Trapping and Care Procedures

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TRAPPING

Donations are not required, but are welcomed and are tax deductible.

• If a trap is needed, call the volunteer’s name you were given to obtain a trap. You must have an appointment date before you call to reserve a trap. Traps are usually available for pick up 3-5 days before the appointment.
• When picking up the trap, a liability form must be signed with the following information:
  • dates person will have the trap, how many, and numbers on the traps
  • person’s responsibility to return trap within 48 hours of agreed upon date on form
  • process will be explained before taking possession of the trap.

• If you have never held or picked up the cat you plan to catch – USE A TRAP! Do not try to put the cat in a carrier. You risk injury to yourself and if you are bitten or scratched, the cat will have to be quarantined for ten days.
• Put newspaper in the bottom!!! (Newspaper is required by OCAS in all traps.)

If you are bringing in more than 1 cat/kitten in a single trap, it IS NECESSARY to bring empty carriers for each additional cat/kitten. Cats/kittens are placed back in the trap or carrier after surgery for recovery. This makes it easier for clinic staff to monitor the animals following surgery and to avoid problems caused with half awake animals moving onto another that is still under and suffocating it.

• Cover the trap immediately after trapping the cat.
• Do not try to remove the food used to trap the cat.
• Do not trap more than 2 nights before your SCHEDULED appointment.
• If by NOON (12pm) the day before your appointment, you have been unable to trap the cat(s), please call the CARE line, 407-522-2617, and leave a message in the appointment mail box so your appointment(s) can go to someone else. You must reschedule your appointment(s).

PRE-SURGERY PROTOCOL

• Adults (4 Pounds and UP): No food or water after 11:00 PM the night before the appointment.

AFTER CARE

• All cats are given shots to wake them up from anesthesia. Males usually recover more quickly than females.
• IMPORTANT: If you notice extreme lethargy, minor bleeding or other problems, bring the cat to Animal Services the next morning at 8:30. If the cat appears in serious trouble or critical condition following surgery, take them to the nearest Veterinary Emergency Clinic. CARE does not cover the cost.

RELEASE

• Do not hold feral cats for an extended period of time, which will increase their stress and impede their recovery.
• Females should remain in the trap or confined at least overnight. If they were pregnant at the time of surgery, keep them in at least 2 nights, if they will tolerate it.
• All cats, male and female, should be alert, able to stand and move about normally and eating before they are released.
• After 8:00 pm day of surgery, do not feed more than a tablespoon of food at a time. Instead of water, give them an ice cube in a dish or bowl, allowing it to melt, which will give them small amounts of water at a time. This will help them avoid being sick.

See also Surgery Recovery Instructions from Alley Cat Allies

WE RECOMMEND ALL friendly cats and young kittens be placed in good homes and NOT returned to the streets. Friendly cats, who were abandoned by their previous owners, have the most difficult time surviving on the streets. They are not accustomed to searching for their food. They trust people, even those people they shouldn’t. There are some people who truly hate cats and will harm them. These are the cats that desperately need to be placed in a new home.

Feral kittens under 16 weeks can be socialized and tamed. Alley Cat Allies website has information on taming feral kittens. The younger they are, the easier and quicker it is to turn them into loving, purring balls of fur.

IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT YOU CONTINUE TO FEED THE CATS YOU RELEASE and MONITOR THEIR HEALTH. TAKE THEM TO YOUR VETERINARIAN AT ANY SIGN OF INJURY OR ILLNESS.