moving in a few weeks and relocating 8 feral cats! HELP

[liz sullivan]

Ok, short and sweet:

I starting feeding this female cat winter 2009. She came around my yard with a foot of snow on the ground, so I decided to feed her in my garage. I don't know if she was dumped or what, but shes been coming around ever since. She has had 2 litters since then, now all 8 cats are fixed. BUT, I am moving in a few weeks, and I can't leave them behind. they have become a part of me, they rely on me, some of them come into the house and sleep overnight, and can be petted. the original momma cat cannot be petted, but she comes around the yard, and lets me get 2 feet away from her, and now has a name :) One of her new kittens, now 5 months old, won't let me go near her either, she is the most feral of the kittens. How the heck do I move these guys? All I hear is don't move a feral colony, but they rely on me, no neighbors are going to help them. Any suggestions?? We are moving a mile away, I'm afraid they will just dissappear, get hit by cars, try to find the old house, get lost....

[Ldavis24]

hmm if you wanted to take them with you..the ones that willingly come in the house, lock in a room when they are in the house...

The ones that won't you could humanely trap and then transport them to your new house. 

The problem with moving them is that cats are very territorial and they might end up in someone elses territory. Hello major cat fights.

I can't be of more help because this is a problem that is pretty unique to me. Maybe someone else can be of more help...

If you do move them, just wear some heavy duty gloves when you do because at some point you will have to really grab them. Cats can basically turn themselves inside out and they are absolutely ferocious when cornered. You DO NOT want to be bitten hard by a cat or scratched, they both hurt miserably and their mouths are full of a lot of intense bacteria that you can easily become infected with. Very easily, Cat Scratch Fever is definitely not just a song!

[liz sullivan]

thanks so much for your help. I appreciate any imput!! I do not sleep at night thinking of this move, with the chance of losing even one of these cats.

I will definately purchase gloves, didn't think of that! I really don't get the point of keeping them locked up in a cage for 3 weeks to get used to their new territory. If they aren't outside the whole time, and then you release them into the yard they've never seen, how would they be used to it?

I would think they would still just run away? Thanks again! Liz

[Ldavis24]

hmm I don't know really..I think if you are feeding them and leaving them food outside of your new house they will stick around...but wh knows really...