What is a free-roaming cat?
A free-roaming cat is any cat that is not confined in a house or other type of enclosure. This includes pets, strays and ferals.
What is a feral cat?
A feral cat is an untamed cat. Some may refer to the cat as wild. The cat was either abandoned and has reverted to a more wild state, or the cat was born outdoors to a feral or stray mother and has had little or no human contact. Feral cats are frightened of people and avoid contact whenever possible. Feral kittens can often be tamed, but adult feral cats sometimes take more patience and effort with potential that they may not be able to be socialized.
What is a stray cat?
A stray cat is a cat who has strayed from home, often in search of a mate, and has become lost, or was abandoned. Stray cats may be friendly or may have become wary of people. Their offspring may be feral. Because they have had human contact, they may be less frightened of people than feral cats and can usually be socialized and adopted into a home.
Have you seen a free-roaming cat?
Don’t look away. Contact your neighbors and post signs in your neighborhood to see if the cat has a home. If no home is located you may consider taking responsibility for the cat, placing the cat on your own, or taking the cat to a local animal shelter. If the cat is feral, provide food and water and shelter if needed. If s/he is eating the food and still hanging around after a couple of weeks, contact the Feral Cat Coalition of Oregon about bringing the cat in to be spayed/neutered. Feral cats face many challenges, and you can improve their lives by feeding them and getting them spayed or neutered. Scroll down for best practices when caring for feral cats.
How do I keep cats out of my garden?
1. Install motion-sensor sprinklers.
2. Scatter orange and lemon peels or spray with citrus-scented spray.
3. Spread other smells that discourage cats: coffee grounds, pipe tobacco and citronella oil.
4. Push wooden chopsticks or 10-inch plant stakes into flowerbeds every eight inches to discourage digging and scratching.
5. Cover exposed ground in flowerbeds with large river rocks.
6. Build a sandbox away from your plants that will attract the cats.
Best Practices when Caring for Feral Cats
Be a good neighbor. We recognize that feeding a feral or stray cat comes from a place of compassion and concern for the cat’s well-being. It is a selfless act to help an animal in need, and when best practices are followed, it is better for the cat, the community and for wildlife. We encourage anyone feeding outdoor cats to follow these few simple steps.
FEEDING
Feed the cats at the same time every day. Cats are creatures of habit and they will quickly adjust to a feeding schedule. By feeding the cats at the same time every day you can monitor the cats and know the total number of cats being fed, when new cats show up, if a cat is injured*, and when a familiar face is missing. This will also make it easier to trap cats for spaying/neutering or other medical needs. *See these recommendations for helping sick or injured feral cats.
Feed only as much as needed.
When the cats are on a feeding schedule they will come for the food and leave when full. This will show you how much is needed so that you don’t waste food or overfeed and attract unintended wildlife including rodents, raccoons, opossums, skunks, crows and other birds and wildlife.
Do not leave food out overnight or for any extended period of time. Typically the cats are done eating within a half hour of being fed, and it is then best to pick up the food. When you feed outdoor cats, it can also draw in wildlife, especially if excess food is presented or food is left out for extended periods or overnight. This negatively impacts both the cats and wildlife. For cats it can result in direct conflicts with wild animals, predation, disease transmission and complaints from neighbors. For wildlife, regular human handouts can result in habituation where wild animals associate people with food. The number one cause of urban wildlife conflicts is habituation caused by feeding and in many cases the result is the removal and elimination of the wild animal.
Remove the dishes when the cats are finished eating. Ideally, feed the cats on reusable dishes that can be picked up and cleaned. Disposable containers can often blow around as garbage once empty. Picking up the dishes will keep the area clean and tidy to reduce complaints and also reduce flies and other insects.
Provide fresh water. Be sure water is available and replace it regularly in clean containers.
SPAY/NEUTER
Spaying or neutering cats improves their health and prevents litters of homeless kittens. Even if you are able to find homes for a litter of kittens, it becomes harder to place the next litter and beyond. Until there are enough homes for all the cats who need them, please help prevent future generations of homeless cats by spaying/neutering your cats and all the feral and stray cats you feed. Contact the Feral Cat Coalition for help.
Spaying/neutering greatly reduces the most common neighborhood complaints about cats spraying, fighting, and yowling. There are other behavioral and health benefits, as well.
SHELTER
Providing shelter for the cats not only gives them a safe place to escape the elements, it can prevent the cats from seeking shelter in one in your neighbor’s shed, porch or crawl space. To reduce this possible conflict with neighbors, create a space for the cats on your property or build/buy them a shelter. Check out our simple DIY shelter plans or ask about shelters when you bring your cat in for your spay/neuter appointment.
FIND HOMES WHEN POSSIBLE
We would like to see fewer cats living on our streets. You can help reduce the number of cats living outdoors by spaying/neutering the ones you feed and by finding homes for the friendly cats and kittens.
The Feral Cat Coalition of Oregon (FCCO) can help give friendly kittens a chance for a loving home. Contact them about their Kitten Caboose program where you sign the kittens to FCCO and they will be transported to the Oregon Humane Society for adoption. If the kittens are feral you can learn how to socialize them so they can find a forever home as well.