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A variation of this method can be used before you even find out whether you have ahard-to-catch cat on your hands. If the site is private and secure, like a residentialbackyard, then a couple of weeks before the trapping date, put out as many traps as thereare cats and start training the entire colony to eat out of them. When the big day arrives,you may be surprised how quickly they’re all caught.• Camouflage trapBlending the trap in with itssurroundings or disguising it in somemanner may lure a cat in. If you’retrapping in a setting with grass, trees orbushes, drape burlap over the sides of thetrap and on the trap floor. Cover the burlapwith leaves and branches, making sure notto create an obstruction which wouldprevent the front door from closing. Also,don’t cover the rear door – you want the catto be able to see all the way through toreduce his fear of entering.There are many other ways to disguise a trap. Put it inside a large cardboard box,again leaving the rear door uncovered so the cat has a line of vision all the way through.Lean a large board against a wall and put the trap behind it. Rest objects, such as debris,a wooden plank or a trash bag on top and against the sides of the trap to make it appearmore like part of its environment. The more the trap appears like a natural part of theenvironment, the less hesitant the cat will be going inside.• Lure into a closed spaceIf you can lure a cat into an indoor space like a shed, garage or room and securelyshut him inside, there are a couple ways to then get him into a box trap, though avoidusing a room with ceiling tiles or a drop ceiling which would allow a cat to hide in theceiling. Before luring the cat inside, you’ll need to set things up.The simplest kind of “indoor trapping” is to place a baited trap in the room before thecat arrives and set it in the normal manner. Once the cat is shut into the indoor space,you wait it out. If the cat is trap shy, it might take two or three days before he’ll enter thetrap. In the meantime, make sure fresh water is always available and a full litter pan. Putout a pile of newspaper as well in case the cat doesn’t understand what a litter pan is.The only food available should be the bait in the trap. Be very careful when entering andexiting the space to avoid an escape. If the cat does not go in after two or three days, startusing food to train him to go into the trap (see “Train the cat to enter a box trap” earlier inthis chapter.) Don’t withhold food indefinitely and risk damaging his health.A faster technique takes a bit more work. Before the cat is lured into the room,remove or seal off any hiding places – anything the cat might go behind, into or under. Ifthe cat is already in the space, leave his hiding place alone and remove or seal off all therest. Then take a large board or piece of cardboard, approximately five feet high and four93