30 January 2010

PostHeaderIcon January Happenings at C5

08:35 | Posted by phreephallin | Edit Post
Monthly Meeting
Despite the torrential downpour a little more than a dozen folks dragged themselves out to our Jan monthly meeting on the 19th. I'd like the thank David from Nevada Corporate Center for generously allowing us the use of their meeting room. We look forward to hosting other meetings in the venue! Come join us on Feb 25 to meet other cat friendly folks and eat cake!

Jan TNR Classes
Our first two Introduction to TNR classes were held at the HCWS Spay/Neuter Clinic on the 9th and the 23rd. 15 students attended these two classes and got great information on trapping, staging, transporting cats humanely. The new Training Coordinator Tricia Brain has jumped right in producing very professional looking training manuals as well as preparing to take over presentation of the training material.

Trapper Certification Process
 C5 is committed to humanely trapping, staging, and transporting feral cats. As feral cats are wild animals,  trappers, stagers and transporters need to use caution. C5 supports a TNR certification process, which is required to be a trapper, stager, or transporter.

The certification process includes:

    * Attending a two (2) hour C5 TNR class
    * Eight (8) hours in the field with a mentor
    * Four (4) hours volunteering at one(1) monthly feral cat clinic to gain a better understanding of the requirements and processes

Email TNRClass@gmail.com to register for the class. Contact Debbie alyse24@aol.com to volunteer for the clinic.

Trapping for Weekly Slots
 We continue to attempt to fill 30 weekly slots on Tuesdays for community cats from Clark County. With the bad weather it's proven to be a challenge but with the formation of a number of trapping teams, we hope to get a little more organized and continue to deliver cats. If you'd like to assist in trapping for these slots, contact Keith info@clarkcountyferalcats.org to find a trapper team near you.

Jan HCWS Monthly Feral Clinic
http://kittenpaparazzi.blogspot.com/2010/01/hcws-january-2010-monthly-feral-clinic.html

Monthly HCWS Feral Clinic No No's
Please do not bring cats in carriers or non-approved traps. Arrange to get a trap before the morning of the clinic and transfer the animal into the trap before coming to the clinic.Transferring cats disrupts the check in process and you may be asked to step aside while other people's cats are processed. If you need assistance in performing a transfer be prepared to wait and provide your own trap, otherwise there is no guarantee that a trap will be available.

Make sure you have pre-printed labels which include the following lines: Trapper, Trapper Phone, Trapping Location, Sponsor, Sponsor Phone. A template is available on the clarkcountyferalcats.org website. If you do not, you may be asked to step aside while you fill out the labels. Make sure you sign a release every time!

The monthly clinic is only for community cats that are going to be released back to outdoor colonies. Cats that will be fostered, adopted or rescued in any way are not be brought into the monthly feral clinic! The clinic targets the free-roaming cat population and the vets, vet techs and others who volunteer at the clinic expect to work on this demographic of animals. Cats that are fixed at the monthly clinic receive no paperwork (sterilization/shots), are ear tipped, and are exposed to all manner of parasites and disease found amongst the feral population. If you trap kittens small enough to tame or friendly strays that you intend to foster or adopt, do not bring them to the monthly clinic. Contact Keith at info@clarkcountyferalcats.org or myself if you need to have an animal fixed that will not go back to a colony. HCWS is happy to aid folks and animals who are truly in need. All that is expected is honesty about the animals and what will happen to them.

Public Outreach
Keith and I attended a couple of events for public outreach this month. One was Chris G.'s town hall meeting on fixing County budget shortfalls and the other was the Westley Neighborhood associations monthly meeting. At both events, Keith expressed the advantage of a community based TNR program: why use tax payer dollars to endlessly kill cats when volunteers and resources are available to do TNR?

In other tabling event news, C5 will have a booth at the Clark County Library Districts Petstacular event of Feb 27 at the Rainbow library. If anyone is aware of other pet friendly venues where we can have a booth, let me know and I'll try to get us signed up!  I've wanted to start tabling at Petsmarts, Petcos, etc. to push more traffic to the TNR Class and get more caretakers to register etc. Several cat adoption rescues in town already have arrangements to run operations out of the locations. I've contacted a couple and I think we can leverage the traffic they already have by having C5 volunteers available to give information about the Community Cat problem and upcoming classes, clinics, etc. If you are interested, contact me with a Petsmart/Petco location near you and the days or hours you'd be willing to spend.

Drop Trap Primer
Information on building and using a drop trap to catch more cats!

http://kittenpaparazzi.blogspot.com/2010/01/whys-and-hows-of-drop-trapping.html

Feb Upcoming Events:
Introduction to TNR Class, Saturday Feb 6 and 20 12:00 - 2:00 PM
Heaven Can Wait Society Spay/Neuter Clinic
546 N. Eastern Ave
Email TNRClass@gmail.com to register

HCWS Monthly Feral Clinic Sunday Feb 21 6:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Heaven Can Wait Society Spay/Neuter Clinic
546 N. Eastern Ave
Volunteers needed to aid in checking in cats from 6:30 - 10:00 AM
Email alyse24@aol.com to volunteer

C5 Monthly Meeting  Thursday Feb 25 6:30 - 8:00 PM
Plaza Tower and Suites
101 E. Convention Center Dr. #P-111

Petstacular Pet Fair Saturday Feb 27  10:00 to 2:00 PM
Rainbow Library
3150 N. Buffalo Dr.

Michael White
President

Have Drop Trap, will travel...
702-688-0295
Chat Google Talk: phreephallin@gmail.com
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28 January 2010

PostHeaderIcon HCWS January 2010 Monthly Feral Clinic

12:12 | Posted by phreephallin | Edit Post

Despite the poor weather and the fact that several large projects did not come together for C5 as planned, 274 cats were signed into the clinic with 98 coming in under C5.  265 surgeries were performed with 156 males being neutered and  109 females being spayed. 6 were "Already Been Spay/Neutered  (ABS/N)" and  sadly 3 had to be euthanized. The check in process went fairly smoothly considering that Debbie, the largest cog in the wheel was unable to be there. Caretakers were lined up as early as 6:30 to drop off their cats. Most people cooperated with the new check in policy, and lined their vehicles up for drop off. Printed labels were provided for those who did not have them and for the most part the check in went smoothly. As a reminder, please don't get to the clinic before 7:00 AM. There are no prizes for being first, and as a practical matter, even if you're first in line, you'll never get checked in before the cats Emily trapped the night before! Besides, you'll probably end up behind Keith with 40 traps or Trudy with 80 and have to sit and wait anyways!

The day started off with a bang as a poorly balanced trap fell off one of the first carts. I saw it tipping off and watched in horror as it flipped over and landed on the ground upside down. No longer secured by the rings, the trap door started to fall open. I rushed over and blocked the door closed with my hand. Quickly grabbing the trap with my other hand I flipped the trap over in one motion averting disaster.


This was the first month that non ring-door style traps were not allowed at the monthly clinic. Seven non-conforming traps and two carriers contained cats that had to be transferred into allowed traps. Fortunately for the folks who brought these cats in, I had exactly the number of traps needed to trade out carriers/traps for them. I learned my lesson this month, and next month I won't be bringing any extra traps with me! Transferring the cats and keeping track of who needed to be transferred back after the surgery was a pain and gummed up the check in process!

During the second or third transfer, a cat managed to escape. Without even thinking about it, I tossed a towel on top of him and we got him into the trap without any further problems.


Harold was happy to have a good number. Keith was happy he didn't have to take any heat for any of the cats brought in under C5. I'd like to thank Tricia, David, Susan, David, Matt for helping with the checkin.

I took just enough pictures and video to cut together this little diddy on video. Bonus points if you can name the composer and the musical though really it should be quite obvious ;-)




Finally, even though there were a large number of cats, the clinic went so smoothly that Dr. Henderson  and Harold had enough free time to dance to hip hop songs with me while Joanie taped the entire incident.  I shudder to think of  that video making it into public! Next month, barring more bad weather, the monthly clinic sign-in number will break 320, I'm sure of it!



Michael White
President


Have Drop Trap, will travel...
Chat Google Talk: phreephallin@gmail.com
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27 January 2010

PostHeaderIcon Why's and How's of Drop Trapping

16:30 | Posted by phreephallin | Edit Post

When I first started learning about TNR, I came across this video of entitled "A Drop trap catches more cats!" I watched the video and was impressed with what I saw. I did a little more research and built my own drop trap. After using it to catch well over a 100 cats, I'd like to share what I know so that more people can use this versatile and effective trapping tool. With a good design and construction, proper tactics and patience and you will easily catch the most trap shy cats.

 

THE PRO'S:
1. Able to trap cats which are trap shy from being previously trapped.
2. Able to catch multiple cats at one time.
3. Able to select individuals out of a crowd.
4. Able to "stand-off", or watch and activate trap from a distance.

THE CONS: My trap is bulky, heavy and difficult to transport. Finding a good spot to place it is often difficult and managing the string can be a pain. Impractical to use in some locations.

THE TRAP:  The trap I built is 3'X3' and 1.5' tall.  I used 1"X2" lumber which I screwed and glued together to form a box and the frame for the transfer door. The transfer door was fashioned out of a piece of  plywood. A crude flap is attached to the back of the trap with hinges. To reduce the weight at the front of the trap, I placed the door in the rear corner. I lined the bottom with weather stripping to dampen the noise of the trap falling. I then attached garden netting using zip ties and rope.



 

THE WEIGHT and COVER: The weight, a kitty litter bucket filled with rocks, sits on the crude flap in the back of the prevents the cats from being able to move the trap.  The cover, a fitted queen size sheet , calms them down when placed over the trap.  I bundle it up and keep it with the weight at all times. As soon as the trap is sprung, the cover is immediately available to quiet the cats.



 

THE PROP STICK and STRING: The prop stick is approximately 12" long.  Something like a paint stirring stick would be good, but I usually just used scrap from parts I have sometimes as large as 1"x2". I try to bevel the end that is going to be on the ground so that when the stick is leaning at an angle, the bevel is flat on the ground.  I also place a notch on top to hold the trap. With the notch and bevel the stick should be quite stable while holding the trap. Cats have rubbed up against the trap  numerous times and I have yet to have one knock it over. I drill a hole in the front part of bottom end and attach the string at this point. Pulling the stick from this point knocks it over quite easily. I also like to pad the stick with weather stripping or tape so that it doesn't make as much noise when the trap is sprung.


The string has to be lightweight without any stretch. Mason's string works very well. Make sure to wind it back up using the reel as opposed to wrapping the string around the reel which will cause it to twist up.




THE TACTICS:  I try to cause as little commotion as possible when setting the drop trap up. A slow quiet approach is best if you don't want to upset the cats too much. The trap should sit on a flat surface so that no gaps show underneath the trap. A tenacious cat may be able to wiggle underneath! Ideally, I place the trap so I can view it from the front left quarter (my transfer door is on the right side). This is the best view for me to see if the cat is in and not beside or behind the trap. Normally, I put the prop stick at the front left corner of the trap with notch holding the trap and the string hole closest to me. The bait goes in the very back center of the trap. At this location, any  cat that is eating the bait is completely inside of the trap. I usually bait the drop trap with a lot of food to hopefully draw multiples and because with a lot of food, cats will relax and sit down to eat, making them easier to trap.


If I think a cat is especially wary, I might move the prop stick further back to hold the trap up higher. It is also not unusual for me to sit in my vehicle and at a distance of up to 300 feet. A pair of binoculars is absolutely necessary for determining if the cat is actually in the trap or not, especially when lighting conditions are poor.  At night, if I want to sit back at a distance, I usually select locations for the trap that are underneath a street lamp or other light source.

Another option is for the person pulling the string to hide out of site from the trap. A second person can watch from a better vantage point and signal when to spring the trap.  If you are going to use this system, practice your communication signals before you start trapping. Screwing up the signals is a sure fire way to  miss cats that you should have trapped! Another tactic is to setup the trap outside of a window or door, lead the string inside and then watch from inside the building in the dark.

 Things other than food will cause a cat to enter the drop trap. One cat sat next to the trap for two hours until the frustrated caretaker went over and shooed her underneath the trap! Laser pointers, hanging feathers, toys and catnip have all been successfully used to get cats to enter drop traps.



SPRINGING THE TRAP: Always ensure that the string is running directly to your position without being snagged on anything. Also ensure that there is little slack in the string and that once the trap is set, you never leave the string or take your eyes away from the trapping area. Once you decide to spring the trap, make sure that you pull with as much force as you can. If I am standing, I will actually walk or run away from the trap while I pull to take up the slack even quicker. If I am inside of a vehicle, I make sure that the string is taut and that I am positioned so that I can generate enough power to spring the trap quickly. Cats are incredibly fast and strong and given even a split second of hesitation, they will find a way to slip out!


As soon as you have sprung the trap, be prepared to move in, cover the trap and transfer the cat out of the  drop trap. A fearful cat will batter itself against the inside of the drop trap seeking a way to escape if left uncovered. Covering the animal will quickly calm it down and keep it from injuring itself. Transfer cats out of the drop trap as quickly as possible because a) resetting the drop trap will allow you to trap another  and b) until the cat is in the transfer trap, it isn't truly "in the bag"!




TRANSFERRING CATS: My transfer door is secured shut by two bungee cords which are attached to the drop trap. I expose the transfer door by moving the drop trap cover out of the way. I butt a trap (with it's guillotine door open) up against the transfer door of the drop trap. I secure the trap using the two bungee cords and then cover the trap but leave the end uncovered so it looks like an escape route.


Open the drop traps guillotine door. If you are lucky the cat will automatically make it's way into the transfer trap. If you are not so lucky, you may be able to spook it by peeking into the drop trap from the opposite sides. In extreme cases I have used long skinny poles or spray bottles with water to gently prod cats into the transfer trap.








MIKE'S DROP TRAP RULES LEARNED THROUGH MISTAKES!


These are rules that I have come up with based on mistakes that I have made that have allowed cats to escape, or become injured unnecessarily. The injuries were scraped noses and faces which occurred when I was using a smaller, more lightweight design. Since the cats could easily lift the trap they would bang themselves up frantically! Just yesterday, I had to add #1 to the list as I had my first cat successfully wiggle out from underneath the drop trap!


1. Ensure that the drop trap sits flat enough to prevent cats from wiggling underneath.
2. Never leave the string once the trap is set.
3. Ensure that the string is running cleanly to your position without much slack.
4. Watch the trap and be prepared to pull the string at any time!
5. Double check that the cat is actually in the trap (wait till its eating!)
6. Pull with all of the speed and violence you can muster!
7. Transfer cats out of drop trap as quickly as possible.
8. Don't open the transfer door too far if it allows the cat a place to exit the drop trap other than into the transfer trap.
9. Make sure your materials and design are secure and minimize the chances of injury to the cats.
10. Inspect and repair the trap frequently to prevent cats from being able to exploit a flaw or weakness.
Michael White
President
Have Drop Trap, will travel...
Contact Me TwitterFacebookBloggerPicasaYoutube
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02 January 2010

PostHeaderIcon December Happenings with C5

07:57 | Posted by phreephallin | Edit Post
I hope everyone had a wonderful Holiday Season and and a great New Year! Santa brought the Community Cat Coalition of Clark County (C5) a great present for Christmas this year, official incorporation in the state of Nevada as a non-profit. Our favorite lawyer has mailed off our 501 c3, so it was submitted before the new year! Bad weather and difficult winter trapping conditions led to a low turnout at the December HCWS feral clinic. 200 were signed into the clinic with 66 sponsored by C5.  SNAPS, a group which regularly brings in 40-50 cats, only brought in 9! The light turnout provided the perfect opportunity to try out our new check-in process which made things run quite smoothly. The new process will be used for the January 24 clinic so be prepared. Helping with the check-in this month was an eye-opening experience for me.  People please, handle the cats in traps with care! Our next TNR class will be on Jan 9th at the HCWS clinic from 12 - 2 PM with classes following every two weeks. Email tnrclass@gmail.com to register. Attached is a flyer for the class. Help us spread the word by printing and posting these at places where one might find cat fans. Debbie has been busy finding folks to fill key positions. We are still looking to fill the Marketing Coordinator and Website Developer positions. We are always looking for trappers, stagers, transporters and more TNR Coordinators to host trap banks, and coordinate with trappers/caretakers in answering trouble calls and managing their colonies. Contact Debbie at alyse24@aol.com if you are interested in filling any of the above positions! Finally, our January general meeting has been scheduled for the Tuesday, the 19th from 6:30 - 8:00 PM at a new location: 101 Convention Center Dr. 

Mike White
President, C5



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