Help for Cats
How do I trap feral cats for TNR?
First find out if the cat has been trapped before and gone through a TNR program. To do this check the cat for an ear tip. An ear tip should be located on the left ear. It should look like a centimetre has been removed from the ear making a straight line. Look at the pictures below to get an idea of what this looks like on a cat:
If the cat appears to not be ear tipped or you are not sure the next step is to get a humane cat trap. We recommend using Tomhawk's live cat traps (click here to buy).
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Once you have a trap you need to set it up to catch the cat. First though, make sure to ALWAYS have an appointment for the cat before trapping. You should never trap a cat if you have no where to take it. We suggest trapping the day before your appointment or the morning of. Follow the steps below once you are ready to set out your trap:
1.
Gather your supplies
You will need:
-
a trap
-
a trap cover (a sheet, blanket or towel)
-
newspaper
-
bait (smelly foods like tuna, mackerel or sardines work great)
-
a spoon
2.
Become familiar with the trap
3.
Practice setting the trap
Remember this helpful saying Push-Pull-Set
Push
door in and grab back door
Pull
both doors up and hold
doors to top of trap
Set
by holding doors to top of
trap and pushing hook
forward setting doors on top of
gold piece
4.
Get the trap ready for a cat
Open the "human door" and take two sheets of newspaper and place them in the trap covering the whole bottom. This is an important step! You want to cover the trip plate, so they cat does not avoid it.
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Newspaper is the best to use because it is light enough that it will not trip the trip plate.
Bait the trap
5.
Open the "human door" and place most of the bait in the opening of the door right on the newspaper. Then take some of the liquid and spread it on the newspaper towards the "cat door" creating a trail.
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The best bait to use is something fishy and stinky. We use mackerel and tuna heated up in the microwave for 30 seconds. You don't need to use a bowl because most cats will just knock it over once they get caught and sometimes it can set of the trap too soon if the bowl weighs too much.
6.
Lock trap and put on a trap cover.
Always make sure to lock your trap before you set it!
Cover your trap with a blanket, towel or sheet.
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This makes the cat feel more comfortable and makes the trap look less like a cage.
7.
Now set the trap and catch a cat!
