Monday, February 10, 2020

It's the Barn Life for Us - YAY

Happy Monday and happy, happy, happy cat update!!!!!! This is a very cat heavy post - the whole thing really - so if you don't like cats or feral cats you may want to skip to the end! HA HA!

On Thursday I worked with the Pittsburgh Homeless Cat and Pittsburgh Feral Cat Management Team worker Margo to catch our four kitties in the woods near my home. SHE IS AMAZING! She does this all over Pittsburgh to help save, heal and relocate (in some instances) ferals and injured ferals.

It went so smoothly it was truly AMAZING! She is going straight to Heaven for all she does for these animals!

So, she showed up and we set up three traps right in front of their house. She the amazing little house they made??? The food bowls are setting right out front of the front door. They also have a back exit for quick escape!!! I worried what would happen when they condo lawn people had to dump more crush there...they may be crushed!

So, like I said we took three traps and put a piece of cardboard on the bottom. We smeared it with tuna and then took a paper bowl and filled it with sardines in oil. Then we set the traps! The whole time it is raining so hard so I thought there was no way these cats woudl go in this tiny metal area to get the sardines...well, I was wrong!!!! Very wrong.  You can see the three traps in the photo below.

We walked away back to our cars for five minutes and by the time we walked back we had already caught two!! We caught the grey one and fluffy one first. Gloria calls them Buttons and Queenie.


 The traps close very slowly so they were both still eating as they had not realized they were even trapped yet! As soon as they saw us and realized they could not run away, they went NUTS!! It was super sad but we threw large sheets over the top of the traps and they immediately started calming down. We then took them to Margo's car so they were safe and warm in the back. She lines the back of her car with pee pads so they can pee in the trap and not have it everywhere!!!

We went back and set the fourth trap and walked up to my house to wait and have coffee. We waited 1/2 hour and went back down; we caught the third!! So we took him to Margo's car.


She had an appointment that day so she had to leave. I was asked to check the trap every half hour and just bring the trap with the cat into the condo when I got the fourth. Margo was coming by later that night to get the final cat.

Within the first 1/2 hour check - I walked down and we got the forth! We had not see it all day so I think it was out hunting and came home like "Hello...Hello...where did everyone go???" LOL! At least they got a great sardine meal!!!

So ...he he is in our condo hallway on cardboard and pee pads! HA!

I had to use my snuggie to cover the cage as I ran out of extra sheets! HA HA! It's okay - now that I am menopausal I don't need any more warmth!! HA! Here is a peek at the last holdout -Buttons!!! Gloria calls him Mr. Independent since he was always out and about when she would arrive everyday! Fitting since he was the last one we caught! He was not a happy camper when I peeked in...hissy little guy! HA HA!


So below is a close up of all the sweeties the morning before we caught them!!!! The fluffy one on the left is Queenie (She was the first to be caught in the traps and it turns out she is the only girl of the bunch!!!!).  Hunkered in the middle is Blacky (He is the third one caught and is confirmed to be a boy). The tuxedo cat on the far right is Buttons (He was the last one caught and is the one in the trap in the picture above. He is confirmed to be a boy).


Last, but definitely not least, is Boots (He was the second one caught and is a confirmed boy also!!!) This is the guy that loves Gloria and would run out when she came to feed them and let her pet him!!!

So, they were all caught and then taken to be spayed/neutered the next day by Margo. She said they all did great! Queenie was not pregnant (we were worried about that as she is really fluffy). They were all given meds for worms, rabies, etc and all checked out with clean bills of health! YAY! So while Margo worked on the plan to release back into the woods on Sunday - I began my pleading on Social Media for a barn that needed cats! I messages the lady that I got my barn kittens from and asked her if she needed them.She said she had a friend with a farm that was looking for barn cats to help out with their mice problem! YAY!!! I messaged her and she loved the idea of having them come live in her barn! YIPPEE!

So, we are all set! They have had a few days to hang out and recover a little and we will be taking them to the barn to get them all set up on Tuesday night! SO happy they get to live a fun and warm life at a large farm in Washington County!!! For the first few weeks they will live in cages so they get used to farm noises and understand that this is their home and then the farm owner will release them to live free in and around the barn! BIG Thank you to Shari for welcoming our babies into her farm!!!!

So that is the latest cat update! Also, I am so happy we got them on the rainy day we did because this happened the next morning...

I would have hated to know they were out in the freezing snow!!!

Thank you all for your kind words and prayers for the cat situation! No doubt it helped with finding the barn and the really record time trapping of the four sweeties!!! You guys rock!

 Check this out...a beautiful pair of cardinals that have been hanging out near the bird feeder on my porch!!! Sooo pretty!!!!


See them?!?! The Mom is on the branches right below the Dad!!!! Sooo pretty!!! The cats love watching them also! HA HA! To be honest, the bird feeder is really like cat entertainment at my home! LOL!

Onto the dog bite update...The hearing is Wednesday so I will let you know how that all goes. 

Thank you all for your undying support and kind words...I truly think it helped wit the super quick trapping and success of everything cat related! I do not know what I woudl do without the support I get from this blog!

I hope everyone has a fantastic week - hugs to you all!

How was your weekend? 

 

46 comments:

  1. How wonderful! I'm so glad the now have a safe, warm place to live.

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    1. Me too Cathy - me too! I hope you have a great week! HUGS

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  2. I'm allergic to cats, so I will admire them from afar (smiles). Glad all worked out and can't wait to hear about the dog situation. Have a great day, smiles,

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    1. LOL Linda! I do not blame you at all - I am actually at a distance too as they are not real snuggly - definitely hissy and feral - ha! But they will be great mouse catchers! HA! Have a fantastic day!

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  3. Great job. So many do wonderful things to help the kitties. Bless you.

    Have a fabulous day and week. ♥

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    1. Thank you for joining the Awww Mondays Blog Hop.

      Have a fabulous Awww Monday and week. ♥

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  4. My neighbor feeds so many cats, he said he fixed 18 least year. I went over yesterday to get directions to feed them for 2 days this week while they are on vacation. Wish we could find homes for them.

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    1. Oh wow! That has to be a ton of work!!!! Barns are a great solution if he is up to it...just post pleadingly on Facebook and someone should offer up their barn! It is a great way of using nature to solve issues...I wish you luck!!! I am so happy these guys will have shelter when they need it!

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  5. We had barn cats on the farm where I grew up. They did not like to be petted and seldom came up to the house or around any of us. They were mousers and did a good job for Daddy keeping the barn rodent free. Sounds like quite an adventure in capturing them.

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    1. Yes Arlene - that is what these guys will hopefully spend the rest of their lives doing. They are not very social except when they know you have food and even them don't like being petted. Have a great day!

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    1. Yes Lydia - so happy it went so well and they are healthy and able to relocate!!! It's a win for the cat world!! HUGS

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  7. I do love a story with a happy ending and this sure has one. so glad you found a barn for them to hunt mice and live nice. it is great that you have the catch and release program for ferals. God bless them and all of you who helped them

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    1. Aw thank you Sandra! I am so super happy they are safe and have shelter if necessary!! HUGS - have a great day!

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  8. Ahhh - so glad to hear you got them all & now there is no worries of kittens from this bunch. & even more excited they have a barn to go to - a good warm home where they'll be more than happy to keep the critters away. My animal loving heart is smiling at this post

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    1. Right Rebecca Jo??? I slept SOOO good last night just knowing they would have a warm and happy life!~ HUGS to you!!!

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  9. Wonderful job of capture and homing. I have trapped feral cats before and tuna worked marvelously for me. I had mine fixed and kept them as outdoor cats. Have to tell you. For a while now I saw that picture of the brush and swore that it looked like a monster looking out. Knowing it couldn't be I said nothing. Now I see the scary eyes were just food dishes. Kind of relieved:))

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    1. LOL Patti - yes i can see where that is what you saw!! HA HA! Too funny!!! I would never share monster pictures with my readers to scare - note to self - HA!! Have a great day!

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  10. Great work, but as you may know, it's the tip of the iceberg. But you've done your bit.

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    1. Absolutely Andrew! I told the neighbors to keep checking their old home when they walk their dogs because it is such a wonderful location that I am sure a new feral family will move in within a week! HA!

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  11. I'm glad you got to catch them and great that they will soon have a new home to go to. Well done. Hope the dog situation gets resolved ok too.

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    1. Thanks Wendy - me too! HA! Thanks for the kind words!! Have a great day! HUGS

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  12. That awesome that you were able to catch them all and even more so that you found them a farm to live on.

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    1. Right Ann!?!? I am so very super happy - I slept so well well last night and I can not wait to see how they like their new home tonight!!! HUGS

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  13. My weekend was good and is in my Monday blog. I am glad you caught the cats without incident and that they have a great new home! I love the tuxie. Glad I live too far away to take him!!

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    1. Right Terri!!! It is taking all the restraint I have to not grab them up myself! HA!!! HUGS Terri!

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  14. My son rescues cats as well. Very rewarding thing to do. God bless you for it.

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    1. That is awesome! Tell him thank you for saving lives!!! Thank you for the blessing - it is truly appreciated! HUGS - have a great week Ann!

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  15. So very nice. Bless you for keeping these lovely cats alive.

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    1. Aw thanks Patrick! I only jumped in at the end - my neighbors raised them and did all the hard work! HA! Have a great day! HUGS

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  16. Love the red cardinals on the black and white photo.

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    1. Aren't they lovely??!?! I could watch them on the tree all day - nature's beauty!!! Have a great day!

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  17. Aww...I'm glad you were able to get all the kitties and that they have a home to go to. They sure are cuties. Love the picture of the cardinals. It reminds me of sitting at my grandmother's table and watching the birds at her feeder. Have a great week!

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    1. Thank you Stacy - I hope you have a fantastic week also! HUGS

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  18. We have three feral cats on our block which several of us feed. They have all been neutered. More than one family (me included) have tried to get them to come into our homes because we would keep them, but they don't want any parts of us except for our food. I am so happy for the outcome with these beauties. A warm, clean and safe place to stay with plenty of food is the perfect life for them.

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    1. I think that is how a lot of them feel Kathy! I am not even sure they would be happy if brought inside and stuck in a home. They are meant to chase things and play outside....thank you for feeding them and caring for them...have a great week!

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  19. This is my first time visiting your blog. Are all your posts as GLORIOUS as this one? :) It's so great that these cats have shelter to run to when the weather gets rough. What a happy ending!

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    1. Welcome to my blog! So happy to have you here!!! The answer is "No, they are not"...check out today's boring recap of y busy night last night - HA HA!!! But every now and then I have something interesting to share! HAHA!!! So happy you are here - have a great week!

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  20. So glad the kitties had someone who cared enough to go through all the hassle you did to make sure they are OK.

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    1. Definitely - although I feel that way about any wildlife really...I cant wait to see their forever home tonight.

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  21. That was such a good thing you did! They are all gorgeous kitties and I'm glad to hear they'll have a new home at a barn!

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    1. Thank you Heather - I am so very happy too! Super excited t see where their new home will be and meet their new Mom! HA! Have a great day - thanks for stopping by!

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  22. What an adventure! Hoping for a happily-ever-after for all the kitties! :)

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