feral buddy system

Over this past weekend I did some trapping. It had been a long time since I've gone out and trapped, I think since June when I scored Bert. I've been too busy to take on any projects, but in this case, it was a friendly boy who had showed up at a managed colony. My goal was to drop trap him and his less-friendly brother.

I got the friendly one about 30-minutes after setting the trap. Then I waited for another few hours and the brother never showed! Trapping is very much like fishing, a lot of waiting quietly with great anticipation. I did get to enjoy watching the two resident tabby ferals, a mom and her daughter, who feasted on the bait-food. While waiting, I managed to snap this cute picture of the daughter watching me through the sliding glass door, while her mom ate.

Meanwhile, Pierre survived his experience being trapped and worked over at the vet. He's now microchipped, which I'm very happy about, and fully vaccinated. I decided to have him sedated so all this could be done with less stress. The vet said he looks quite healthy.

Since I had him vaccinated for FeLV and he was sedated, my plan is to keep him captive on the back porch for a day or two until I know he is feeling 100%. The vet said he was fully awake and suggested I give him an extra hour in the trap just to be sure. I gave him an extra couple of hours and then released him to the back porch. I was horrified to see that he was very unsteady on his feet and had difficult time keeping his balance while also franticly trying to escape. Seeing him try to jump and climb while so wobbly really freaked me out as he could easily misjudge a jump and seriously injure himself. There was no way I could recapture him, all I could do is watch, worry, and pray. Thankfully, after some time, he eventually settled in with Oliver and they slept away the afternoon together in their heated bed.

happiness is...

being with Bert. This guy exudes happiness. He's over the top in love with the indoor life. Hard to imagine he was once homeless. He's still up for adoption and all of his silly antics are going to make someone very happy.

We spent some cuddle time together on Tuesday morning, he's such a love.

Blissed out Bert!

Something I discovered recently: Bert's not a big fan of being held, he tolerates it but doesn't really relax into it, however if you flip him over and hold him tummy-side up, he completely relaxes and loves it! What a silly boy!

On a different note, Wednesday morning I'll be trapping Pierre and taking him to the vet for a microchip and updated vaccines. This has been something I've been wanting to do for a long time now, and I really regret that MK never got chipped. This is going to be a very stressful ordeal for me and him and I'm quite anxious about causing him stress but I know ultimately it will be the best for everyone.

comfort

It's been a bit of a rough morning. I took a friendly TNR-rescued cat into the clinic this morning for a neuter and emotionally fell apart in their parking lot as I thought about possible outcomes for MK. I made it home and Oliver was there to greet me with never ending purrs and loves.

Once inside the house, I spent some time crying, writing and praying. What started as peacefully asking God for comfort turned into pleading for comfort. I know that when I'm emotionally overwhelmed, I have a difficult time sensing God's gentle presence, so I begged that God would provide his comfort in a loud or tangible way - something I could really pick up on.

I look up and there's Nahum hopping up on the bed.

Nahum in ancient Hebrew means "comforter"

I received my comfort, in a real tangible, fluffy package

And if that wasn't enough, Willow had to get in on the action too

Prayer perfectly answered. Now, I'm going about my day with gratitude.

missing one

My beautiful MK remains absent, with no sign of him anywhere. I've hung more posters around and every night I put out extra food for him just in case he comes home.

family portrait                            January 15, 2014

I've scoured the neighborhood looking for possible places he could be trapped. There are a few abandoned houses nearby that I wondered if he could have gotten trapped into, but after a thorough investigation, I didn't see any places where he could have made entry. 

MK, always ready to cuddle                           July 31, 2013

More recently, I've started searching bushes and hidey spots, places he might have crawled to if he was hit in the road and tried to drag himself to some cover. But again, no sign of him. Our local shelter is a kill-shelter, where animals get 72-hours to be claimed. So I've been scanning through the pictures of stray animals they have in custody, but looking through these pictures is heartbreaking. So many beautiful cats who's futures are uncertain.

June 9, 2013

I've not been able to get my mind off of MK. I keep checking the cameras throughout the day looking for some sign that he has returned. It doesn't take much for me to reconnect with the heartbreak all over again and the tears flow.

June 9, 2013

I think I remember reading somewhere that the average lifespan of an outdoor cat is about three years. I've had MK in my life for a little over three years. Sigh.

June 9, 2013

I can tell that both Pierre and Oliver miss him. Pierre and MK loved to cuddle and excitedly rub up against each other. With his cuddle buddy gone, Pierre is constantly trying to rub up against Oliver, who only tolerates it for a short time. Oliver gets his loves from me and doesn't rely on his kitty-family for physical affection. Pierre and MK relied mostly on each other for that affection with only occasional physical loves from their papa.

I captured this rare family portrait the other day - eight cats in one photo! Can you spot them all? The only cat missing out of this picture is MK.

Jan 29, 2015

With MK being gone almost two weeks, I'm really having a hard time holding onto hope. I've heard stories from others about cats returning after extended absences and those stories help. A friend's backyard feral cat, Little Mama, went missing the day after MK did, and she returned 8 days later.

If you all could help me hold onto hope, that would be greatly appreciated. I so appreciate all the warm thoughts and prayers you all have sent our way, your support and love means a lot to me - thank you.

still no MK

Thank you everyone for your kind wishes for MK to return. I wish I had some good news to report, but sadly, still no sign of him.

beautiful Pierre

I called my local animal shelter and they don't have him. They track deceased cats they pick up from the local roads, and thankfully he wasn't on that list either.

A secure Oliver

I checked in with my vet clinic who is right behind my house and they haven't seen him but will be watching for him. Monday night I went and knocked on doors and talked with the neighbors. I left flyers asking people to check in their sheds and garages.

Pierre doesn't roam much anymore, he spends pretty much all of his days and nights here

Each day that goes on with him missing the angst in my heart grows. I've not been sleeping very well, waking often thinking about him, wondering where he might be. I spent every moment I could at work looking at the kitty-cams, looking for any sign of him. It kills me to know that Oliver and Pierre might very well know where he is but we can't communicate enough to have them lead me to him. I keep asking them to tell me, but they just look at me with their cute faces.

The highlight of my day yesterday, was when Pierre let me rub his head in the morning when I brought them breakfast. He's skittish about me touching him until his head starts getting rubbed, then he's blissed out in heaven.

so far so good!

Katie asked if the new door modification was working to keep Oliver secure. I don't have the emotional energy to put together a snazzy video right now, so I'll just let you know that so far it is working. Yea! Since making that change, Oliver hasn't escaped, but I'm not naive enough to believe that he's given up the battle just yet!

I don't know how people have outside cats, having Oliver and his family out there causes me so much stress. If I had some way to keep them secure but not in a cage, I certainly would. I keep racking my brain to figure out what I can do for them in the space I have. I'm also researching tracking devices, like the Loc8tor homing tags. Has anyone used these?

I'm super thankful that we're not getting a blizzard right now, that would really crank up my stress, imaging MK being out there with all that horrid weather. We've actually had a few very warm and sunny days. Thank you everyone for your continued care. I'll let you know the minute I learn something new.

MK

It's been a long week since returning home. I arrived back on Tuesday morning and since being home there's been no sign of MK. Looking back in the recorded images, the last time he was around was early Monday morning.

one of the last images I have of MK

I'm trying not to panic, as he disappeared back in July for a week and came back, but I'm not being very successful with holding off that panic. It's so rare for him to not be here with his family. The feral feeder is the main source of his food. He adores Oliver and Pierre, he would not be away of his own choosing. Every morning I take food out and he's not there the pain in my heart grows.

I feel so powerless to keep these cats safe, even with all I do to try to protect them. In my heart, I feel like I have failed him by not keeping him safe, and yet I know cognitively that's not true. Ultimately they are outside cats and outside cats have short lifespans. However, thinking of him out there somewhere being trapped, hurt, starving, or dead makes me sick.

I hung signs in hopes someone sees him. Monday evening after work, I may go door to door with flyers, like I did in July. I feel utterly depressed.

MK, please, please come home.

Purrs and prayers for his safe return are much appreciated.

door mod two

With Oliver opening the programmable cat door at will, I needed something else to try. So, I dispatched a team of experts to study hours and hours of video of Oliver escaping. What was learned from all of this research is that Oliver stands in front of the door and uses his claw to open the door enough for him to get his head under it.

Thus, a theory was postulated - if a solid barrier was placed in front of the cat door, it would prevent a cat from standing in front of the door and opening it. With the barrier in place, the cat's body would block the door from opening. This theory seems promising, so the fourwhitepaws' engineers got to work...

I happen to have an old window that fit fairly well in front of the door, so I placed it so that the cat door still swings open, but a cat can't be in front of the door and have it open at the same time. Cats entering come inside the door and immediately turn right to enter.

Oliver checks out his newest challenge

Will Oliver outwit this low-tech solution? Time will tell... stay tuned...