FERAL CATS What is a feral cat? A feral cat is the semi-wild offspring of stray and abandoned cats. They grow up without significant human interaction and generally avoid contact with people. A stray or abandoned cat originally lived with people. Whether or not a stray can be rehabilitated and find an adoptive home depends on how long he or she has been abandoned and what experiences he or she has had with people during that time. Where do feral cats come from? Feral cats can be found almost anywhere. They tend to congregate in colonies near a food source, which may be a person feeding the strays, a dumpster, or a thriving rodent population. They find shelter near apartment complexes, stores, restaurants, alleys, sheds, and in the countryside, barns. A feral cat colony starts with just a few stray or abandoned cats who have not been neutered. Every year each female produces two litter of kittens, and soon there are dozens of feral cats. How can I tell if a cat is feral? It is difficult to tell unless one spends some time interacting with the cat. Ferals will typically steer clear of people, but may come closer over time if being fed. Even so they will stay out of reach. Ferals will generally not meow to a person; this is a trait that tame cats learn. If trapped, a feral cat will often hiss and spit, or she may become almost comatose with fear. Can a feral cat be tamed? Cats learn to trust humans when they are tiny kittens, typically from the age of 4 to 8 weeks, as people handle them, pet them, and feed them. We have had good success in taming kittens at this age. As they become older, they become harder to acclimate to humans. This can vary widely, depending on the cat. A few 8-week old kittens never become tame, and a few one-year old cats become tame. If you decide to take in an older kitten or cat, be prepared to be patient. One way is to confine the kittens or cat in a large cage. It should be large enough to accomodate the litter pan, food, water, and cat bed. The large "cat condos" with shelves work well. The cat or kitten slowly gets used to your presence and associates you with good things like food, a warm calming voice, and feather toys. They will shy away at first, but eventually become bold enough to come up and meekly sniff your finger through the cage. They will shy away from being petted at first, but eventually grow to like it. If you don't confine the cat, this process will take much longer. A tamed feral cat will be shy around strangers, but will usually bond closely with their special humans. They typically love attention and petting and can be very sweet companions. They prefer quiet homes and are most at ease when you are seated or lying down. They enjoy the company of other cats and typically get along very well with them. Those of us who have adopted these former feral cats become very fond of our special kitties. Why should I help feral cats? Feral cats live a grim life. Females are often exhausted and gaunt from the effort of bearing and feeding kittens as well as themselves. Many kittens perish, killed by other animals, sickness, or accidents. Males fight other males and suffer nasty wounds to the ears and eyes. Illnesses such as feline leukemia, distemper, and FIV spread through the colonies quickly, leaving the cats to die slow deaths. The cats are attacked by other animals, by uncaring people, or are hit by cars. The lifespan of these cats is often just a year or two. Tame cats that go outside are at risk of contracting diseases or getting into fights with feral cats. Feral cats can also contract rabies from other rabid animals such as foxes and raccoons, which can be transmitted to family pets if not vaccinated and then to family members. Ironically one benefit of the presence of feral cats is keeping the rodent population in check. This is the reason that feral cats are often welcome on agricultural and horse farms, i.e. "barn cats". What can I do to help feral cats? The typical official response to a colony of feral cats is to get rid of them by trapping and euthanasia. However this response does not work because the area is quickly repopulated by feral cats from nearby locations. The humane and most effective method is Trap-Neuter-Release (TNR). In this case the cats are trapped, spayed/neutered, and then released back to their area. Ferals should also be vaccinated for rabies. They can no longer reproduce, but they occupy their area so that few new cats come in. The females are healthier because they no longer have to bear and feed kittens. The males fight less. Ideally, there is someone who is committed to looking after the colony by feeding them, catching any new arrivals, and watching for disease or injuries. Another concern is the presence of feline leukemia. Some people recommend testing feral cats and euthanizing any cats with feline leukemia so that they can't spread the disease to other cats. Sometimes people want feral cats removed and relocated. This can be difficult since there are few places to locate them. Sometimes it is possible to find people who would like a few feral cats around their horse farm or barn. However one can't drop the cats into a new location and expect them to thrive. They need to be confined in the new location and fed until they have become acclimated to the new place, usually a few weeks, and learn that they can come there for food. Their new caretakers must be willing to look after them, feed them, and take action if they become sick or injured. What can CARA do? Our resources are limited, but we can advise and assist some people who are dealing with ferals. Some of our members are experienced in trapping ferals and know which vets work with ferals. We have a small amount of funds budgeted to help pay for spay and neuter. Our priority is to work with people who are willing to care for the feral cats once the colony has been stabilized through TNR. There are other programs in our area to help with TNR. These are listed below, as well as some other resources and information. Please note that not all vets will handle feral cats. Where can I get more information? These groups support feral TNR: MARYLAND Cat Rescue of Maryland, Inc. Box 305 6400 Baltimore National Pike Baltimore, MD 21228-3915 Phone: (410) 747-6595 Alley Animals, Inc. (Foster and Referral) 2 Greenbriar Road P.O. Box 27487 Towson, Maryland 21285-7487 Phone: (410) 823-0899 Email: alleyanimals@geocities.com Cats 'R' Us                (Additional website) Provides assistance with trapping, S/N, feral colony care, as well as placing tame cats 3127 Anchorage Drive Annapolis, MD 21403 Phone: (410) 263-1719 Email: MsKittyMeow3@juno.com The Smith Island Feral Cat Project 20967 Caleb Jones Road Ewell MD 21824 Email: nohungrykittens@aol.com Alley Cat Rescue P.O. Box 585 Mt. Rainier, MD 20712 Email: laholton@aol.com Prince George's Feral Friends, SPCA P.O. Box 1036 Bowie, MD 20718 Phone: (301) 262-6452 Email: TimSaffell@PGFerals.org VIRGINIA Metro Ferals P.O. Box 7138 Arlington, VA 22207 Phone: (703) 528-7782 Email: info@metroferals.com Meower Power Feral Cat Coalition P.O. Box 9696 Chesapeake, VA 23321-9696 Phone: (757) 399 0001 Email: meowerpower@hotmail.com The Cat's Cradle P.O. Box 2152 Harrisonburg, VA 22801 Phone: (540) 438-5222 Email: catscradle@rica.net WASHINGTON, D.C. Alley Cat Allies 7920 Norfolk Avenue, Suite 600 Bethesda, MD 20814-2525 Phone: 240-482-1980 Fax: 240-482-1990 Here are some low cost spay/neuter resources: Operation Noble Foster Several additional websites provide detailed information about ferals, trapping, colony management, etc. Alley Cat Allies: Resources     ACA has many online informational fliers and an excellent video on how to do Trap-Neuter-Return. Feral Cat Coalition Cat Care Society (Humane Management of Feral Cats) Amby's Feral Cat Information Our thanks to Elise Shurie and Neva Davis; some information in this page was taken from their article "What is a Feral Cat?" published in the CARA Summer 2003 Newsletter. Additional information is from DorothyBelle Poli and Cathy Imhoff. The first picture is from Alley Cat Allies; the second is our "born outside but not feral" kitten Julia Roberts.