beatcomber
AK Member
Cat fight!
Any cat lovers here?
- Thread starter tnsilver
- Start date
vinylGirlFl
Super Member
Chopper-Cat
chicks
Lunatic Member
Very cool. I may have to hit the GW for old coolers, and Harbor Freight for a hole cutter...
nedseg
Well-Known Member
The cooler re-purpose thing works great - a friend has one, and almost always gets feral visitors in winter.
I usually set up a heated shelter when it gets zero-ish out - so far have captured three ferals, one adopted me, one found a new home, and one went to the HS, but didn't make it (too sick from infected battle scars).
I use a Wyze cam to track who's visiting - recently it's only been a few new single appearances (plus next door neighbors cat)
From observation and the captures, about 2/3rds seem to have been abandoned, or had some human adaptations, and about 1/3 true ferals.
I set the carrier out to take the fluffy one (Rio) in, and a few minutes later found the ex-feral (Little Boy) had moved in!
Very surprising, since his initial vet visit after capture seemed to have totally terrified him, and after his de-worming, de-licing, broken tooth removal, shattered toe removal, and facial scar infection repairs, spaying, etc etc, I overheard one of the vet techs saying that she didn't think he'd ever work out as a home cat, and had been a bad idea for me to capture him.
He was there nearly 4 weeks, and every time I visited him, he was cowering in the farthest back corner of the cage, shivering in fear!
But, within just a few days of bringing him home, he was purring and crawling all over me, and since then my absolute Best Bud!
Boy, was that vet tech wrong!!
Go figure why he likes cat carriers...
I usually set up a heated shelter when it gets zero-ish out - so far have captured three ferals, one adopted me, one found a new home, and one went to the HS, but didn't make it (too sick from infected battle scars).
I use a Wyze cam to track who's visiting - recently it's only been a few new single appearances (plus next door neighbors cat)
From observation and the captures, about 2/3rds seem to have been abandoned, or had some human adaptations, and about 1/3 true ferals.
I set the carrier out to take the fluffy one (Rio) in, and a few minutes later found the ex-feral (Little Boy) had moved in!
Very surprising, since his initial vet visit after capture seemed to have totally terrified him, and after his de-worming, de-licing, broken tooth removal, shattered toe removal, and facial scar infection repairs, spaying, etc etc, I overheard one of the vet techs saying that she didn't think he'd ever work out as a home cat, and had been a bad idea for me to capture him.
He was there nearly 4 weeks, and every time I visited him, he was cowering in the farthest back corner of the cage, shivering in fear!
But, within just a few days of bringing him home, he was purring and crawling all over me, and since then my absolute Best Bud!
Boy, was that vet tech wrong!!
Go figure why he likes cat carriers...
vinylGirlFl
Super Member
Lazarus Long
Super Member
Not sorry, SuperjazzyJa!
nedseg
Well-Known Member
I'm always a bit shocked at the responses that cat posts get (pretty much anywhere), not surprised they are all over YT (only wish I could capture half the things these guys get up to, esp the 'boy racer' stuff).
So, my community uses NextDoor for neighborhood forums, and it actually works quite well, and so far doesn't seem to have been penetrated by spoofers and ne'er do wells.
The entire 'Saga Of Little Boy' was documented there, and became a key part of his rescue:
This little cat/kitten showed up about 2-3 years prior, but was so scared I could not come close to capturing him, and simply accepted that his life would likely be short and terrified, as he was pretty small, and he seemed to have underdeveloped rear leg strength (he ran with his belly flat to the ground and hind legs stuck way up in the air..perhaps to keep a low profile).
But he just amazed me by continuing to show up fairly regularly (I have a south facing upper deck that cats seem to adore), and then even more so after surviving that first -20F winter, which is when I started putting out a heated shelter for him. (But he rarely used, and then only for a few hours each night).
Our neighborhood is full of dogs (mostly penned), but also has coyotes (I've seen them loping down the street!), foxes and even some eagles nests, so I really didn't expect him to make it.
Then the second summer (he showed up to sun-bathe and relax on my deck on sunny days!) and, another -20deg winter!!
This time he made more use of the warming hut, but still had to watch out for racoons and possums (who would also sometimes 'rent' the shelter).
So by the time the third winter rolled around, I decided it was time to get serious about helping him, and started posting pics of him and NextDoor.
And voila', about 6 people popped up, saying they had been feeding him too, and were also very concerned about his survival!!
So after introductions and 'your not a creep' evals, I started an email chain with 4-6 of them, and started a 'spotter alert' network.
One of the others actually was a volunteer with a local cat rescue organization, so pretty much knew what to do.
Gradually we mapped his travel pathways (literally) and found that he typically traveled about a mile each day (each way!) to cover all his 'supporters' feeding stations - and remember, he's making that 'run' flat to the ground, almost snake like.
(I once caught him climbing my backyard neighbors new cyclone fence (he put three large dogs in there!) in the snow, and saw that rather than jumping it, he grabbed it with his front claws and pulled himself up it!!)
That last winter (2 yrs ago, coming up) though, he showed up with some pretty serious battle scars - I think either with a racoon or more likely another big male feral that had showed up that fall.
The Little Boy Watchers Society started timing his travels and noting how much food he ate, etc...and determined pretty quickly that he must have been traveling over the lake ice (adjacent to our neighborhoods) for shorter travel paths, though we could never prove that.
But we do know that coyotes are frequently spotted out there.
Then I announced my intent to capture and rehome him if possible (following one abortive attempt, in -20 weather, to lure him inside my house (he ran around all the wall/floor edges like crazy, couldn't figure anything out, and ran straight into the glass walls...so I let him out again...but at least he visited!).
The experienced person then set up a capture cage, and we watched, and waited - emailing and calling amongst us as we spotted (or worse yet, didn't) him on the move...but his scars (facial and paw) seemed to be getting worse, and it seemed like he was taking the 'over ice' path more often.
This was in late January, when the temps were again plummeting to near -20deg!!
Finally, I got THE CALL, that the capture cage had worked and he was finally 'safe'. (Capture cages are tricky to set up for ferals in winter , as you need to be able so watch them very unobtrusively, yet also be able to pull the door trap cord).
He brought him (still caged) over to my house, where I observed him for a few days (in his own 'room'), still in the cage. He was scared witless, but did use the litter box and loved 'feeding' times..and by the second day had even started to purr a little!!
By then I'd made arrangements with a local vet to treat him, but that morning when I opened the cage door to feed him, he tried to make a break for it, and b'c I'd left the door to the room open, I had to slam him into the door to prevent him getting out into the house where the other cats were.....so he bit me!
THAT - as soon as the vet was told about it - caused the whole public heath rabies thing to kick in!!
But, the vet did 'the usual' feral treatments - neutering, treating his facial wound (badly infected), pulling the remnants of a broken fang, cleanly amputating one half torn off toe, and all the rest of it (he was covered in fleas).
Then they caged him for the mandatory two week rabies observation quarantine, while I got checked and monitored by my medicos.
All of this was adding up to horrendous vet bill (over $1k!), which I didn't know how I'd pay....and then one of the 'society' members posted about the rescue cost on NextDoor, setting up a way for folks to donate anonymously to the vet directly. I was a little embarrassed, but figured any little donations would sure be welcome (very very tight budget in retirement!).
Well, I was poleaxed when, during my next visit to see him at the vet, they told me that donations had already paid for more than half his bill!!!
After a about a month of him cowering in the vets cage, I brought him home!! I still had no idea if he would adapt, or just be a royal stupid PITA and still need HS intervention!
But I built a temporary closeable door with lower screen to 'his' room (so he could see and interact safely with my cats), and spent the first few nights in there with him (still in cage) reading, etc. After about a week, he started to settle down, get curious, and even purred a lot and started 'talking' to me, so I let him out of the cage with full room access, and ability to chat and see with the other cats.
I continued spending evenings in there with him, and after just a few days, he'd crawled up on the bed and had curled up right next to me, purring like crazy!!!
The 'getting to know you' phase in the room of his own:
(The 'group' had speculated that he might have survived winters by sharing dens with possums (including one den right below my deck), or perhaps in storm drains.)
Since then, he has stopped 'crawl running' and walks fully upright, and now jumps pretty much like a normal cat, though he's kind of built like the tazmanian devil with hugely muscled front legs and neck muscles and chest! But, if anyone tries to pet him from above, he will instantly flatten to the floor and walk/crawl away..tough survival lessons he learned out there.
I could go on and on about his 'homed' adventures and behaviors (many learned from the other cats!) since them, but suffice to say he is easily The Happiest Cat I've ever met! Every morning he greets me by reaching up to paw my face and chin rubs...sort of catly fist bumps, I think.
He also loves to cuddle/spoon very tightly with the other cats - which drives them batty, as they don't know what to make of it!
(And further makes me wonder if he cuddled with possums!)
Yes, there are daily 'fights' with Rio, which are pretty hilarious - Rio goes bat **** crazy on him, screaming and yelling, while LB pretty much just looks at him calmly as if to say, 'Yah, bring it on you silly thing, I've fought far worse, and REAL monsters!!"
And, he just got his first annual checkup and pronounced perfectly healthy - he hasn't even gained any weight to speak of - I was concerned he'd 'fatten out' and get lazy, but nope, he's still in trim fightin' shape, and, still walks like a feral (just like the lions you see in the wild on nature shows, almost a kind of swagger!).
SO - yah, it was a LOT of work, and could very easily have gone BAD, and would never have happened without the generosity and help from neighbors who I'd never had met otherwise (not to mention the vet techs, some of whom tried very hard to lesson his fear state.)
In fact - moral to the story? - the big tom feral, who was the one who gave him those wounds - hung around the next year, and seemed pretty friendly, showed up badly wounded himself the following January (this year), and I managed to capture him. But he went **** storm crazy in the cage (even though I'd lined it with thick cardboard to prevent him injuring himself) all the way to the humane society, where they tried to treat his festering wounds, but he was so difficult to treat, and his wounds were so severe, that they eventually had to put him down. I guess I justify that by telling myself that at least his last weeks were in warmth, comfort, well fed, and doped up pretty good.
Thanks for 'listening' - and try to take care of those that can be helped, but Be Careful!!!
LBs (Albie, get it?) first 'hide'!!
On the inside, looking out at his old world and feral feeding station!
He's just got this 'look' in his eyes! Tasmanian Devil?
New cuddle buds:
So, my community uses NextDoor for neighborhood forums, and it actually works quite well, and so far doesn't seem to have been penetrated by spoofers and ne'er do wells.
The entire 'Saga Of Little Boy' was documented there, and became a key part of his rescue:
This little cat/kitten showed up about 2-3 years prior, but was so scared I could not come close to capturing him, and simply accepted that his life would likely be short and terrified, as he was pretty small, and he seemed to have underdeveloped rear leg strength (he ran with his belly flat to the ground and hind legs stuck way up in the air..perhaps to keep a low profile).
But he just amazed me by continuing to show up fairly regularly (I have a south facing upper deck that cats seem to adore), and then even more so after surviving that first -20F winter, which is when I started putting out a heated shelter for him. (But he rarely used, and then only for a few hours each night).
Our neighborhood is full of dogs (mostly penned), but also has coyotes (I've seen them loping down the street!), foxes and even some eagles nests, so I really didn't expect him to make it.
Then the second summer (he showed up to sun-bathe and relax on my deck on sunny days!) and, another -20deg winter!!
This time he made more use of the warming hut, but still had to watch out for racoons and possums (who would also sometimes 'rent' the shelter).
So by the time the third winter rolled around, I decided it was time to get serious about helping him, and started posting pics of him and NextDoor.
And voila', about 6 people popped up, saying they had been feeding him too, and were also very concerned about his survival!!
So after introductions and 'your not a creep' evals, I started an email chain with 4-6 of them, and started a 'spotter alert' network.
One of the others actually was a volunteer with a local cat rescue organization, so pretty much knew what to do.
Gradually we mapped his travel pathways (literally) and found that he typically traveled about a mile each day (each way!) to cover all his 'supporters' feeding stations - and remember, he's making that 'run' flat to the ground, almost snake like.
(I once caught him climbing my backyard neighbors new cyclone fence (he put three large dogs in there!) in the snow, and saw that rather than jumping it, he grabbed it with his front claws and pulled himself up it!!)
That last winter (2 yrs ago, coming up) though, he showed up with some pretty serious battle scars - I think either with a racoon or more likely another big male feral that had showed up that fall.
The Little Boy Watchers Society started timing his travels and noting how much food he ate, etc...and determined pretty quickly that he must have been traveling over the lake ice (adjacent to our neighborhoods) for shorter travel paths, though we could never prove that.
But we do know that coyotes are frequently spotted out there.
Then I announced my intent to capture and rehome him if possible (following one abortive attempt, in -20 weather, to lure him inside my house (he ran around all the wall/floor edges like crazy, couldn't figure anything out, and ran straight into the glass walls...so I let him out again...but at least he visited!).
The experienced person then set up a capture cage, and we watched, and waited - emailing and calling amongst us as we spotted (or worse yet, didn't) him on the move...but his scars (facial and paw) seemed to be getting worse, and it seemed like he was taking the 'over ice' path more often.
This was in late January, when the temps were again plummeting to near -20deg!!
Finally, I got THE CALL, that the capture cage had worked and he was finally 'safe'. (Capture cages are tricky to set up for ferals in winter , as you need to be able so watch them very unobtrusively, yet also be able to pull the door trap cord).
He brought him (still caged) over to my house, where I observed him for a few days (in his own 'room'), still in the cage. He was scared witless, but did use the litter box and loved 'feeding' times..and by the second day had even started to purr a little!!
By then I'd made arrangements with a local vet to treat him, but that morning when I opened the cage door to feed him, he tried to make a break for it, and b'c I'd left the door to the room open, I had to slam him into the door to prevent him getting out into the house where the other cats were.....so he bit me!
THAT - as soon as the vet was told about it - caused the whole public heath rabies thing to kick in!!
But, the vet did 'the usual' feral treatments - neutering, treating his facial wound (badly infected), pulling the remnants of a broken fang, cleanly amputating one half torn off toe, and all the rest of it (he was covered in fleas).
Then they caged him for the mandatory two week rabies observation quarantine, while I got checked and monitored by my medicos.
All of this was adding up to horrendous vet bill (over $1k!), which I didn't know how I'd pay....and then one of the 'society' members posted about the rescue cost on NextDoor, setting up a way for folks to donate anonymously to the vet directly. I was a little embarrassed, but figured any little donations would sure be welcome (very very tight budget in retirement!).
Well, I was poleaxed when, during my next visit to see him at the vet, they told me that donations had already paid for more than half his bill!!!
After a about a month of him cowering in the vets cage, I brought him home!! I still had no idea if he would adapt, or just be a royal stupid PITA and still need HS intervention!
But I built a temporary closeable door with lower screen to 'his' room (so he could see and interact safely with my cats), and spent the first few nights in there with him (still in cage) reading, etc. After about a week, he started to settle down, get curious, and even purred a lot and started 'talking' to me, so I let him out of the cage with full room access, and ability to chat and see with the other cats.
I continued spending evenings in there with him, and after just a few days, he'd crawled up on the bed and had curled up right next to me, purring like crazy!!!
The 'getting to know you' phase in the room of his own:
(The 'group' had speculated that he might have survived winters by sharing dens with possums (including one den right below my deck), or perhaps in storm drains.)
Since then, he has stopped 'crawl running' and walks fully upright, and now jumps pretty much like a normal cat, though he's kind of built like the tazmanian devil with hugely muscled front legs and neck muscles and chest! But, if anyone tries to pet him from above, he will instantly flatten to the floor and walk/crawl away..tough survival lessons he learned out there.
I could go on and on about his 'homed' adventures and behaviors (many learned from the other cats!) since them, but suffice to say he is easily The Happiest Cat I've ever met! Every morning he greets me by reaching up to paw my face and chin rubs...sort of catly fist bumps, I think.
He also loves to cuddle/spoon very tightly with the other cats - which drives them batty, as they don't know what to make of it!
(And further makes me wonder if he cuddled with possums!)
Yes, there are daily 'fights' with Rio, which are pretty hilarious - Rio goes bat **** crazy on him, screaming and yelling, while LB pretty much just looks at him calmly as if to say, 'Yah, bring it on you silly thing, I've fought far worse, and REAL monsters!!"
And, he just got his first annual checkup and pronounced perfectly healthy - he hasn't even gained any weight to speak of - I was concerned he'd 'fatten out' and get lazy, but nope, he's still in trim fightin' shape, and, still walks like a feral (just like the lions you see in the wild on nature shows, almost a kind of swagger!).
SO - yah, it was a LOT of work, and could very easily have gone BAD, and would never have happened without the generosity and help from neighbors who I'd never had met otherwise (not to mention the vet techs, some of whom tried very hard to lesson his fear state.)
In fact - moral to the story? - the big tom feral, who was the one who gave him those wounds - hung around the next year, and seemed pretty friendly, showed up badly wounded himself the following January (this year), and I managed to capture him. But he went **** storm crazy in the cage (even though I'd lined it with thick cardboard to prevent him injuring himself) all the way to the humane society, where they tried to treat his festering wounds, but he was so difficult to treat, and his wounds were so severe, that they eventually had to put him down. I guess I justify that by telling myself that at least his last weeks were in warmth, comfort, well fed, and doped up pretty good.
Thanks for 'listening' - and try to take care of those that can be helped, but Be Careful!!!
LBs (Albie, get it?) first 'hide'!!
On the inside, looking out at his old world and feral feeding station!
He's just got this 'look' in his eyes! Tasmanian Devil?
New cuddle buds:
Trekkie4
Retired Member
Truly a heart-warming story, thank you so much for sharing all the details & documenting with all the pictures! Considering the world that we live in, it makes me think there's still some hope for humanity left!
vinylGirlFl
Super Member
Good morning to all the fabulous cat lovers <3
these boys are Making it difficult
to get out the door =^..^=
=^..^=
these boys are Making it difficult
to get out the door =^..^= =^..^=
nedseg
Well-Known Member
Mornin! Lucky kitties getting breakfast in bed!!
For the first time in weeks I wasn't woken at 3am by Little Boy banging on the cellular blinds to 'See Out. Now.'
(I finally had to resort to installing a sheet of poly-carbonate over them!)
But it's a cute story that sez something about his intelligence (or not
.
A few weeks ago he 'got out' (actually was sitting at an open door just looking out when I (not knowing he was sitting there) popped open another door behind him. It frightened him, so he ran out, and when I realized he was out, and I went out calling for him, I saw that he had made to the corner of the house and was sitting there - on the other side of this same window - almost as if he was thinking about it!
But he got 'skeered' again, and raced around to the back of the house (on his belly again)...but from there I saw that he'd run up the stairs to 'his' old deck/feeding station. So I went inside and opened the deck door, and after a bit of sniffing around on the deck, he waltzed right back inside - almost as if to say "I had a choice, and I chose Inside - No Monsters!"
ANYWAY - after that, it was if he'd just discovered that 'new' window (it's at ground level, and he'd been in it before) actually had 'real stuff' on the other side (Not TV, Not Mirror, Not Window reflection...silly humans), AND mapped it in his geomapping head to the one indoors....and started banging on the shades any time of day he wanted to 'look out'!!
And this is a cat that simply Does Not Give Up, so teaching him Not To Band just work (and he was starting to tear open the expensive blind material)...
So...poly-carbonate and removable caulk - fixed. For winter, at least.
Here's a cute compilation I came across - the human - cat thing is sometimes pretty spooky - who is 'choosing' who?
For the first time in weeks I wasn't woken at 3am by Little Boy banging on the cellular blinds to 'See Out. Now.'
(I finally had to resort to installing a sheet of poly-carbonate over them!)
But it's a cute story that sez something about his intelligence (or not
. A few weeks ago he 'got out' (actually was sitting at an open door just looking out when I (not knowing he was sitting there) popped open another door behind him. It frightened him, so he ran out, and when I realized he was out, and I went out calling for him, I saw that he had made to the corner of the house and was sitting there - on the other side of this same window - almost as if he was thinking about it!
But he got 'skeered' again, and raced around to the back of the house (on his belly again)...but from there I saw that he'd run up the stairs to 'his' old deck/feeding station. So I went inside and opened the deck door, and after a bit of sniffing around on the deck, he waltzed right back inside - almost as if to say "I had a choice, and I chose Inside - No Monsters!"
ANYWAY - after that, it was if he'd just discovered that 'new' window (it's at ground level, and he'd been in it before) actually had 'real stuff' on the other side (Not TV, Not Mirror, Not Window reflection...silly humans), AND mapped it in his geomapping head to the one indoors....and started banging on the shades any time of day he wanted to 'look out'!!
And this is a cat that simply Does Not Give Up, so teaching him Not To Band just work (and he was starting to tear open the expensive blind material)...
So...poly-carbonate and removable caulk - fixed. For winter, at least.
Here's a cute compilation I came across - the human - cat thing is sometimes pretty spooky - who is 'choosing' who?
www.records
Quality over Quantity
Here are my 2 mutts. That's Sadie (momma kitty) on the left and Tom (her evil offspring) on the right. Tom is 19 months old and weighs 19 lbs.
the skipper
Professional Curmudgeon
I like dogs too, but I just can't eat a whole one anymore.
the skipper
Professional Curmudgeon
the skipper
Professional Curmudgeon
I'm sorry you find this offensive but I've owned and loved cats since 1971 and can still laugh at what obviously is a joke.
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