This entire time we've known about a couple of unfixed females, and they have of course had kittens over the last year (sigh), but they have either come over very inconsistently, or not at all and have only been visible from a distance (in other yards). Finally, over the course of the last month, several of the older kittens from this past year's litters have started attending dinner on a regular basis, and we've jumped at the opportunity.
"Little Girl"
This little girl recently started showing up for dinner on a daily basis. She was quick to figure out the trap, and preferred it as a less interruptible eating spot. After a week or so of the same routine, we knew it was time to make an appointment. On trap night, we kept to the same feeding routine as normal, and she went right in. It only took a couple of minutes!
"Fat Face Gray"
This guy is officially the smartest male we've come across. Most toms, when they encounter the trap for the first time, will circle around it for several minutes before leaving because they can't figure out how to get the food on the inside. Not this dude. We lowered the trap into our utility easement and he figured it out and went in less than five minutes later. Thanks for making it easy on us! This cat is probably father to a large number of the cats born over the last couple of years. Most of the males are so inconsistent we don't even list them as official colony members, but we've seen this one on and off regularly for at least 2 years now. He has just never been around on a consistent enough basis for trapping. We were fishing for more of the mature kittens the other night, like "little girl", but we're not picky. An unfixed cat went in the trap. We weren't going to pass that up!
Celebrating 40 Cats!
We picked up this bottle of wine at a local liquor store about a year ago, after fixing #39, to celebrate #40, not knowing we'd have to wait so long to drink it. It's a fund-raiser bottle for the Humane Society we've been working with, and we feel at this point that a shout-out is necessary. Without their commitment to the welfare of local cats, we would be overrun with ferals, and at this point our neighbors or town may have used alternative methods to solve the problem. So thank you Wild at Heart for providing low-cost vouchers for feral cat spay/neuter, Humane Society of Boulder Valley for accepting the vouchers and fixing the cats, and Alley Cat Allies for providing information we can pass on to new neighbors. Cheers!
