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download/print - Neighborhood Cats

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outset because, in our experience, most cats will go in whether the trap is covered or notand the sheet tends to blow around in the wind. If you do cover the trap, make sure therear door as well as the front door is not covered. The cat should be able to see all theway through in order to minimize the sensation she is entering a confined space with onlyone way out.One way to make a cat less wary of going in is to trick her intothinking she can exit the trap through the rear doorway. Do this byreplacing the wire mesh rear door with Plexiglass cut the same size.Drill a small hole towards the center top in the Plexiglass door sowhen your transparent new door is in place, you can run a cable tiethrough and secure it to the top of the trap. Later, after a cat iscaptured, section her off towards the front of the trap with trapdividers and replace the Plexiglass door with the regular one.As a last step, take a piece or two of Pounce, crumble it up and sprinkle a trail startinga few feet away from the front door of the trap and leading into the trap and all the way tothe bait. This same technique can be done with the juice from tuna or little bits of the bait– don’t use too much and risk the cat being satisfied before she follows the trail to themain dish.<strong>Cats</strong> often love catnip spray - it's highly concentrated and verypungent. Plus it's got staying power since it won't blow away likedried flakes do. Try spritzing a small amount directly onto the tripplate. Use a quality spray like Kong Naturals to make sure the scentis irresistible! (Find Kong Naturals at PetSmart, Petco or online atwww.amazon.com/pets.)6. During the trappingOnce the traps are all in place and set, exit the territory. Tempting though it may beto keep a close eye on the action, the cats will be aware you’re watching them. Stay outof sight and don’t stare, especially when one is right in front of the trap and thinkingabout going in. If you start looking at them intently and silently urging them to take theplunge, they may pick up on this and it could be enough to dissuade them. If you’retrapping in your own backyard, go inside the house and watch from there. If you’re atanother location, wait inside your car or stand just around the corner. The less visibleyou are and the less tension and anxiety you exude, the better.While you don’t want to watch too closely, you or another trapper should be presentat the site at all times. Traps should never be left unattended. The cats are completelyvulnerable once they’re trapped and dependent on you for their safety. If you’re notaround, bad things can happen such as two panicked cats getting caught in the same trap,wildlife attacking a captured cat or a stranger passing by who releases a cat or worse.Ideally, check the traps every half hour, but don’t let more than two hours pass without75

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