This really isn't recommended, but sometimes one has no other option.
Ideally, TNRM means that a feral cat should be kept with its own managed colony upon recovery, but that's not always possible. The situation I'm currently involved with deals with a feral female who was trapped in a neighborhood close to me that has seen several cats deliberately poisoned. It would not be safe to release her back to that neighborhood, so I'm hoping I can release her into my colony.
Since her original neighborhood is only a few blocks away, my group was concerned that she would try to make her way back to it; to prevent that we're trying a three-step process.
The first step was to house her indoors in a large dog crate--first to allow her to recover from her spay surgery and second to "scramble her GPS". She has been held indoors for about three weeks, largely because of the unpredictable weather at this time of year.
This week the weather is expected to improve--I'd like to move the recovery crate outside onto the back deck to let her get acclimatized for a few days. She would remain in the crate until being released.
The hope is that since the colony here is small and primarily female she should have little trouble fitting in. This is a cat-friendly neighborhood with plenty of food and shelter. My only real worry is that she might try to return to her old home after I release her....
Ideally, TNRM means that a feral cat should be kept with its own managed colony upon recovery, but that's not always possible. The situation I'm currently involved with deals with a feral female who was trapped in a neighborhood close to me that has seen several cats deliberately poisoned. It would not be safe to release her back to that neighborhood, so I'm hoping I can release her into my colony.
Since her original neighborhood is only a few blocks away, my group was concerned that she would try to make her way back to it; to prevent that we're trying a three-step process.
The first step was to house her indoors in a large dog crate--first to allow her to recover from her spay surgery and second to "scramble her GPS". She has been held indoors for about three weeks, largely because of the unpredictable weather at this time of year.
This week the weather is expected to improve--I'd like to move the recovery crate outside onto the back deck to let her get acclimatized for a few days. She would remain in the crate until being released.
The hope is that since the colony here is small and primarily female she should have little trouble fitting in. This is a cat-friendly neighborhood with plenty of food and shelter. My only real worry is that she might try to return to her old home after I release her....