We are moving with 7 ferals!

[chadsgirl374]

We closed on our property today. It is completely barren and we have to put electric, well and septic and also a doublewide on it. This will take 4-6 months to do so. My father lives down the street and has asked us to move in with him for that time so that we can save up the money (rather then paying rent for a house that isn't ours). When we do get in to our own place (finally), they will have 7 acres to roam freely.

The concern is that we have 7 ferals that are coming with us. We have been feeding them for their entire lives and can not nor will we leave them. I have to build some type of enclosure for them and am concerned about the length of time they would need to be sequestered. They are our full time cats and they have never been kept in one place (except when we trapped them to fix them). My dad has severe asthma so Sunny (our indoor cat) will also have to go outside on the front porch.

This is another big change. I don't know if the cats will be able to live like that for such a long period of time, but leaving them is just not an option.

Do you think that this is ok to do?

 

[ldg]

I'm assuming you can build a large enclosure? They should be fine, even permanently, actually. They probably don't roam a large area now. One of the founders of TCS got fed up of her ferals disappearing and being hurt, and built a large enclosure for them. It has worked out well, and they're safe.

Just FYI, when relocating ferals, if you want to do it in crates, the rule of thumb is to basically keep them crated for 2 - 3 weeks, feeding them really tasty meals at a very regular time once or twice a day. Thus when you release them, they know to come back for the food they love and when to come for it.

Laurie

 

[momofmany]

Make as big as an enclosure as you can for them, and also make it so that it can be dismantled and move to your new location once you get there. You'll want to keep them penned up while they adjust to your final home. Take the time to plan this out completely before you catch them and move them.

I moved my ferals from my last house to new one also. I had the good fortune to have a large sun room that I could keep them separated from my indoor cats. I kept them in that room for about 6 weeks before I let them outside. Once outside, they rarely leave the deck area which is just outside the sun room.

I trapped mine the day before I moved and used that opportunity to take them to the vet for their vaccinations. They overnighted at the vets so that I could just get them back into their cage to move them. The last thing you want to do is to trap them on the day you move. They will sense your anxiety on move day and disappear.

 

[going nova]

You're fortunate (or your cats are fortunate) that you can take them with you. We're moving a couple of towns over and will have to come back to feed them.

 

[chadsgirl374]

Yes, the enclosure will be very large and will be able to be dismantled in order to move it to my house (when ready). I am designing and building the enclosure to provide them with the perfect place for them. We will trap them a night or two before we move. We don't want to create any more stress on them than is absolutely necessary. They are feral but they are also very loved members of our family.