TNR in practice

Aftercare Instructions

After a feral cat has spay or neuter surgery we keep the cat in the trap. The cat has has anesthesia and will be groggy and the drugs make the cat unable to adequately regulate body temperature.  For a male cat the surgery is simple and he will only need to remain in the trap one night. Females, however, have an actual incision on their belly and we want to keep that area clean, dry, and without opportunity to be ripped open. Usually we keep a female cat in the trap for two nights, and if the weather is bad, such as raining, we may hold off on release for an additional night. While the cat is in the trap we want to care for them in a few ways. The cat should be provided with small amounts of food and water. You need to be careful when lifting the end door of the trap and make sure the cat will not escape. Probably there will be newspaper on the bottom of the trap for the comfort of the cat against the wire mesh of the trap floor plus the cat may pee or poop while in the trap. That newspaper needs to be pulled out and replaced with clean, dry newspaper. Care, again, needs to be taken so the cat does not escape. It is a good idea to bungee cord the doors at the end where the rings are, and the other end where the door is lifted up can use a carabiner clip so the door cannot be lifted. While the cat is in the trap you should continue to use the trap cover as this helps the cat to stay calm. You also want to check to see if there is any bleeding, excessive licking of the surgery site, or the cat is vomiting or showing any other signs of being sick. If any of that happens, you should call the clinic that did the spay/neuter and you may need to bring the cat back in. Usually everything is fine and after one night the males are returned back to their colony, and after 2 nights, the females are returned.