Problem Neighbourhood cat - advise Required!!

[TwoCats]

Hello, I'm looking for a bit of advise. I have two cats, one female (10yrs) and one male (1yr). There are many cats in our area, majority of which just get along or avoid one another, however there is one Tom cat who is terrorising ALL the cats and has attacked my youngest to the point that he's terrified of going outside now! I've spoken to my neighbours who have all experienced similar attacks on their cats too. We've no idea who the cat belongs to and he appears to be un-neutered. Can anyone please offer any advise of what we can do about this cat? Many thanks

[Jacks]

Trap him and have him neutered.

I had trouble with a similar unneutered neighbourhood Tom. I asked our vet what to do and they put us in touch with the local RSPCA who worked alongside the vet operating a TNR scheme - trap, neuter, release.

The RSPCA lent me a trap, and I started putting food in to catch him. It meant I had to get him used to being fed by me. It took 5 months to get him - something of a record - he was very smart and wouldn't tread on the trigger. However we got him, took him to the vets in the trap and they had to knock him out just to examine him. He was neutered, then we brought him back and released him in the garden. He came and sat at my feet.

8 months later he moved in. He has changed completely. He can still be territorial, but he gets bossed around by our girls and is a loving boy.

I'm assuming you can't get close enough to put a paper collar on him and ask his owner's to call you? This would only be if he was friendly, of course. It sounds like he isn't and he could well be chancing his luck around the place because he's a stray.

[Mrs Kane]

Finding the owners and explaining the situation is the safest bet. However if you feel he's feral then it's my opinion to trap him and neuter him.

[bobbys girl]

We have done this with two strays. One is our Tommy - a big soft house-cat now. The other is Felix who is still a 'stray' - he does the rounds in the neighbourhood, but is so much more approachable and, although our cats are still intimidated by him, he doesn't want to fight anymore.

If none of your neighbours know who he belongs to I'd assume he was a stray/ferral and get him 'done' - for everyones sake, including his own.

[TwoCats]

Thank you for your advise, I'm going to try and catch him and have him checked at my vets to see if he's chipped as he doesn't wear a collar and no-one knows if he belongs to anyone! I've spoken with the RSPCA who say they can't help and suggested I tried the Cats Protection, which I did but they don't have a shelter in our area [OL4], so can't help either

So I'll start with trying to catch him and go from there...

If he isn't chipped then I'll speak to all my neighbours who he's causing problems for and see if they are willing to contribute towards having him neutered.

[Lilith]

Hi, I can only second the advice given, and I think it's a good idea to club together - if 6 households contribute a fiver each, job done!

I ended up with a couple of mature toms at one point - the first was very thin and hungry, with a running abscess on his backside - losing his fights, poor old chap. The local CP agreed to come out and trap him and neuter/sort the abscess for me; I was happy to care for him after that. Then I heard nothing - and ended up tricking him into climbing into a cat carrier with a bit of tuna at the far end. Initially hostile, he was really a gentle chap, and very greedy. By prior arrangement with the vet, the deed was done! He moved in with me a week later.

The second boy was just like your visitor - he beat up everyone. One of my neutered girls, not a fighter, got her tail bitten. A little elderly neutered female across the street was another of his targets. It seemed that Ali Kat, as I called him, had had some kind of home in the district, but he too was thin and dirty and started coming for food, and I did the same trick with the tuna and the cat carrier and got him done. If his 'owner' knew or cared there was no comeback. Later he too turned up with a massive abscess and guess who took him to the vet? He did remain very aggressive; although he could be affectionate with me, he'd bite if I stroked him the wrong way or just looked at him the wrong way, and he did his best to bully my first boy. He moved in too and in time the aggression died down, though I still had to be careful of how I handled him.

It would be nice to think that, once neutered, your 'problem child' might find himself a home in the neighbourhood in this way; my Ali Kat was an extreme case I think but even he responded to neutering and knowing where his next meal came from; he became a magnificent cat. Perhaps your local thug will find someone (perhaps with no cats or cats who aren't nervous of him) and charm them into letting him get his paws under the table - ex-feral toms exude charm lol! They really do make gorgeous pets and good on you for helping this boy back to the chance of a better life

ps edit - yes, if you can trace an owner it's a good idea but I fear that, in his situation, the owner, if there is one, won't be bothered (though I have known of cases where fuss was made but the cat just continued to be neglected and largely unwanted; these people aren't worth any courtesy and you might as well do the deed, whether neutering or rehabilitating, by stealth!) Quite often un-neutered toms just drift away and lead a merry rambling life until they get older and start losing their place in the pecking order and also the fight for food that a feral, unless it can catch its own, has to face every day to survive. Good luck!

[Hazel]

Good luck with catching him, if he's not chipped (and I doubt he is if nobody has bothered to neuter him) then I'd assume he is feral and get him neutered for his own and all the other cats in the neighbourhood's sakes!
Have Cats Protection or the RSPCA lent you a trap? If not look on the forum main page and ring the rescues in your area or try the vets in your area, someone should be able to lend you one. As Jackie said it can take a long time to trap them and it's good to get them used to eating in the trap, but they don't tend to like it as they clatter a lot when they turn round to get out.

[TwoCats]

Hi All, some good news to share..

My neighbour has been able to catch the cat [who wasn't chipped] and has also found him a good home on a farm outside of our area. So hopefully peace will now be returned to our streets

Thank you for all your advice.

[Lilith]

Hey that's brilliant and congrats to you all on all your support for this boy. A happy ending indeed!