How do I rid myself of a feral cat?

Quote: boymimbo

I would go down the route of dropping it off in a forest a good solid 50 miles away.

Quote: boymimbo

Feral cats are a problem, but the humane way to handle them is trap + neuter / spay, but since you're allergic, you won't be doing that. I would go down the route of dropping it off in a forest a good solid 50 miles away. Just put them in the trunk of your car, put a disposable towel around the trap, and drive, and wear gloves when handling the trap.

Quote: DJTeddyBear

Differences of opinion, arguments even, are well tolerated.

Insults are not.

Do not be surprised if you get suspended for that remark.

Quote: AZDuffman

I don't want to make it someone else's problem. A sad truth is some animals need to be culled. Similar to dogs who spend years in no-kill shelters going insane. The deed needs to be done.

As I mentioned in passing, my plan is to raise chickens for fresh eggs. I can't have a feral cat around with that. Just like I knocked the bird nests off the deck because the droppings are bad. It is not as though I am shooting them for sport and nit using the remains.

Quote:

Many domestic dogs (including your dogs) may kill for sport, simply maiming the bird and leaving it to die (they lose interest once the bird stops moving). Dogs who kill for sport often kill large numbers of birds at once. However, some dogs kill and devour the entire bird, leaving just the feet and head, and a sea of feathers.

Domestic and feral cats will eat small chicks entirely, but leave the wings and feathers of young birds. Cats have been known to kill full-grown chickens; they’ll consume the meaty parts, leaving the rest scattered around.

Raccoons hunt alone or in tandem with their family group. They’re nocturnal, so they’ll attack at night, kill more than one chicken, and eat mainly the guts. You may find the carcass(es) far away from the coop. They also steal and eat eggs from nest boxes.

Raccoons also have the tendency to reach into a pen and pull off a chicken’s head or leg – whatever it can grab – so if you find a bird with its head and crop missing, a raccoon should be at the top of your suspect list.

Opossums hunt alone, and they attack and devour small birds on the spot. In addition to robbing nests of eggs at night, opossums will sneak up to sleeping birds on roosts and take a bite out of a breast or thigh.

Skunks hunt alone at night. They are notorious egg snatchers, often leaving shells behind, and you may or may not smell their telltale odor afterward. Once they’ve killed a chicken, they’ll eat the entrails and leave the rest.

Rats carry off baby chicks and roll away eggs. They’ll also chew off beaks, gnaw on legs and pull out feathers from roosting birds. Look for rat droppings (supersized mouse droppings) around feeders and/or feed storage bins to confirm your suspicion. Install hanging feeders for your chickens to deter rodent-snacking.

Most birds of prey (hawks, eagles, owls) have the ability to carry off a small bird (young or bantam), and you’ll find only feathers. Owls and hawks will enter barns or coops through small openings or fly through windows; they’ve been known to sidle up next to sleeping chickens on the roost.

If you find a bird with its head and neck missing, the killer may be an owl. If you find just feathers scattered near a fence post, the thief could have been any flying predator that perched on the post just prior to its attack.

Coyotes usually hunt just before dawn and just after dusk, and they often can be seen trying to break into the chicken pen. They will take whole, mature birds on pasture.

Foxes will typically drag off a whole, free-ranging bird, but rarely enter the chicken coop.

Weasels (includes ferrets, fishers, mink, martens) like to kill for fun, sometimes hunting as a family and doing tremendous damage in a short time. They can squeeze into housing through holes as small as an inch and will sometimes reach inside a pen and rip off the head and neck of a chicken. If you find carcasses piled up neatly or birds with their intestines pulled out, you were probably visited by a weasel. Acrid smell in the air? Yes, it was definitely a weasel.

Bobcats will bite off the head and leave puncture marks on the neck, back and sides.

Snakes will devour chicks and eggs without leaving a trace.

Quote: NatureAdvocate

Do you honestly think I care what some bambi-cartoon-educated, mommy's-basement-dwelling, back-waters site owner thinks when half the world's ecosystems are being destroyed by cat-lickers' cats?

Get a clue you pathetic bend-over-and-take-it moron.

Quote: NatureAdvocate

Do you honestly think I care what some bambi-cartoon-educated, mommy's-basement-dwelling, back-waters site owner thinks when half the world's ecosystems are being destroyed by cat-lickers' cats?

Get a clue you pathetic bend-over-and-take-it moron.

Quote: rxwine

If you can't shoot predators all the time, bumping off the cat is only the start of your problems.

I mean, either that, or you still have to provide some anti-predator protection.