Trapping Tips

• Establish a regular feeding schedule several weeks prior to trapping. The cats will quickly learn to arrive at a designated time for meals. This is the single most important factor in trapping success.
• Withhold food for 24 hours before trapping. This will ensure that the cats are very hungry and willing to enter the trap in search of food.
• Bait the trap with odiferous food. Tuna, salmon, mackerel, and sardines are all good options.
• Place the food onto a paper plate and set the trap on top of the plate, allowing the food to seep through the bars on the floor of the trap rather than placing the plate of food into the trap. When you pick up the trap with the cat inside, the paper plate will remain on the ground rather than inside the trap with the cat.
• Drip a “trail” of the juice from the can of food you are using to bait the trap, leading into the trap.
• Cover the trap with a towel so that it appears more like a box than a trap. Keep the towel over the trap once the cat is inside. This will make the cat feel safer and less stressed.
• Monitor the trap while set. Do not leave a trap unattended for more than an hour at a time.
• If the cat(s) won’t enter the trap, you may want to try feeding them in the unset trap for several days until they get used to going in them.
• When transporting the cats in traps to the clinic for surgery, place a plastic tarp under the traps to avoid stains in your car.