I saw a couple in my backyard and started looking for ways to get rid of them. A couple Feral Cat websites were pretty clear that rescue places won’t take them. They stopped just short of telling you ways to poison or otherwise kill them.
But at the same time, they were also very clear that feral cats bear no relationship to household cats and that they are wild animals that cannot be housebroken.
I saw an old lady in our neighborhood setting out food for them. Not real happy. The stray cat population has gone from none to 5-6 around our area this year.
Catch and release - catch them, get them fixed, get them shots, then release them. Remove them and others will just move in.
Catch them and get them neutered. Then feed them to keep away new cats.
Soon, it will be under control.
“they were also very clear that feral cats bear no relationship to household cats and that they are wild animals that cannot be housebroken”
In 2011, we brought in four feral cats — two adults and two babies. It took a while, especially for the adults, but they’re the most cuddly and loving cats we’ve had. They were housebroken on Day One. We kept them in a small bedroom the first week with food, water, and litter box. Never had an “accident”.
I’ve got two former ferals that showed up in my yard and they are now tame housecats. I’ve got three more that have since shown up and am working on taming them. It can be done.
Locals need to use the trap-neuter-release method. One of mine was a TNR. Murdering them is cruel and unnecessary.