Feral Cat With Huge Mats

[adriennes]

So, a bit of background.... When we moved into our house, there was a pregnant feral cat on the property. She had her kittens, and the family started hanging around our place. Then the mom (Aggie) got pregnant again. I contacted a local shelter, and they suggested that the cats enter the TNR program. The cats were all successfully trapped and spayed/neutered, with the exception of Aggie, who I agreed to foster until the kittens were born. She had to remain caged, because she was terrified and very aggressive. Once night, she somehow squeezed through the bars of the cage and escaped into the basement. This put her into premature labour, and none of the kittens survived. I can't even describe how devastated I was for her, and the guilt I felt! Afterwards, she was also spayed, and returned outside, but she harbours a very deep resentment towards me. (Understandably).

Fast forward one year. The four cats (Aggie, Frankie, Rusty, and Ghost) stay around our property for the most part. I feed them, de-worm them, have built shelters for them, and spend as much time with them as they'll let me. We've progressed to the point that I can pat Ghost and Frankie while they're eating. (Otherwise they keep their distance). I love these cats like I love my four indoor cats, and do as best I can to keep them safe, warm, and well-fed.

Aggie is apparently part Maine Coon, according to the vet. She has incredibly thick and long fur. I noticed the other day that she's losing her winter fur, which has allowed me to see what lies underneath. And it's heartbreaking. All along her back, her sides, around her ears.... it's all huge mats. Some of it is actually hanging there in chunks. I was able to touch her the other day (although I got hissed at and slapped), and it's just lumps EVERYWHERE. The discomfort has got to be incredible. As much as I wanted to avoid the stress of trapping her and putting her through all that again - and risking destroying the tentative bond we're developing - I tried. And she's not having any of it. There's no WAY she'll go near any sort of trap, no matter how well disguised it is, and how tempting the treats are. (Which our trapper from the shelter warned me about - he said it would be near impossible to make her fall for that again). So I'm stuck. How do I help a cat that refuses to fall for a trap, and who won't really let me touch her? Those mats look so painful. Any suggestions?

 

[red top rescue]

This may be a question for the Feral Forum as well. Obviously she needs to be clipped at the vet, but you have to catch her first.. There are "drop traps" that one manually drops the door to, and perhaps there are other methods. If they are always in your neighborhood and never wander, you could tranquilize her with a safe tranquilizer like Ativan that is tasteless, odorless, and easy to get them to eat. For my feral Gray Boy it worked very well wrapped in a piece of turkey bacon. Then he went to sleep in his usual laundry basket and I was able to put another laundry basket on top of that one and zip tie it in several places and transport him to the vet that way, but he was injured at the time so I had to come up with something. 1/2 mg. of Ativan worked for him, and he was about a 10 lb. cat. We did this every 5 days until he was healed, but I did keep him in the house. He lived in my laundry room for weeks. He was scared and would hiss but never really lashed out. He is tamer now several years later but still will not let me touch him, although he will take treats out of my hand.

 

[Rachel Warner]

This may be a question for the Feral Forum as well. Obviously she needs to be clipped at the vet, but you have to catch her first.. There are "drop traps" that one manually drops the door to, and perhaps there are other methods. If they are always in your neighborhood and never wander, you could tranquilize her with a safe tranquilizer like Ativan that is tasteless, odorless, and easy to get them to eat. For my feral Gray Boy it worked very well wrapped in a piece of turkey bacon. Then he went to sleep in his usual laundry basket and I was able to put another laundry basket on top of that one and zip tie it in several places and transport him to the vet that way, but he was injured at the time so I had to come up with something. 1/2 mg. of Ativan worked for him, and he was about a 10 lb. cat. We did this every 5 days until he was healed, but I did keep him in the house. He lived in my laundry room for weeks. He was scared and would hiss but never really lashed out. He is tamer now several years later but still will not let me touch him, although he will take treats out of my hand.

I agree this is really the only other way to get them to the vet to get clipped ... Or you can do as above but have a groomer come to your house for a quick result.. good luck

 

[red top rescue]

PS - The tranquilizer was not enough to make him docile enough to be worked on. It just made it possible to get him to the vet. The vet then cut the zip ties, and a tech would scruff the cat and the vet would give him a quick shot of something and then close the basket again. Within a few minutes the cat was asleep and they could take him, treat his wounds, rebandage him, and bring him back to his laundry basket. I would again zip tie it (even though he was still out cold, just in case he woke up on the way home, which he never did) and then bring the laundry basket in and put it in its usual place. When he woke up, he was home in familiar surroundings. If yur cat has a place she usually sleeps, this might work.

 

[Primula]

As posted above, definitely try to find a groomer to come out to your place. There are mobile groomers everywhere, but I don't know if they do this kind of thing. We have one of our outdoor cats shaved every summer & perhaps a groomer could do this.

 

[lavishsqualor]

I sure hope you're able to help this poor cat. Mats can be super painful.

 

[adriennes]

This may be a question for the Feral Forum as well. Obviously she needs to be clipped at the vet, but you have to catch her first.. There are "drop traps" that one manually drops the door to, and perhaps there are other methods. If they are always in your neighborhood and never wander, you could tranquilize her with a safe tranquilizer like Ativan that is tasteless, odorless, and easy to get them to eat. For my feral Gray Boy it worked very well wrapped in a piece of turkey bacon. Then he went to sleep in his usual laundry basket and I was able to put another laundry basket on top of that one and zip tie it in several places and transport him to the vet that way, but he was injured at the time so I had to come up with something. 1/2 mg. of Ativan worked for him, and he was about a 10 lb. cat. We did this every 5 days until he was healed, but I did keep him in the house. He lived in my laundry room for weeks. He was scared and would hiss but never really lashed out. He is tamer now several years later but still will not let me touch him, although he will take treats out of my hand.

I never thought of Ativan.... that's a great idea! The drop trap was how we initially caught her after many months for the TNR program, and she won't go near one again.....

 

[adriennes]

I agree this is really the only other way to get them to the vet to get clipped ... Or you can do as above but have a groomer come to your house for a quick result.. good luck

As posted above, definitely try to find a groomer to come out to your place. There are mobile groomers everywhere, but I don't know if they do this kind of thing. We have one of our outdoor cats shaved every summer & perhaps a groomer could do this.

Maybe once I get her sedated, that would be a good option.... thanks!

 

[adriennes]

I sure hope you're able to help this poor cat. Mats can be super painful.

I can see she's in obvious discomfort and it's killing me. I'm going to try a sedative and see if that'll be enough to get her to a vet.