euthanasia, considering what horrors I've witnesses and the urgency of dealing with it, there were times I should have put some of them down on the spot, but I didn't. That upsets me as much as pulling the trigger. It has been very upsetting and ultimately it contributes to the hardening of my heart to see such suffering. Mercy often comes from the end of a gun when there is nothing else to be done. That last line would make some great lyrics for a country song.

That was the way I grew up also.   Last year, my Mom's cat, also a feral, became an indoor out cat, and one day got torn up by dogs.   I don't blame the dogs being dogs, I blame the POS "owners" who don't feed them enough or take care of them.  So, the dogs hunt feral chickens and cats, and whatever can be cornered and eaten.  Mom's cat was gone for four days and then he dragged himself home to get help and perhaps say goodbye.  I won't go into detail because it still pains me how damaged the little guy was and still somehow got home.  Yeah, we put him down in the quickest way possible.   There was no way in hell he could have ever survived.  Fuckin' shitty dog owners whose punishment should be to be choke-chained and staked out in the sun with a bowl of muddy water and table scraps to eat for a few months.

ETA: "Mercy often comes from the end of a gun when there is nothing else to be done."  You'd best copywrite that lyric mate 

[Kwaka]

I got some feral cats around too. Just leave enough food out to feed one of them. Won't take long till you have twenty if you keep feeding them all. All good if you can find a market for it?

They come and go, move around. One unusual stakes a home here as they come and go. Occasionally I do see them share when an odd one on walkabout getting a bit hungry, then off again.

In the cats history, they watched the grain back in Egypt. The mice got into some of my food store when covid hit. With a cat around now, don't see the mice as much, but know they are still around waiting.

Domesticated cats at crap at catching mice. Never done it, don't know what they are doing. Already feed so why bother? A wild cat once it has the taste for blood and knows what to do, they will remain alert for another meal.  It is a shame about some of the birds they get too. Moderation with cats, needs some, not too many. 

I call the current cat scruffy. Its hair is a mess, got scares all over it.  One of it eyes is doing better. It is a tough nugget.

[Sirius]

Cat's brutal. "Cats can begin breeding as early as 5-9 months of age, though some breeds may mature earlier or later. This is when they reach sexual maturity and can become pregnant." Get's out of control quickly

Each one is loving creature...

I knew a wholesaler who had a feral colony of cats, they kept rats under control, the cats only showed themselves at night. Never buy house brand stuff, the bag of rice just get's repackaged after going through the rats...

[andy06shake]

You could do a lot worse than choosing to look after and take care of animals.

Props.

And good luck to you are your wee buddies.

[MichSwampbuck]

I must admit, even though they can manage to perform the acrobatics necessary for catching wild birds, the rodents and moles are mighty scare now-a-days. Usually I have to set mouse traps under the kitchen sink and in the kitchen area in the fall and spring. I haven't had mice in the house for years now.

I like nature, and I encourage wildlife where I can, but there are checks and balances in the ecosystem and cats like these are part of that. Even if they put the the local ecology out of wack, it is at least in my favor.

[quintessentone]

I must admit, even though they can manage to perform the acrobatics necessary for catching wild birds, the rodents and moles are mighty scare now-a-days. Usually I have to set mouse traps under the kitchen sink and in the kitchen area in the fall and spring. I haven't had mice in the house for years now.

I like nature, and I encourage wildlife where I can, but there are checks and balances in the ecosystem and cats like these are part of that. Even if they put the the local ecology out of wack, it is at least in my favor.

When I lived with my sister she moved in with her a feral population and I brought my TNR cat (Sparty) with us, so I asked my vet's secretary about barn cat/feral programs in the area and she told me her mom needs two mousers on her farm in the barn with the horses, so we sent two ferals to her mom's farm and everyone, including the ferals and horses, are happy.

I assured her that I knew for sure Billy (Black and White cat) was an expert mouser via observation, but Sparty maybe not so much so, but they are best buds, so they come in a pair.

Here they are as of June, 2025:




Facebook has a Michigan Barn/Working Cat Program, you should check them out.

What's also nice is that you can get emails as to the progress or status of the cats you gave to them.

Be careful though, some people claiming they need barn cats, may need them, but they don't look after them properly.