Hi there, we recently became caretakers to an adult neutered male feral. (His rescuer normally does TNR, but he came from a location that he couldn’t be returned to, so he is now acclimating in our backyard garden and nearing release. A few folks here have been kind enough to give us advice previously which was greatly appreciated! We are cat lovers who’ve had pet cats in the past, but this is our first experience with ferals.)
His acclimation setup is a rabbit hutch with an inner wooden “box” that has been his sleeping/hiding spot. When he’s released, we’re planning on leaving this setup available for him in case he still wants to use it as a home base. If we leave the little door to his hutch ajar for him to be able to come and go, should we also create some sort of extra exit for him in case another cat/raccoon/etc. also manages to find their way in?
We’d also like to give him some hiding spots in other areas of the yard, and would love any input on what folks do for their feral kitties that they seem to like. We’ve been thinking about putting out sections of large PVC pipe (say, 8” or 10” diameter pipe, in sections a few feet long so he could feel “hidden” in the middle) — has anyone tried this and found it effective/not effective or have any thoughts about the best diameter pipe to use? (Or would love any other ideas for hiding spots we could give him!)
We’ve also considered making him a little hiding spot in a storage bench or box — if we were to cut doors into such a setup for him, what size holes would you suggest? I think I’ve read that they prefer smaller openings than a layman might assume? He’s not an *enormous* cat, but he is an adult male and I’d call him on the larger side.
(It’s warm where we live, so we do plan on getting him something insulated before winter comes but it’s not our immediate priority.)
Thanks so much for any thoughts or advice you may have!
His acclimation setup is a rabbit hutch with an inner wooden “box” that has been his sleeping/hiding spot. When he’s released, we’re planning on leaving this setup available for him in case he still wants to use it as a home base. If we leave the little door to his hutch ajar for him to be able to come and go, should we also create some sort of extra exit for him in case another cat/raccoon/etc. also manages to find their way in?
We’d also like to give him some hiding spots in other areas of the yard, and would love any input on what folks do for their feral kitties that they seem to like. We’ve been thinking about putting out sections of large PVC pipe (say, 8” or 10” diameter pipe, in sections a few feet long so he could feel “hidden” in the middle) — has anyone tried this and found it effective/not effective or have any thoughts about the best diameter pipe to use? (Or would love any other ideas for hiding spots we could give him!)
We’ve also considered making him a little hiding spot in a storage bench or box — if we were to cut doors into such a setup for him, what size holes would you suggest? I think I’ve read that they prefer smaller openings than a layman might assume? He’s not an *enormous* cat, but he is an adult male and I’d call him on the larger side.
(It’s warm where we live, so we do plan on getting him something insulated before winter comes but it’s not our immediate priority.)
Thanks so much for any thoughts or advice you may have!