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After you’ve determined how many cats you’ll be after when you first trap, schedulethat number of surgeries with your spay/neuter provider. If traps are available to borrow,reserve them right after you’ve set up your spay/neuter appointment – ask for one trap percat plus a couple of extra if you’re mass trapping. You may need to reduce the number ofscheduled surgeries if you can’t secure enough traps, or re-schedule your spay/neuter dateto a time when enough equipment will be available. Also, make arrangements fortransportation. The cats will need to be transported from their territory to the holdingspace, back and forth from the spay/neuter clinic and then back to their territory.Step five: TrapNow that everything is in place, the trapping can proceed. Food is withheld from thecats the entire day before trapping begins. How many days you allot for trapping willdepend on the number of cats you’re after. Always leaving at least two days is advisable,three if you’re after more than a few cats. The extra time protects against poor weather,the cats not showing up for some unknown reason, your neighbor deciding to start aconstruction project right at that time, or any other unexpected condition which couldimpair the trapping. Waiting until the day before your surgery appointment, or themorning of, is risky and could damage your relationship with the clinic if you show upempty-handed.Step six: Spay DayFood and water are withheld the night before the spay/neuter date, except for youngkittens who need to be fed closer to the time of surgery. The morning of theappointments, the cats are transported to the clinic where standard treatment includesspay/neuter, eartipping and, where appropriate, rabies vaccination. Flea medication, earmite treatment and other extra veterinary care are recommended on an “as needed” basis.Step seven: Recovery & returnIf everything goes normally, the cats will be confined from 24 to 72 hours postsurgeryand then returned to their territory. It’s important the cats are released in closeproximity to where they were trapped and not at an unfamiliar location. Otherwise,without the proper relocation procedures being followed, they will likely run off in searchof their old home. During the time they’re held, both before and after surgery, the catsshould be fed and their traps cleaned twice a day.Step eight: Long-term care and monitoringAfter the trapping and spay/neuter of the cats is complete, the long-term care of thecolony begins. For TNR to be most successful at reducing numbers and providinghumane care, a designated caretaker or caretakers should feed the cats regularly, makesure there is adequate shelter, watch out for and trap any newcomers, and act as anintermediary with the community.15