I'm so glad to hear you rescued him a second time. Having lived in small towns and knowing how the majority of lost animals are rarely claimed, I think you're very fortunate to have him back. I worked many years with a large, well known rescue group and many of their rescued animals were taken from county pounds. During the time I worked for them I lost a lot of confidence in the county's ability to keep records after seeing many an animal put down due to poor record keeping. The cat you found could have easily been destroyed if found to be too wild for adoption or due to a mixup of records. The good thing from turning him in is it probably saved you money since he got a thorough checkup and was neutered. I believe it would have cost much more at the local vet! Unfortunately, in order to do the right thing, he had to go thru a very stressful period and now has to readjust to you and your home. Sorry to hear you had to start over with gaining his confidence......but now he's 'home'!

The fact that you say she died from rental failure at only 10 says to me you were not feeding her properly( its okay most people don't know about good pet foods in this day and age even many a vet is clueless), in human years that would make her about 50 or 60, (IMO the vets lifespans of max 16 to 18 years are off because most cats eat garbage diets that are built to help just life until middle age or so, not actually improve it.) if a person died that young in a domesticated setting its useally either diet or genetic related. what was it that you feed? Whole prey animals, for feeding snakes or large lizards are the best of all possible foods for cats, its not the feral diet that kills its the physical hazards of weather, disease and other animals, but this is sadly unrealistic for most cat owners because of $$. Innova EVO, is a good brand of reg cat food along with Orijen or Ziwi peak. Grains kill, but slowly, very slowly, however her past wild living lifestyle could have helped reduce the longevity but 10, I've heard of raw-fed cats living over 20! wet is so much better than dry for cat health so I'd give mostly canned or do raw if u want. www.Haretoday.com is a good place to look at. As for the one who mentioned De-clawing, its very good that you didn't didn't, even to a feral because ITS AWFUL! (your better off PTS the cat or possibly releasing it (neutered/spayed) back into nature in the case of a feral) its IMO more humane, its actually banned(declawing) in europe and other countries

Wouldn't it be nice if people just spoke the truth? Clearly someone who advocates the use of a 22 to solve a problem isn't worth engaging. IMO, it's best to just ignore that level of intelligence. I'm in awe of the work some of you are doing to help cats with TNR and fostering colonies and so forth. I'm very impressed, and feel that I've learned a lot from your detailed explanations. I intend to find a local chapter and get involved -- for no other reason than it would be a good thing to do. What a concept, huh? As for all of those who were mocked with sneers of "feeding the cute kitties," it is heartening to hear of people with kind hearts. Bless them for being that way. And the exaggerations about the killing of birds is amazing. I have 5 cats that all go outside. Between all of them, they maybe kill 4 birds a year. Granted, they are domestic and well cared for, but they still have instincts. I also had feral cats around my property. I didn't find "tons of feathers." I wonder... should we start killing all the hawks, crows, owls, and other predators of "songbirds"? This whole "songbird populations are being decimated" blah, blah, blah is just another BS soapbox that people who don't like cats like to jump on. And, of course, ALL of the "feral" cats are loaded with fleas. How is this known by those who profess it with such exuberance? Did it ever occur to any of you that there are rabbits, raccoons, mice, moles, voles, opossums, etc. etc. with fleas in your environment? It's never ceased to amaze me how people justify their thoughts that some animals/people are worthy of their care and concern, while others are not. The "outside" dog in the prison (aka kennel) vs. the "inside dog" by the fireplace. My cat vs. some other cat. "Songbirds" vs. grackles. Pet pigs or cows on "family farms" vs. the tortured animals (look up gestation crates) that we all have no problem eating. We're all God's creatures, aren't we? No one's telling you, original poster, that you HAVE to do anything. You whined. We answered. Try to find some compassion in your heart for those poor cats and your neighbors.

I know your intentions are good, but there is just nothing about this situation that sounds at all humane to me. The cats were taken out of the social structure of their established colony and territory and are now spending the next 30 days terrified, confined in large cages in unfamiliar territory with unfamiliar animals and people. After that, they will be turned loose into a territory which, according to your member page, is too dangerous for outdoor cats because of your coyote population. That just doesn't sound like a kindness for the cats. If they survive the stress of the next 30 days of their confinement without falling ill or injuring themselves in the attempt to escape, and if they remain within the relative safety of the confines of your farm buildings after being released, they may survive until and unless they become ill or injured and you can't catch them again to help them. That just isn't a scenario I'm willing to subject an animal to. I, too, live on a farm, and I have thirteen cats, more than half of whom were dumped or otherwise just showed up here. Of the eight "show-ups" (all adults), four were tame strays, two were semi-feral, and two were feral. All eight were brought (or trapped, as the case may be) inside and integrated into my family. One of the tame strays now prefers to spend all day every day outside, and some of the others go out less frequently and usually only briefly. The two ex-ferals and two semi-ferals spend all of their time indoors quite happily. The cats who choose to go outside during the day keep my barn's rodent population down to insignificant levels. Of course, the dogs also assist in that effort. All of my cats are safely inside at night. I just don't see the point of subjecting cats to an unnecessarily perilous and stressful lifestyle where they are too scared of humans to accept help if and when they need it. I also know that mine is not a common sentiment in a farming community where cats are frequently treated more as tools than as living beings. I just hate seeing ferals labeled as unredeemable and untamable, when my own experience has taught me quite the opposite. My ex-ferals are exceptionally loving boys, but that never would have happened if I'd left them outside to their own devices. But at least your new girls will receive regular meals (I assume) for as long as they survive, and that's certainly more than many cats manage to get out of human society. Laurie