Impossible Cat

[maggiedemi]

I'm so glad Drifter is okay. Demi tried to play with a raccoon under the garage door once. I nearly had a heart attack when I shined my flashlight and saw it was a raccoon. You would think he would know the danger, but he just wants to make friends with other animals. Maybe he thought it was a cat, they do have kind of a triangle shaped face...My cats won't sleep with me because I roll over on them in my sleep. Cats are actually quite clean once you de-flea and de-worm them, and if you use clumping litter.

 

[susieqz]

thanks tons, orange. i never think to check online for things like that.
i used to use peanut butter for mice,i have a separate jar for that,
do cats like peanut butter?
it's very important that i don't trap drifter. there may come a time
i need to trap her, if she's injured or something.
she is very smart n would never walk into a trap the second time.

i need a cat that's 30 pounds bigger.
i have no dog. my lorelei died after only 13 years n i haven't had the
heart to get another dog.

 

[maggiedemi]

I don't think cats are supposed to have peanut butter. I didn't trap my two ferals, I just tamed them outside like you are doing, and in the garage.

 

[orange&white]

I don't know if cats like peanut butter. My kitten likes potato chips. She was rather curious about my chips one day and I gave her a tiny piece of one, thinking she'd end up dropping it and not eating it. I was wrong. They don't always know what's healthy for them.

If you trap any animal, including Drifter by mistake, you'll need to check the trap frequently so that whatever animal is trapped isn't sitting in the trap for hours. They can really injure themselves trying to escape...or be attacked while in the trap.

I trapped Misfit to take her for TNR. Now I've twice put her in the same cat carrier that I used to pick her up from the shelter and set the carrier on the scale to get her weight. That was "practice" for going to the vet for immunization shots tomorrow. She disappeared for only 1/2 hour after the second time I put her in the carrier. I think if you trap Drifter by mistake, you'll be able to catch her again, but a cat carrier would be preferable to a trap.

i need a cat that's 30 pounds bigger.
i have no dog. my lorelei died after only 13 years n i haven't had the
heart to get another dog.

You need to tame a bobcat.

My little Cairn Terrier died of kidney failure in January. I so much want another Cairn. Talk about a good mouser! I don't have mice, but that little dog could catch a bird out of the air and she was good at catching squirrels. Sweet as could be with people. Not ready yet. And I have my Corgi. He misses his little friend too.

 

[maggiedemi]

Yeah, I just use a carrier too. My cats don't mind going in it at all.

 

[susieqz]

so, nobody knows if peanut butter might attract cats?
i'd like to use it but i can't if drifter might want it.
thinking that dogs don't listen better than cats is wrong. i teach the common commands: come sit, stay, down, go to heel, heel. the most important in the house is down stay.no matter what the dog is doing, she drops immediately, very nice if she comes in muddy, or is doing something i don't want her to do.
i doubt that i can teach a cat that.
meanwhile, the trap is set with an apple as bait. that hopefully will attract the interloper.
with luck, in the morn, i'll have the interloper caught.

by the by, drifter was chasing something n she went into my cooler cat house, then came back out.
so, she knows she can go into it without harm.
pity she won't stay in it.

 

[orange&white]

One of the coolest things on earth is that we expand our grasp of unconditional love by working with and training a dog and also by being worked and trained by a cat.

I bet Drifter will like that ice cooler when the weather's cooler.

 

[orange&white]

Cats shouldn't like peanut butter or potato chips (but don't tell them that).

 

[Willowy]

I like possums. It makes me sad that people are cruel to them and kill them. They eat ticks and grasshoppers and that's fine with me. My farm cats happily share the cat food with them too. I don't like to help people kill them so I won't make suggestions about what they like .

Cats CAN be trained to do most of the things dogs do. You cannot use force or violence at all, and you have to find their motivation, which isn't the same for all cats. Some will work for treats, some won't. . .the ones who like treats are the easiest .

 

[susieqz]

willow, i don't share your love of possums. they look like big rats. worse, they probably eat figs.
anyway, i won't have my drifter terrorized by it.
if i see proof that the possum doesn't bother my cat, i won't hunt it vigorously.
how do i learn how to train cats?
orange, good to know that one weird cat likes peanut butter. i won't use it.

 

[Willowy]

Well, yes, they do look like big rats, but they can't help how they look. . .plus I once had a pet rat so I'm not too opposed to their looks . But, nah, I never heard of a possum terrorizing a cat. They're fairly passive.

Cats respond well to clicker training. You don't have to buy a clicker---a Snapple cap (or other metal pop cap) or a retractable ballpoint pen will work, anything that makes a consistent, distinctive, and not-too-loud noise. Here's some info on the basics, I'm sure you can find more in-depth info if you look around: https://clickertraining.com/node/1776

 

[msaimee]

Was it still dark in the morning when you left the cat food out? If so, then the easiest solution is not to leave food out when it's dark outside. I can't think of an animal other than another cat who would eat cat food left out during daylight. Raccoons and opossum only venture out during the night, and groundhogs are herbivores. I don't see any reason to trap and kill an animal who eats cat food when it's left out when it's dark. Stick to leaving food out during daylight hours unless you're going to sit with her or invite her inside to eat.

Opossum are very gentle animals. The truth is that feral cats and opossum and groundhogs all learn to co-exist peacefully. I have seen this firsthand. My outdoor feral cat would sometimes sit beside an opossum on my porch and share his food bowl with her. Raccoons are a different story. Sometimes raccoons may become aggressive if they are hungry and want to eat the cat food, and that becomes a problem because they invite other raccoons, and you have a half dozen coming around. If you leave cat food out in the dark, no matter how many raccoons you trap, more will smell the food and come.

If you don't want Drifter on your bed, close your door and she will find some place else to sleep. Please don't crate her at night. All cats should be allowed to walk around, play, eat and relieve themselves during the night. You can't train a cat like you can a dog, but they are intelligent and perceptive animals and not hard to live with.

 

[maggiedemi]

It was probably a raccoon. The one time that we left food outside, a raccoon showed up, at midnight.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

Raccoons and opossum only venture out during the night, and groundhogs are herbivores.

Raccoons are not Nocturnal; that's simply a myth:

Top 10 Raccoon Myths

Opossums are primarily Nocturnal, but I see the raccoons on my property at all hours - often sprawled on one of the benches, belly-up, acting like a sunbathing kitty.

What does Drifter look like?

susieqz - I'm as curious as M maggiedemi - how about a description or even a photo of Drifter?
.

 

[msaimee]

I used to leave dry cat food out on my porch during daylight hours and the only one time I ever saw raccoons on my porch during the day was in the summer when a mother and her babies were eating. So I suppose a mama raccoon may occasionally venture out during the day with her babies if they are very hungry. At all other times, though, the raccoons in my area (Western PA) emerge at sunset and leave at sunrise.

 

[susieqz]

i saw droppings the only time i left food out overnight.
i won't do that again.
nothing bothered my trap.
either apples aren't good bait or the animal has moved on.
i hope it's moved on.
i find no joy in killing.
i do not kill for sport, but i kill to protect myself n my property.
it is a chore, like washing dishes.
i will find out if possums eat figs. if they don't., i'll leave them alone.
i'm pretty sure coons do, so i'll shoot on sight.
i will protect my crops.
i will not share my figs.
willow, thanks for the clicker info.
ms. a, under no circumstances will drifter be crated.
she may get tossed out for the night.
mind you, i doubt that drifter actually wants to be a house cat. she doesn't like me all
that much.
i'm preparing a place for her only for nasty weather.
she has shown no signs of being a normal kitty.
yeah, she cuddles once or twice/day, but in other respects, she remains feral.
i have more affection for her than she does for me.
guys, drifter is a normal sized black n white cat,lean n well muscled, the picture of health.
i have received the memory card,
ill attempt a pic. it may take some days to get her close n still.

but, guys, she looks exactly like a house cat, but she isn't.
she is a wild animal that happens to look like a kitty.
she is not near as tame as kit kit.
i do want to show her off.

 

[maggiedemi]

She sounds like she might be a tuxedo cat like Maggie. Maggie is black & white with long hair. And she's the same, a wild little devil who looks like an innocent little house cat.

 

[susieqz]

i don't exactly know what tuxedo cat means. drifter is short haired n her markings are symmetrical.
she is beautiful to me.

 

[Willowy]

Tuxedo means black and white with the white bib and feet. It looks like the cat is wearing a tuxedo with the white shirt and spats, etc.

 

[msaimee]

She's already captured your heart, and the fact that she cuddles with you means you've captured hers. Congratulations on taming a feral cat in such a short amount of time. I have a feeling you're going to be best of friends.