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8. Recommended Equipment Box TrapsThe standard trap used forferal cats is a “humane box trap.”Shaped like a large rectangularbox, a cat enters through theraised open door at the front inorder to reach bait placed at theback. On his way to the bait, hesteps on a “trip plate,” causing thefront door to shut and lock behindhim.There are many differentmanufacturers and models ofphoto: Meredith Weisshumane box traps available. Forworking with feral cats, twofeatures are essential: the trap should have a rear door that opens by sliding it up (a“guillotine-style” rear door) and be 30 to 36 inches in length. The sliding rear doormakes it possible to use the trap as a cage after the cat is caught by facilitating feedingand cleaning (see Chapter 11: “Caring for Cats in Traps.”) It allows for transfers out ofthe trap and into a transfer cage, feral cat den or another trap. The rear door also makes itsafer when releasing the cats or any inadvertently captured wildlife.To double as a cage, the trap must be large enough or at least 30 inches in length.Preferred width is at least 10 inches. At Neighborhood Cats, we prefer the 36 inch lengthtraps because of the extra room they provide during the cat’s confinement. However,many experienced TNR groups prefer 30 inch traps because they weigh less and areeasier to transport and store. Traps larger than 36 inches in length are bulkier and heavierthan needed.When the first edition of this handbook was released, there were no traps on themarket specifically designed for feral cats. Trapsmade for other animals, like raccoons, had to beused and adapted. Recently, Neighborhood Catspartnered with Tomahawk Live Trap(www.livetrap.com) to design a box trap, and otherequipment, just for feral cats and TNR. The“Neighborhood Cats Trap” by Tomahawk,described below, is the model we now prefer.However, preferences vary among trappers, so wealso list other traps we’ve worked with that arepopular in the field.photo: Meredith Weiss57