Advanced Animal Handling Skills - Feral Cats - 08

Question 1

Define what a stray cat is

Answer 1

a cat who has been abandoned or who has become lost. strays can usually be re-socialized & adopted

Question 2

define what a feral cat is

Answer 2

an unsocialized cat who was born outside & never lived in a home or been away from a home for a long time & became undomesticated

Question 3

T or F: feral cats are not pet cats & can not be placed up for public adoptions

Answer 3

true - although HEAVILY depends on each situation, can be easier to social kittens below 8 weeks

Question 4

T or F: all community cats should be spayed/neutered in order to prevent unwanted kittens

Answer 4

true

Question 5

what is chemical restraint

Answer 5

CR utilizes drugs like sedatives, tranqs & anesthesia to alter the patient’s mental state, allowing the animal to stay immobolized &/or without pain during procedures

Question 6

T or F: CR is required for a thorough physical exam & treatments needed for our feral patients

Answer 6

true

Question 7

when we have ferals sedated, what does doing ‘everything’ we can look like?

Answer 7

-full physical
-spay/neuter
-FIV/FeLV testing
-bloodwork
-vaccinations
-parasite control

Question 8

how would we administer hands-off sedation with ketamine?

Answer 8

give it PO - when the cat hisses, a dose of ketamine can be given by squirting it into the cat’s open mouth

Question 9

can hands-off sedation (ketamine) also work in the eyes?

Answer 9

yes

Question 10

how is ketamine absorbed

Answer 10

through the mucous membranes causing a sedative effects

Question 11

T or F: there’s varying success with the hands-off ketamine sedation method

Answer 11

true - katemine tastes horrible, causes drooling, further angering the patient

Question 12

T or F: it’s difficult to calculate dosages for hands-off gabapentin sedation

Answer 12

true - no record of weight makes dosaging difficult

Question 13

T or F: gabapentin is difficult to overdose on

Answer 13

true

Question 14

T or F: in feral colonies it becomes impossible to dose a specific patient

Answer 14

true

Question 15

what does hands-off gabapentin sedation do in our feral patients

Answer 15

functions to take the edge off, patient will still need further sedation for hands-on exams & treatments

Question 16

what is hands-off anesthetic sedation sometimes referred to as

Answer 16

boxing down - anesthetic gas chambers are still used in feral cats in some instances

Question 17

what is the upside to hands-off anesthetic sedation

Answer 17

works quickly to fully sedate the patient hands-off

Question 18

what are the downsides of hands-off anesthetic sedation

Answer 18

-safety concerns - inhaling a lot of anesthetic —gas
-short lived
-no pain control
-stressful for the patients

Question 19

list 6 common tools to have on hand for handling ferals

Answer 19

-cat gloves
-large towels
-feliway
-cat muzzles
-capturing devices
-restraint tools (cats bags, cat lasso, live traps)

Question 20

why is the cat “panini press” capturing device only meant for quick, short term use

Answer 20

it’s stressful long term - only used as a means of restraint to quickly administer IM or SQ injections

Question 21

what are some benefits of a cat bag restraint tool

Answer 21

-variety of options, head can be inside
-zippers allow you to unzip & pull-out a leg
-zippers allow you to find a muscle for -injections
-thick material protects from scratching & biting

Question 22

T or F: the cat lasso is a last resort for restraining cats

Answer 22

true

Question 23

T or F: makehsift versions of the cat lasso can be made from leashes

Answer 23

true

Question 24

how should we use the cat lasso

Answer 24

place the lasso around the cat’s shoulders to avoid choking & hold just long enough to get a good hold on the cat to administer sedation

Question 25

T or F: live traps are vital in the TNR efforts

Answer 25

true - main method for catching ferals & many other wild creatures

Question 26

T or F: food should be withheld 24 hours prior to trapping feral cats (live traps)

Answer 26

true - some food should be left toward the front of the trap with most of the meal at the back of it

Question 27

how should we lure feral cats into live traps

Answer 27

we should be using bait, something strong scented like tuna, sardines, salmon

Question 28

why should we line live traps with newspaper

Answer 28

they should be lined for the ease of cleaning & disease control, the newspaper is also easier on the cats feet

Question 29

why should we cover live traps

Answer 29

we should cover live traps to encourage them to enter & to keep them calm onced trapped

Question 30

why are tarps sometimes used for live trap capturings

Answer 30

used to cover traps in the snow & rain, it also protects the car interio during transport

Question 31

how/where should we set live traps

Answer 31

-high traffic areas
-avoiding direct sunlight
-protective from other elements/animals

Question 32

3 signs we can check for on a feral for ownership or previous spay/neuter

Answer 32

-check for collars
-ear tips
-tattoos

Question 33

what should we do if we have multiple live traps to transport

Answer 33

cover & store traps in transport vehicle in a way that the patients can’t see each other

Question 34

T or F:

Answer 34

Ferals are often sedated while still in the live trap & removed after they
are sedated

Question 35

what kind of administration route are we aiming for

Answer 35

IM injections

Question 36

what is the best thing we could do for ferals since fear free is usually not an option

Answer 36

move quietly, quickly, and efficiently while
focusing on the bigger picture of population control so they can live
happy, healthy lives outside in their colonies