This just in…Satan reports hell has frozen over.
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Now what did you go say that for?
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It is a rarity!
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I would play dumb with the neighbors if they ask. They are idiots anyways! When my guy got neutered last year the vet did his stitches or whatever in such a way he didn’t need a cone. That is the way to go.
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Farms all around me. One is neighboring. I chatted with her this spring, and we talked about how the cats just show up at her place (I have 10 barns cats from a local rescue group I volunteer for, so not many stay at my place). Seems her sister volunteers at a local hs. Not sure if she gets her cats spayed/neutered via her sister, but I did let her know that I just started trapping ferals in my barn and getting them spayed/neutered. She shrugged, said she didn’t care. Month later I caught a tabby tom, off with his balls (I didn’t ear tip in case he was someone’s pet, all I wanted off was his testicles) and released him. Thought I saw him at the farm next door with two 3 month old kittens looking like him. Haha! No more baby making for that boy.
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Please tell me she wears glasses, in which case you should say Take those glasses off! God wants you to bump into tables!
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Sadly, she doesn’t! She’s a bit of a freak - she refused to adopt a kitten from the HS because they microchip them. Lucky kitten, IMO. (She’s also, sadly, my sister in law, so there’s that.)
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Well, darn, I knew I should have asked COTH before I lost my nerve! Pretty kitty suddenly appeared mid-winter. I’d see her a few times a week. Turns out she is living in my barn and now greets me every morning. No matter how many times she encounters the dogs, she seems to have declared mi casa es tu casa.
I asked around, no one knew or claimed her. She is friendly enough so I popped her into a spare room and made the appt. But guilt was niggling at me so I cast a wider net. The night before her spay, I got ahold of neighbor of neighbor. Young family saw a mouse in their house so brought in two kittens. One or the other started spraying a few months later, so kittens were kicked out. In January. Lemme tell ya, this cat wants back inside!
I asked if cat was spayed. “We were told cats that are trapped and neutered have their ear tip cut off, so we think she is.” Ummmmm 
her ears are perfectly intact. 
If kittens pop up in my barn next month, I’m delivering a box full of kittens to their doorstep and spaying the queen. In the meantime, I don’t want to open her up for nothing. At least boys make it known 
She’s sweet enough, but I could do without the cat crap stinking up an empty stall and dead songbirds at the back door. 
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Good luck with your kitty! I’ll admit I was hesitant to ask because lots of people see animals as property. In hindsight, I realize it’s pretty black and white. That sweet little ginger tomcat has no voice and is obviously not being cared for and ultimately he is suffering. How long before he loses the other eye because the life of an intact unvaccinated cat is violent and short ??? We used to have a wonderful low cost neuter program in my county. After researching I think it lost its funding. You trapped the cat and showed up on whatever day without an appt and off went the balls, and vaccinations. He’s pretty tame but I will have to figure out a way to make sure he’s around on the day I schedule an appt. Perhaps I can catch and crate him a day or so before. Thank you all for your insight and stories.
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@ThreeWishes, definitely catch and crate early whenever you have the opportunity. First appt I had to cancel because the greet-me-every-morning cat was nowhere to be found the day before. It’s like they know ;).
If you have a larger dog crate, you can set him up in that for a little more room if it’s going to be a few days. But reinforce the door! Or crate inside a secure room in case he escapes the crate. “Your” guy sounds like he could use a break for a few days to rest and heal.
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Thank you @Bicoastal! That makes perfect sense. I think the cat would be fine but I worry about my latest dog addition. I have a spare bedroom and a giant dog crate. I am going to upgrade this kitty’s life.
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Good for you! And I love the very rare everyone agrees thread!!!
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“Sure you can have him back. But here is the vet bill to pay first. And 3 months of flea preventative…and…and…”
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This is great! One less tom cat out there. Good for you!
Meanwhile, I’ve been feeding a gray calico for a month. She’s too wild to catch. I’m going to keep trying to trap her, though. She needs to go to the pound. We have two barn cats already. That’s enough. Plus, we also have rabies and distemper in feral cat populations every year. Our barn cats are vaccinated, but I can’t keep something I can’t catch for shots.
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I’m also in the TNR camp. Any cat that is on my property long enough to eat gets neutered. We have a great TNR program and I always donate extra when I go because it’s my favorite program our local HSUS runs.
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super timely. Started moving into our new house yesterday (think very urban, condo-type setup) and the FIRST thing I noticed is that someone tossed a handful of kibble and bread rolls (?) in the parking lot near a storm drain where about 5 skinny cats were feasting on the handout. Not an ear-tip to be seen.
In our warm climate we are already getting into kitten season. We hadn’t even finished packing and I was already searching for TnR resources. I love cats too much to see these guys suffer with hunger, disease and sick kittens. My only concern is having to trap in such a public area. I don’t know who the feeder is, but I hope they are cooperative. Its sad how many people are totally fine with feral cats running around, getting hit by cars or walking around with visible injuries.
Despite being a life-long cat owner (always had spoiled rotten indoor kitties) this will be my first time TnRing - so any tips are appreciated!
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Can you catch her and is she pretty tame. You might get be able to clip her belly and see if you can find a small tattoo indicating she’s spayed. I have one here that was found as a stray. I took her to the vet and they clipped her and found the tattoo.
If you mention the fact that he is basically a feral cat , your vet may drop the price on you? Worth a try @ThreeWishes.
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Thanks @candyappy I think I might take him to a different local vet. The one closest to me that I use for my dogs I affectionately call the doggie Mayo Clinic. It’s a huge state of art 24 hour clinic with exceptional care but $$$$$. Neutering a cat plus vaccines would probably be north of $500. In the past I have trapped ferals and taken them to the humane society and had them vaccinated and spayed/neutered for under $100. They ear tip them and then I set them free. This was years ago. Unfortunately that SNIP program seems to no longer be available. Either way I will call and explain the situation. The cat in question has decided this is his home. He’s napping outside the door as I type this.
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What a happy handsome boy! Love those gingers! He’s definitely home and he knows it.
That said - holy sticker shock, Batman! Neuter, board, and abscess treatment for my feral Simon was $110. I know my vet gives me a price break, especially on these cases, but I can’t imagine anyone in this area charging $500 for a neuter.
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