Feral Cats

 

The Humane Society of Tampa Bay is hosting FERAL MONDAYS! We will sterilize only feral cats on this day, with no limit per trapper, however we can only take 80 cats per day.  Please let the TNR Coordinator know how many cats you are planning to bring in to the clinic.  She can be reached at (813) 625-0910 or cat.spay@humanesocietytampa.org.

We are currently able to spay/neuter, inoculate for rabies & distemper, and ear-tip feral cats for $15 per cat.  To register your colony, go to www.tampaferalcatdatabase.org and follow the login instructions. 

Feral cats need to be dropped off between 7:00 - 8:00 am on Monday morning.  ALL CATS MUST BE IN TRAPS - ONE CAT PER TRAP (NO EXCEPTIONS).  Pick-up time is 4:30 - 5:30 pm.  FeLV/FIV testing is available for $13 per cat.  Our HSTB Veterinarian will administer flea control, injectable tapeworm medication, injectable ivermectin and FeLV/FIV if necessary.  Treatments done at the veterinarian's discretion will be absorbed by HSTB.

For more information or for traps, please contact our TNR Coordinator, at (813) 625-0910 between the hours of 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Monday - Friday, or email cat.spay@humanesocietytampa.org.  Feral cat traps are available for loan with a $60 deposit.  Trap pick up/drop off is Wednesday and Friday 3:30pm - 6:00pm at the trap shed behind the clinic. 

All About Feral Cats

What is a feral cat?
A feral cat is one who has reverted in some degree to a wild state.  Feral cats originate from former domestic cats who were lost or abandoned and they learned to live outdoors, or in environments involving little human contact.  In most cases, feral cats are not completely wild because they still depend on people as a food source, whether it is a caretaker who comes by daily, or a dumpster outside a restaurant.  Relatively few feral cats subsist only by hunting.

 The Problem in Hillsborough County

One expert has estimated that there are 200,000 feral cats in Hillsborough County.  They are offspring of cats who were not spayed or neutered and left unaltered continue to produce litter after litter.  Unlike colder climates, in Florida cats will continue to mate all year round.  Feral cats group themselves together in packs called colonies.  Most of their nuisance behavior can be attributed to mating behaviors that would most likely cease if the cats were sterilized.  These behaviors include noise from fighting and mating and the smell from spraying urine to mark territories.  These cats are not socialized to humans and adoption is not an option, however the breeding of feral cats does result in kittens entering our shelters and taking homes away from adult socialized cats. Most adult cats that are taken to Animal Services are euthanized because they are not adoptable and are a danger to employees who are trying to care for them.  It costs our county more money to euthanize an animal than it does to adopt one.  That means you as a taxpayer pay more taxes.

The Solution for our Community

Trap/Neuter/Return (or TNR) is the only effective method to humanely manage and reduce feral cat colonies.  TNR respects a feral cat’s wild state and allows them to live out their lives comfortably. The Humane Society of Tampa Bay supports TNR, and thankfully, we are not alone.  It will take the support and understanding of everyone in our community to solve this problem.  In 2007, Hillsborough County euthanized 26,727 animals and 16,950 were cats. 

1.  Once you locate a colony of feral cats, see if they are ear-tipped.  If they are ear-tipped then someone is taking care of the colony and you can leave them alone.  If they are not, determine how many cats are living there. How many are kittens and what are the approximate ages?  (Feral kittens between the ages of 5 – 10 weeks can be taken away from the colony, socialized and adopted.)  Make sure that someone is feeding the cats.  Find out who that is and explain that you’d like to help them out by sterilizing the cats and adopting out the kittens.  Normally, people want to do the right thing for the cats.

2.  Pick your date in association with a feral cat spay day.  (There are two local low-cost, high volume Spay Neuter Clinics in Hillsborough County:  ACT and HSTB.  HSTB is currently doing Spay Monday, so you would need to trap the cats on Sunday).  Ask the feeder not to feed the cats the day before.  Contact the TNR Coordinator, Mary Ann O'Donnell (813) 625-0910, to reserve the number of traps you need.  Invite friends or other feral cat caregivers to help you if it is a large colony.  The goal is to TNR 80%; but 100% is better.

3.  In the late afternoon, set out the traps. See photos on how to set up trap. Put a towel over the trap to make it look like a safe place.  Use something smelly as bait (canned tuna or sardines).  Use one can for multiple traps by placing the food on a small dish.  Make sure the dish will not interfere with the spring that closes the door.  Leave the area for a while, but don’t go far.  Read a book in your car or get a cup of coffee.  Don’t get too excited and run into the area when you hear the trap doors shut.  You might frighten off other cats.  After a while, quietly go back into the area and see how you’ve done. 

4.  Have a quiet place ready to keep the cats overnight.  Drape towels over them to keep them calm.  Slide a small bowl of water through the guillotine door for each cat.

5.  Monday morning, take the cats to the Spay/Neuter Clinic.  On feral spay day, HSTB has check in between 7:00 – 8:00 am.  Feral cats only (not free roaming cats) and they must be in their own trap (one cat per trap).  HSTB charges $25.00 for spay/neuter, rabies & distemper vaccines, and ear-tipping.  Pick up time for feral cats is between 3:30 – 5:30 pm Monday.  You will be instructed at drop off when to come back to pick up later that day.

6.  You will need to have a place to keep the cats while they recover.  We recommend keeping the cats in the traps for three days, however, you can release the males after one day if they are stressing out too much in the cages.  Females who have experienced any difficulty in the spay (such as pregnancy) should be kept and monitored a minimum of three days.  It is recommended that you use a cage divider to keep the cat on one side while you clean the other side of the cage & give them fresh water and food.

7.  Return the cats to their colony and let the caregiver know they are back.  Make sure that the caregiver has sufficient food for the colony.  If you are the caregiver, make sure you monitor the colony for any newcomers when you feed.  Always try to feed feral cats out of the way and please pick up dishes and containers once the cats are done eating.  The less neighbors see of the cats, the less likely it is that they will complain about the cats.

8.  Last and most important, keep up to date records on the Feral Cat Database on how many cats are in the colony and how many have been fixed.  It is vitally important for grant purposes to keep accurate information.  Grants help lower the costs of sterilizing feral cats for the public

TNR Caretaker Training

HSTB offers quarterly TNR Caretaker Training.  Training will be held Monday evenings in the HSTB Education room. Dates for 2009 TBD.  Training will include how to use a trap, how to use the Feral Cat Database, and tricks of the trade.  New trappers will be paired with more experienced trappers whenever possible.  To sign up for TNR Caretaker Training, send an email to cat.spay@humanesocietytampa.org.  Include your name, email address, phone number, and which date you would like to attend.

Rental of Humane Traps

HSTB has over 130 traps which it loans to the public in order to TNR feral cats.  HSTB requires a $60 deposit which is returned when the trap is returned.  The Trap Shed is located behind the Spay/Neuter Clinic & is open on Wednesday and Friday from 3:30pm– 6:00pm.  Traps can be picked up or returned during that time.

The Humane Society of Tampa Bay does NOT do

·   Emergency Rescue – Contact your veterinarian or Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Services

·   Investigate Animal Cruelty Cases

Contact Hillsborough County Animal Services

·   Take in Cats or Kittens (We would love to take them all and place them in good homes, however we have limited cage space.  Please contact (813) 876-7138 to make an appointment if we have room.  HSTB will not take in cats or kittens in need of socialization or bottle feeding.)

Donate to the Feral Cat Fund  

www.humanesocietytampa.org/donate/make-donation

Your donation will help the Humane Society of Tampa Bay continue their programs and services to help feral cats in our community.

Other places you can spay/neuter cats:

Hillsborough Co. - Animal Coalition of Tampa  or Feline Folks

Pasco or Pinellas Co. - Suncoast Animal League

Polk County - Feral Fanciers

Ruskin Area - Care Shelter

Hernando Co. - PetLuv