Since cats are able to survive many areas on their own, there may be some organizations that will "Trap, Spay/neuter, and release"

Basically, they set up a trap, fix the animal so no more litters of kittens, and upon recovery, re release the cat where it came from to go and be a cat.

1. This keeps OTHER cats from encroaching on the area as they will defend territory and consume varmints limiting the food supply.

2. It doesn't really harm the cat, except for the spay/neuter with really doesn't HURT them.

Those cat's could be fighting over territory, OR they might be fighting over Females, aka pussy! If there's a female cat in heat, the population will certainly increase, and that's not really desirable as eventually, you've got a Feral Cat Colony in your neighborhood. Your best bet is to contact a rescue organization to capture the animals.

There are numerous Rescues that are associated w/ No-Kill Shelters, or that literally operate as 'Travel Rescues' to relocate the animals to other areas/states. Darbster Foundation is such a rescue org. They are located in West Palm Beach, which is technically 'south of the mouse', but there may be others closer to your location.

https://www.darbsterfoundation.com/darbster-rescue/

Since 2015 they have transported and helped save the lives of over 12,750 homeless cats and kittens. Darbster has a transport van that usually makes two trips per week from FL to NH in an effort to relocate homeless cats (and dogs) to loving forever homes in NH! This is Maggie, a Darbster Kitty we're currently fostering and will be officially adopting next week.

The only cats I would “remove with extreme prejudice” are true ferals that do untold damage to native wildlife populations. They are not pets; they are invasive and are a scourge. I’m not above taking a loose cat to the pound if it’s a recurring problem on MY property.

Spaying/neutering and releasing is not an option anywhere. They still kill thousands of birds, snakes, rabbits, etc. I once chased a cat away from a full grown wood duck it was carrying to certain doom.

Our neighborhood is on the verge of being over run by ferals. My daughter left our place a couple weeks ago and said a block away two small kittens were trying to get out of the road but couldn't climb the snowbanks. These ferals breed year around and must abandon their litters early on to fend for themselves. I've had two litters dropped underneath our three season house in the last year. Even as kittens they are aggressive the adults are down right mean if trapped or cornered.

We have no animal control or shelter in our community. The closest is 40 miles away and they are accepting no strays or ferals now or in the future. They are invasive without a doubt as gearhounds points out.

We have at least seven adults in the neighborhood as I see them cross the road and follow the creek bank where the snow is not quite as deep into the woods. It's a unfortunate problem with few solutions. They are not vaccinated against carrying any disease or taken care of in any way. I have three young grandkids who spend a good deal of time on our property and I can't risk one of them somehow getting tangled up with a feral they think is just a kitty.

quote:

Originally posted by selogic:
Daisy Red Ryder ..

Always a good idea to read Para's posts in a thread before posting...

If you can catch kittens around 4 weeks old, they can eat solid food and are pretty easy to socialize and then local shelters will take them. I've done this 3 times and as they are very motivated by food, and w/ a regular handling they are socialized in less than a week, ready for adoption in less than 2 weeks.
We have a local "C-Snip" that will neuter a litter fairly cheap.
I caught one of the litters w/ their mother and she now sleeps next to me. She fed and cleaned the kittens for me. She doesn't want to be released other than when it's nice out on the deck.

I have several visiting outdoor feral cats that I feed. All of my 7 (now down to 4) indoor cats were born feral in or near my back yard. Two of the feral mothers continued to come to my yard, one for 13 years before she ded. The regulars to my yard get names, but I don't consider them pets. The 2 major momma cats did eventually get neutered.

flashguy

^^^^^
Our 85lb furball effectively keeps are backyard free of the neighbors' cats and he mostly lounges around inside.

^^^
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQ5vkOFyajQ

Once again thanks everyone.
I think I might try the motion activated sprinkler first.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
These animals are among us because we put them here, and in this forum, any advice about shooting or otherwise harming stray animals will not be well-received.

If you want to shoot an animal for having the audacity to be on your back porch, keep it to yourself. For as long as I run this forum, the day will not come when such things will be acceptable here.

As I said I haven't harmed any of them. I just think it's rude to let your pets roam the neighborhood.
Had a cat have a litter of kittens under my deck 15 years ago , I didn't harm them either.

A) Feral cats are one of the worst things which can happen to an ecosystem/bird population.

B) Free feeding outside causes massive increases in the rodent population.

We're not talking about pets here. We're talking about feral cats.

Given that they're invasive and damaging to he environment, what should be done about them.

quote:

Originally posted by Schmelby:

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
These animals are among us because we put them here, and in this forum, any advice about shooting or otherwise harming stray animals will not be well-received.

If you want to shoot an animal for having the audacity to be on your back porch, keep it to yourself. For as long as I run this forum, the day will not come when such things will be acceptable here.

As I said I haven't harmed any of them. I just think it's rude to let your pets roam the neighborhood.
Had a cat have a litter of kittens under my deck 15 years ago , I didn't harm them either.

quote:

Originally posted by BBMW:
We're not talking about pets here. We're talking about feral cats.

Given that they're invasive and damaging to he environment, what should be done about them.

quote:

Originally posted by Schmelby:

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
These animals are among us because we put them here, and in this forum, any advice about shooting or otherwise harming stray animals will not be well-received.

If you want to shoot an animal for having the audacity to be on your back porch, keep it to yourself. For as long as I run this forum, the day will not come when such things will be acceptable here.

As I said I haven't harmed any of them. I just think it's rude to let your pets roam the neighborhood.
Had a cat have a litter of kittens under my deck 15 years ago , I didn't harm them either.

I don't think they are feral cats. They look healthy and well fed. Just a neighbour that lets them out to roam the neighborhood.