I've Been Caring For A Feral. Time To Return Him?

[Joanie3]

My neighbors found Mugsy about two weeks ago. I said I'd keep him in my spare room until the weather got a little better. The night my neighbors found him, it was 5°F.
Shortly after I got him situated in the spare room, I noticed he had a bad upper respiratory infection, an ear infection,fleas and some loose, smelly stool. Took him to the vet. He got antibiotics, ear meds, flea meds.
Found out he is about 8 yrs old, approx 8.5 lbs, he was neutered (tipped ear) and had most of his teeth surgically removed.
He is extremely unfriendly and scared and there has been no improvement in two weeks. He hisses and growls. It's quiet in my house. I have three other cats that haven't interacted with him at all.
Anyway, the past few nights he has been yowling up a storm. He has a full belly, fresh water and clean litter. Maybe now that he is feeling better, he is more vocal about being miserable? I feel bad returning him to where he was found but I don't think I'm going to convert the little, old kitty into a pet. My cats have enough issues concerning getting along. I'm not adding a cat with no social skills to the mix.

 

[LifeWithOliver]

Even an old feral cat can be turned into an indoor pet. He needs lots of patience and time. Maybe he feels lonely. Can you spend more time by sitting with him and speaking in a soft gentle voice?

 

[maggiedemi]

It takes a while, more than 2 weeks to tame a feral. Can you put up a gate so he can socialize with your cats? You can stack 2 baby gates. You could try petting him with something on a long handle.

 

[trudy1]

If you can’t keep him relinquish him to a no kill shelter. He’s old, has few teeth, and was sick before you took him to the vet. I would find it hard to believe the poor old fellows lot would improve if you turned him back out.
He deserves a better life, given his physical state.

Thanks for doing what you did for him. Now if you can’t keep him please find a no kill to take him.

 

[shadowsrescue]

Have you tried a Feliway plug in? I just brought in 3 feral cats ( I am moving so I needed to get them acclimated). The oldest is also 8. I have had them inside for 4 weeks now. Some days are really great while other days are harder. It takes lots and lots and lots of time and patience. I have previously brought 2 others inside. The first one took a solid year to adjust while the second one only took 3-4 months. It is a work in progress.

I hope you will reconsider putting him back outside. He will have a very hard time. All of my former ferals have adjusted to my other cats over time.

 

[msaimee]

I would advise against taking him to a shelter, even a no kill one. Since he is not adoptable, he'd be spending the rest of his life confined in a cage, which is stressful for a domestic cat but extremely stressful for a feral. Also, the no kill shelters I know of, like Animal Friends, won't take a cat they consider to be unadoptable. He's an 8 year old make feral cat who has lived his entire life outside. If you can't keep him inside, you can continue to be his caregiver with him outside, just make sure he has an adequate shelter or pet house, preferably heated, and provide him with food daily. Not all adult feral cats can adjust to life indoors only, which is why TNR is done and why it is advocated by groups as Alley Cats International. You can give it more time and see if he adjusts to life indoors only, it can be done but will take a lot of time and patience, or you can care for him outdoors, or perhaps he could be an indoor/outdoor cat, but I personally feel putting him in a shelter would be the most difficult life for him.

 

[ashade1]

I think that keeping him inside at this point is a little cruel. It is clearly stressful to him. I think the best thing to do is to return him and become his caregiver... leave him food and water and make him a shelter. He has survived 8 years on his own already, and from the sound of it he has some stories to tell lol! I think if you take over his care while he is outside that will be the kindest thing. Old ferals are VERY hard to socialize and it can stress them out or make them depressed and completely shut them down and they wont eat.

 

[msaimee]

You've gotten quite a few differing opinions. It comes down to your knowledge of him, and what you feel in your heart is the right thing to do for him. Only you know him intimately. I believe cats have the right to decide to live life on their own terms. Now some choices we need to make for them, such as getting them neutered and spayed, and medical treatment when needed. But other than that, I think a feral cat, under most circumstances, should be allowed to determine how to live his life. My neighbors and I have taken in and socialized several feral cats who were all under a year old, and during the process, none of them caterwauled, scaled walls, or were desperate to be let out. I did release back outside an adult male feral cat who made it very clear he did not want to be indoors. He loved his freedom, to play in the woods, and coexisted peacefully with opossum, birds, squirrels, and even raccoons. He had a heated cedar pet house on my porch, and ate roast chicken, Fancy Feast, and every kind of food staple and treat imaginable. He lived and died on his own terms. My neighbors and I currently have one adult female spayed feral who is choosing to remain outdoors, and she is very happy and content with her current life. Each cat is different and has a different life path. As the days go by, you will look into the eyes and soul of this Kitty that you have graciously provided medical treatment for, and you will know the right thing to do, what is best for him. I will pray for your guidance and peace for whatever decision the two of you make.

 

[orange&white]

If you're expecting quite a few more very cold winter days, I would get him setup with a heated outdoor shelter. Use either a microwavable SnuggleSafe pad or an outdoor electric warmer in a shelter insulated from moisture and wind. Try to make sure he has a warm place before letting him go. I agree with others who've noted that some feral cats cannot be adapted happily to an indoor life.

My second feral out of two from last year was at the shelter 2 months, because she had kittens right after she got there. Over that time, they deemed her too wild to be socialized or adopted and said just let her go back to the colony, or they were going to adopt her out as a barn cat. She disappeared for a while after I released her, but then started coming back around for food and shelter I had for her. I worked with her outside through summer and winter. Now she comes in the house of cold nights...and these days, whenever she wants to. She is choosing to spend more time indoors. I don't think "force socializing" her inside the house would have earned her trust as quickly as taking the shelter's advice and setting her free.

 

[Joanie3]

Have you tried a Feliway plug in? I just brought in 3 feral cats ( I am moving so I needed to get them acclimated). The oldest is also 8. I have had them inside for 4 weeks now. Some days are really great while other days are harder. It takes lots and lots and lots of time and patience. I have previously brought 2 others inside. The first one took a solid year to adjust while the second one only took 3-4 months. It is a work in progress.

I hope you will reconsider putting him back outside. He will have a very hard time. All of my former ferals have adjusted to my other cats over time.

Even an old feral cat can be turned into an indoor pet. He needs lots of patience and time. Maybe he feels lonely. Can you spend more time by sitting with him and speaking in a soft gentle voice?

Even an old feral cat can be turned into an indoor pet. He needs lots of patience and time. Maybe he feels lonely. Can you spend more time by sitting with him and speaking in a soft gentle voice?

Iv

 

[Joanie3]

I've sat with him over the past two weeks, spoken to him in a soft voice. He was a little more tolerant of me when he wasn't feeling well. Now that he's feeling better, he is back to hissing and swatting at me. Then again, I'm the person who took him to the vet, not once but twice.

 

[Joanie3]

I have had a Feliway plug in from the start.

 

[Joanie3]

If I set up an outside shelter for him, then release him, is there a chance he'd stay? I don't know if it's better to return him to where we found him (familiar surroundings, possible support system) or release him where my neighbors and I live and him not coming back or able to find food/shelter.

Have you tried a Feliway plug in? I just brought in 3 feral cats ( I am moving so I needed to get them acclimated). The oldest is also 8. I have had them inside for 4 weeks now. Some days are really great while other days are harder. It takes lots and lots and lots of time and patience. I have previously brought 2 others inside. The first one took a solid year to adjust while the second one only took 3-4 months. It is a work in progress.

I hope you will reconsider putting him back outside. He will have a very hard time. All of my former ferals have adjusted to my other cats over time.

 

[Joanie3]

I would advise against taking him to a shelter, even a no kill one. Since he is not adoptable, he'd be spending the rest of his life confined in a cage, which is stressful for a domestic cat but extremely stressful for a feral.
I couldn't agree more. It's not even an option as far as I'm concerned. I feel bad enough that he's been confined to a giant crate for the past two weeks.

 

[Joanie3]

I think that keeping him inside at this point is a little cruel. It is clearly stressful to him. I think the best thing to do is to return him and become his caregiver... leave him food and water and make him a shelter. He has survived 8 years on his own already, and from the sound of it he has some stories to tell lol! I think if you take over his care while he is outside that will be the kindest thing. Old ferals are VERY hard to socialize and it can stress them out or make them depressed and completely shut them down and they wont eat.

 

[Joanie3]

I agree. Thank you.

 

[msaimee]

I didn't realize that you trapped him in a different area from where you live. That poses a tricky situation. I wouldn't release him back to his regular area without knowing that he had a human caregiver who was at least feeding him on a daily basis. He wasn't in very good shape when you found him, so it's possible he does not have someone to care for him where you trapped him. It's also a difficult situation releasing him from your house when he's not familiar with your area. If there is a great distance between your house and where you found him, he might have a difficult time trying to find his way back to his territory. Can you continue to care for him inside for a few more weeks to see if there is a chance he will adjust? When I advised you to release him I did not realize you had trapped him in a different neighborhood and that your neighborhood is unfamiliar to him.

 

[Joanie3]

I didn't realize that you trapped him in a different area from where you live. That poses a tricky situation. I wouldn't release him back to his regular area without knowing that he had a human caregiver who was at least feeding him on a daily basis. He wasn't in very good shape when you found him, so it's possible he does not have someone to care for him where you trapped him. It's also a difficult situation releasing him from your house when he's not familiar with your area. If there is a great distance between your house and where you found him, he might have a difficult time trying to find his way back to his territory. Can you continue to care for him inside for a few more weeks to see if there is a chance he will adjust? When I advised you to release him I did not realize you had trapped him in a different neighborhood and that your neighborhood is unfamiliar to him.

Actually he was found about eight blocks from where I live, so not too far away.
I was thinking the same thing about no one caring for him or feeding him in the area we found him. I kind of amazed that the cat approached my neighbor. He was either freezing or thought he recognized him.
We can probably hold on to him for a little while longer but I'm not sure what we should do if we release him in our neighborhood. We discussed getting him an outside house. Not sure if he'd stick around. There are a few other cats in the neighborhood. I think they have owners though.

 

[KSV]

I just wanted to thank you for taking care of this cat. If you release the cat or not, it does not matter. Thank you for doing what you have already done. Do what you feel is the best for your situation.

 

[Joanie3]

Thank you for you're response. My neighbor and I both looked after him. We finally agreed to release him in the middke of February. We we're hoping the weather would've broken soon after but it didn't. We had three more Nor'easters and more snow. My neighbor purchase one of those feral villas. We have no idea if he utilized it. I haven't seen him since. I still feel bad that he had to endure the elements for such an extended amount of time. We knew we couldn't keep him. He was miserable inside. But yeah, he was definitely a survivor, I hope it continued.