popmom Posted April 18, 2017 Share Posted April 18, 2017 (edited) I "adopted" my neighbor's cat about a year ago. More accurately the cat adopted us. Neighbor said he was up to date on his shots and told me the vet they used. He was 10 yrs old at the time and is indoor/outdoor. He is not a friendly cat, but we love him anyway because he's so handsome. ;) I REALLY need to make sure this cat gets his shots. There have been two confirmed cases of rabies in my area. One raccoon and one cat. How do you get a cat to go in a carrier? I can't see forcing him in unless I suit up in some sort of armor, but I don't want to traumatize him. He doesn't like to be picked up. Also, is there any hope that I might be able to litter train him and make him an indoor cat? He is so used to roaming the neighborhood--would he rebel and do bad cat things if I wouldn't let him out? (assuming he would use a litter box) Oh, and I called the vet and they have no record of the previous owner or this cat. :( tried calling a second vet nearby, and they don't have any record of him either. So I guess I'll go knock on my neighbor's door sometime and see what's up. Edited April 18, 2017 by stephensgirls 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted April 18, 2017 Share Posted April 18, 2017 You could try putting the cat's food in the carrier as bait. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popmom Posted April 18, 2017 Author Share Posted April 18, 2017 You could try putting the cat's food in the carrier as bait. Okay. This should be the first thing I try. Maybe I'll withhold his wet food for a day or two and only let him have access to his dry food. Then try putting something really yummy and smelly in the carrier--like salmon or tuna. That might work. Then I can just drop him off and let the vet figure out how to get him out for the shots! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popmom Posted April 18, 2017 Author Share Posted April 18, 2017 I've never owned a cat before in my life, so all this is new to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted April 18, 2017 Share Posted April 18, 2017 Ooo. Hard question. Yes, try the bait idea first. What kind of carrier is it? I have the kind where the top off comes entirely off. Then, if you manage to get the cat in the bottom half, you can hold the cat down with your arm where the door is and then plop the top of the carrier on to the cat and pull your arm out and close the door. But with a cat that doesn't like to be held at all...that's hard. Because how do you get the cat into the bottom of the carrier in the first place without injury to yourself? If you can grab the cat at all and hold him down, you could (maybe) wrap him up in a towel real fast and then pop him into the bottom of the carrier and then put the lid on top. If the carrier doesn't have where you can pop the top off, then other than baiting him in, I can't imagine how you could get an outdoor kitty who hates to be held stuffed into a carrier. It's hard enough when our tame indoor kitties fight going in. Maybe the vet has advice. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barnwife Posted April 18, 2017 Share Posted April 18, 2017 My sister had to medicate her cat to be able to do so. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted April 18, 2017 Share Posted April 18, 2017 The vet should have experience with handling even feral cats, so I wouldn't worry about what happens once they get him. BTW - is he fixed? If not, have them do that as well. Re. making him an indoor cat. You could try shutting him in a bathroom or garage or family room with the litter box to see how he copes. He might yowl a bit at first. Or he could start to spray urine on the walls etc if he is really stressed. That is why I would suggest starting in an easily cleaned place. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popmom Posted April 18, 2017 Author Share Posted April 18, 2017 (edited) Ooo. Hard question. Yes, try the bait idea first. What kind of carrier is it? I have the kind where the top off comes entirely off. Then, if you manage to get the cat in the bottom half, you can hold the cat down with your arm where the door is and then plop the top of the carrier on to the cat and pull your arm out and close the door. But with a cat that doesn't like to be held at all...that's hard. Because how do you get the cat into the bottom of the carrier in the first place without injury to yourself? If you can grab the cat at all and hold him down, you could (maybe) wrap him up in a towel real fast and then pop him into the bottom of the carrier and then put the lid on top. If the carrier doesn't have where you can pop the top off, then other than baiting him in, I can't imagine how you could get an outdoor kitty who hates to be held stuffed into a carrier. It's hard enough when our tame indoor kitties fight going in. Maybe the vet has advice. I haven't bought the carrier yet, so I'll look for the kind you have. That definitely sounds more manageable. I called the vet and asked for suggestions, but the lady who took my call wasn't very helpful at all. She said basically--get a carrier, so you don't have him loose in the car. duh. ;) If I have trouble, I'll call another vet for ideas. I like the towel idea. Good suggestions. The vet should have experience with handling even feral cats, so I wouldn't worry about what happens once they get him. BTW - is he fixed? If not, have them do that as well. Re. making him an indoor cat. You could try shutting him in a bathroom or garage or family room with the litter box to see how he copes. He might yowl a bit at first. Or he could start to spray urine on the walls etc if he is really stressed. That is why I would suggest starting in an easily cleaned place. He has been fixed--thankfully. The spraying is what I'm most worried about. He sprayed ONE time in my house. It was a terrible weather week, and he hadn't been out much. He climbed in a basket of towels on the floor of my bathroom and peed. It smelled so bad. I am so fortunate it was a tiled bathroom. I just threw the basket out. I don't think I could have gotten the smell out. I still don't know if he did it because he really needed to pee or if he was stressed. Edited April 18, 2017 by stephensgirls Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popmom Posted April 18, 2017 Author Share Posted April 18, 2017 My sister had to medicate her cat to be able to do so. This is another thing I have wondered. How in the world do you get a cat to take medicine? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted April 18, 2017 Share Posted April 18, 2017 http://www.wikihow.com/Give-a-Cat-a-Pill 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne in ABQ Posted April 18, 2017 Share Posted April 18, 2017 Thinking long term, I'd suggest taking some time to get the cat used to the carrier and develop good associations with it. Feed the cat in the carrier for several days before shutting it in. Just leave it on the porch with the door off, or propped open, and put its food near it once or twice, then place it inside for a few feedings. Next, practice closing the door, and picking it up with the cat inside, moving it from location to location, then releasing the cat. After a few days of this, start giving the cat rides in the car, being generous with kitty treats. The following week, take the cat to the vet, and give it lots of treats (or whatever it really likes) as a reward. Then, perhaps leave the carrier out where the cat can use it as a house, so it doesn't build up negative associations with it, so you won't have trouble next time you need to take it into the vet. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoobie Posted April 18, 2017 Share Posted April 18, 2017 There are traps for feral cats to use to fix them. I wonder if that would work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted April 19, 2017 Share Posted April 19, 2017 Not all cats hate crates. Cats who are only crated when being taken to the vet usually learn to hate them. I've always left at least one crate sitting out, open, with an old towel folded up in it. The resident cats have always loved sleeping in it, and so they never minded crating. In your shoes I'd sure try putting his food in the crate for a few days to let him get comfortable with it if you have time for that. If not, I'd put on some heavy work gloves (if I had them--I wouldn't buy a pair just for this purpose), wrap him up in a heavy towel and stuff him in. Tough love. Act matter of fact and confident. That's how we handle unfriendly shelter cats when we absolutely have to get them in a cage or crate and don't have time to baby them. But . . . is there any option of getting a mobile vet to come to you? As far as house breaking -- ditto confining him to a small room. Or you can use a large dog crate. The general recommendation I've seen for that is at least two weeks. I'd use Cat Attract litter to improve the odds of it working. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK_Mom4 Posted April 19, 2017 Share Posted April 19, 2017 I have had good luck with using a medium size dog crate to transport a cat. The one we have is 28x20x21.5 inches. It's a little awkward to carry but SOOOO much easier to get my cat to go into off his own free will. I toss a towel in the bottom and put some salmon in there (cat-irresistible!) and he wanders in to eat. The one time I had to stuff my dad's huge 20 pound cat into it, I was very glad to have the larger opening on the carrier. She couldn't get her feet braced to stop me putting her in. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popmom Posted April 19, 2017 Author Share Posted April 19, 2017 I have had good luck with using a medium size dog crate to transport a cat. The one we have is 28x20x21.5 inches. It's a little awkward to carry but SOOOO much easier to get my cat to go into off his own free will. I toss a towel in the bottom and put some salmon in there (cat-irresistible!) and he wanders in to eat. The one time I had to stuff my dad's huge 20 pound cat into it, I was very glad to have the larger opening on the carrier. She couldn't get her feet braced to stop me putting her in. Paws4me, I would LOVE to find a mobile vet to come to my house. That would be ideal. I've never heard of one around here, but I will ask around. AK, this is good to know--I was actually thinking about a dog crate. This cat is a big boy. He may be 20lbs. Big orange tabby. I was looking at cat specific carriers earlier and thinking most would not be nearly big enough. I was thinking salmon, too. I feel little panicked at the moment--like I don't have time to wait for him to get used to a carrier. He's outside a good bit--sometimes at night. With rabies being found so close--literally half a mile away, I want him vaccinated ASAP. Maybe I'll give it a few days to let him try it out, but I want it done by the end of the week. I wonder how long the vaccine takes to be effective... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catz Posted April 19, 2017 Share Posted April 19, 2017 I do the towel trick with my cats to get them in the carrier. I just had to do it with 14 year old Mr. Grumpy this week. LOL. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted April 19, 2017 Share Posted April 19, 2017 I finally caught our cat in a pillow case. However, when we got her to the vet, he said she was too high strung to groom and flea-treat so he would have to sedate her and THAT worried him because she was so little. He recommended we not do anything more, vet-wise. She lived to about age 18, mostly outside. She was the Boss of the neighborhood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted April 19, 2017 Share Posted April 19, 2017 (edited) Well, we have a feral cat that we managed to get inside (our sunroom) about a year ago. We had been feeding her (she was small & starving), but it took some doing to lure her in our sunroom. I kept her separated from our other cats until we could get her in a cage & to a vet for examination & shots. My solution? Wait for my sister (a cat wrangler of feral cats) to come to town & then get HER to put the cat in the cage. :lol: Maybe you know someone who can handle feral cats??? (Btw, I was working that day, so my sister & dd took the cat to the vet. My sis warned the vet staff that the cat was feral & suggested lightly gassing the cage before opening it -- for their own safety. They poo-pooed her. Sis said they later came in the room & had named the cat Hannibal Lecter.) A year on, we can pet said cat & she loves sleeping on a fleece blanket on my bed, but she still hates to be picked up. (The one time I tried, she literally spiralized my entire arm using just her back legs in a spinning rotor motion. Yikes.) I need to take her in again soon for her annual exam & am trying to figure out how to do it. Probably towels or a big blanket to grab her & put her in the cage.... ETA: And it's not like I'm a cat novice. I've had cats most of my life & have had so many with health issues that I know how to administer meds from pills to IV fluids to shots & more. But this one is a wild girl. (She's a smart, talkative Siamese & we adore her. But she has a "NO PICK UP" rule that we have to figure out how to get around, lol.) Edited April 19, 2017 by Stacia 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popmom Posted April 19, 2017 Author Share Posted April 19, 2017 Hannibal Lecter! Hahaha! lol My Elliott might be about as bad. He will let me pick him up, but he meows his displeasure. I still do it occasionally even though I know he hates it because I want him to know it's not the end of the world if someone picks him up. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted April 19, 2017 Share Posted April 19, 2017 Paws4me, I would LOVE to find a mobile vet to come to my house. That would be ideal. I've never heard of one around here, but I will ask around. If all you need right now is his vaccines, you can probably just call any vet and ask for that service. They may not advertise, but for a slightly increased fee you can probably find somebody willing to drop by with a syringe. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefgazer Posted April 20, 2017 Share Posted April 20, 2017 I had one like this. Have a mobile vet come to you, or burrito him on a towel and hold him like a football to get him in. A smart cat will fall for the bait trick only once or twice and then wont go in for it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popmom Posted April 27, 2017 Author Share Posted April 27, 2017 (edited) UPDATE: Ornery cat had no problem taking his meals in the big carrier I bought for him. I had him eat in the crate for several days until I could time it right to take him to the vet. So he went this morning. I never dreamed it would be that easy to lure him in! He is back home--hungry but otherwise acting pretty normal. whew! Glad that's over. Thanks for the help! I didn't feel like I had time to acclimate him to the crate more than I did, but I can work on that over the next year. Edited April 27, 2017 by stephensgirls 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted April 27, 2017 Share Posted April 27, 2017 Thanks for the update! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted April 27, 2017 Share Posted April 27, 2017 Thank you for the update -- I'm glad to hear that everything went well! :hurray: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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