Need trapping help

For a couple of years I have watched a gray male cat stroll the block. He is a tough guy, making out with all of the ladies and intimidating the guys. I've tried to make friends with him, but he's not interested.

I'd like to get him neutered. I've tried trapping, but he's too smart. I've used all kinds of delicious bait-tuna, mackerel, sardines, canned cat food of various types. If it's in a cage, he walks right on by. I even tried a dog trap, thinking he wouldn't figure it out.

He was camping under a neighbor's utility trailer for a while. So the neighbor agreed to let me put the trap nearby. The cat hasn't been in his yard since, as far as I know. Of course this neighbor still puts dry food out for the other cats! Big help, he is.

Does anyone have a trick or two I can try?

:) Sounds like a very smart kitty.. I would say you will have to camo the cage.. Meaning wrap the cage in some dule looking material or hunting camo material.. So the cat wont see the metal bars.. Then you might try canned salmon.. It is strong smelling & a diff smell the cat has not had yet.. Good Luck & let us know ok..

Sounds like you might benefit from a drop trap. I borrowed one to trap a trap-savvy cat. You can prop the trap up and feed them underneath.

There's an attached rope to pull that brings the trap down. I tried it on my patio. I stayed inside the house with the sliding door cracked, holding the rope.

When the cat went underneath to eat, I pulled the rope and down came the trap. Then, I used a transfer trap that opened to a door on the drop trap. The cat ran inside (thinking she was escaping) and then was trapped in the transfer trap. Off to the clinic she went. No more kittens.:)

The Alley Cat Allies has detailed instructions and video here:

http://www.alleycat.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=633

Perhaps you can borrow one from a local feral cat group.

You can also check out the files and links at the Yahoo feral cat group: feral_cats.

Good luck to you! Thank you for taking care of the kitties!

Cover it and also spray it with catnip spray. :D

I've been afraid to cover it because he's so smart, but I'll try it . And didn't think of the catnip. Good idea.

I thought of the drop trap, but I don't know where I could borrow one. The rescue I work with doesn't have one. Maybe I can check with a couple of vet. They might know someone who has one. If I can get one, I'll need a 30 foot rope. That's about how close I can get.

I can't see the instructions on the Alley Cat site, but the trap itself looks pretty simple to make myself. I'll see if I can do that this week end.

Thanks for the help. If you have any more ideas, I'll be glad to try them.

I had no luck in getting Pouncer Karina to go into a cage at all , I ended up catching just about every other Stray and Roaming House Cat.
I finally lured her up to the porch , threw a towel over her and closed the door.:eek:
Good luck with that Gray Stray but if hes had bad experiences with people, this is going to be tough!!!:(

If you can get some cat urine and some sardines, the male cat will smell the food and the urine and will want to mark his territory. Not sure how to get the cat urine unless you get the crystals from your vet that will allow the urine to strain through. Good luck. :)

Over here, we trap cats exactly the way AbbyMom describes, and I'm afraid I can't think of a better way, other than getting some fresh cod or yummy shrimps... oh, or raw liver!! Of course, it doesn't help if your neighbor keeps feeding. To get a smart kitty inside a trap, he needs to be hungry!

Medusa's idea sounds worth a try!

Good luck! :)

Wrap a large beach towel or some such around the trap. This helps capture the smell of the "bait" making it a stronger scent inside there.

Cover the floor of the trap with newspaper, so his paws are not feeling the wires. Put slight bits along the path he enters, like a "Hansel and Gretel" trail, with the bowl full of bait at the back. Do not put any bits where his front paws may trigger the trap but he is still halfway out the back end. (Yeah, I've done that! :rolleyes:)

Use salmon as someone mentioned. Or tuna in OIL, NOT in water. The oil helps with the aroma.

Good luck!

Do it yourself drop trap:

http://www.droptrapdesign.blogspot.com/

Please be careful--a too-heavy trap can injure a cat or worse for kittens. The above link tells you what you need to know.

However, you do need the transfer trap to mate to the opening in the drop trap. There's a picture of this on the above web site.

BTW, the people in the feral cat groups swear that Kentucky Fried Chicken, deboned, is the very best cat bait if you want to try that in your trap.

Good luck!

It just takes patience and trial and error , but we are praying that you can ctach that Gray Cta , and stop more unwanted Kittens.:love:

My rescue friends have all used the drop trap successfully when easier methods have failed, although they've had to sit for many, many hours waiting for the right moment. Some of them put bait in the trap for a day or two to lull the cat into a false sense of some security. They also rave about Kentucky Fried Chicken. How about cheese?

You are all so great! I copied the directions for making a drop trap and will put them to use this week end. I'll also get some KFC (such a sacrifice!:rolleyes:) to share.

I hope my neighbor doesn't mind if I leave the trap in his yard for a few days. This cat doesn't come around at the same time or even on set days. I usually see him at 6:30 AM.:eek:

I've been doing the 'baiting' routine with the old trap. It worked on most of the others in past years. The floor of the trap has it's own carpet, cut out to accomodate the catches. I have found that a lot of ferals are afraid to enter a completely covered area, so I haven't been covering the trap.

My week end starts tomorrow, so I have 4 days to work on him. I'll let you know how I do.

Thanks a bunch.

I'm not going to add to the "catching" advise, because it seems it's all been said, but I will wish you good luck with the Alpha Male Tomcat. I've been through neutering one of them (a long time ago, my CK, a big solid white Alpha Tom stray), and it can be an experience! Keep us posted!:)