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About four weeks after being dumped in Queens and hiding out in a work yard, little Maple joined the older feral colony. Photo by Carole Milker A Sweet Outcome for Maple by Nancy Fahnestock, CSM Stray Foundation Six months ago, someone dumped a black kitten near one of our feral cat colonies in Queens. Instead of finding his way to us, he ran into a work area with tractor trucks and dangerous equipment and then hid behind some chemical containers. We were contacted by the workers to rescue the kitten, but he was so tiny and fast that he wedged himself between some boulders and plywood sheets and didn't come out. We left the workers with food and water and told them to be patient and wait until the kitten developed a pattern, and then they could catch him. We left our phone number and instructed them to contact us when they caught him so that we could get him socialized and placed for adoption. We never heard from the workers, but four weeks later, we saw the kitten eating with the cats at our colony. It was cute, but we found out that, instead of contacting us when they caught the kitten, the workers simply placed him with our cat colony. By this time, his feral behavior was established. We named the kitten Maple and watched as he developed, climbed trees, and slept in our shelters. We planned to wait until six months and then have "him" neutered. Just after this new year, Carole Milker of CSM Stray Foundation caught Maple and took him to the vet. We were sure Maple was a male since we thought we saw his testicles but found out that some females who are dominant show swelling in the back area. To our surprise, Maple turned out to be a female! What's more, she was in heat, and had an ovarian cyst, which would have developed into a problem if we had not intervened. And more kittens would have been born.
At six months of age, it was discovered that Maple was a female! She was spayed, left eartipped, microchipped, and returned to her colony. Photo by Nancy Fahnestock Maple is back with the group now — spayed, left eartipped and microchipped. She is our newest colony member. Young kittens can be socialized and adopted into indoor homes. If they are not caught early and socialized, it is best to spay or neuter, vaccinate, left eartip, and return them to their colony for ongoing care and monitoring.
About the Author Nancy Fahnestock is the Treasurer of CSM Stray Foundation (USA) Inc. She began her work with feral cats in 1994, trapping and spay/neutering local cats for seniors in Queens. As a NYC licensed teacher, Nancy has always brought humane education into the classroom, and, though now retired, she still visits local classrooms on behalf of CSM Stray Foundation, promoting responsible pet care and feral cat issues. In 2008, Nancy worked with students in a summer program in Port Washington, where she introduced them to her adopted rescue dog Leo and emphasized the need for giving homes to shelter animals. She has written numerous grants for feral cat programs, including low-cost spay/neuter certificates for seniors, feral cat colony care, and senior shelter building programs. She regularly transports feral cats to and from the vet for senior caregivers. At the Feral Cat Caretaker Boot Camp! in December 2008, Nancy and CSM Stray Foundation colleague Carole Milker demonstrated how to use a drop trap. |
