There is also the strong possibility that mom will start moving them, and the trapper will never find them. The concept of letting the kittens get older prior to trapping appears to ignore the many hazards to young feral kittens and their low life expectancy, as well as the increased difficulty of socializing them if they are lucky enough to survive. I am painfully aware how critical it is to get these fragile families into a safe environment as quickly as possible a delay of a day or even a few hours could be a matter of life and death. I have been a volunteer trapper in this community for 15 years, and have always tried to trap moms and kittens as soon as they have been reported by a member of the general public.

Our shelter leadership has convinced itself that it is better to leave nursing kittens in the wild until they are old enough to be weaned (5-6 weeks), rather than trap the mom and get her and the kittens into a safe environment (shelter nursery or foster home) where she can raise them without fear of predation. Unfortunately they are about to implement some policy changes that will very negatively impact feral cats. The local shelter in my area has an enviable record of high quality care over the years, including a free TNR program.

Trapping feral cats download free