Day 119: April 29th

There will be no kittens this spring.  All three of the outside cats have now been fixed.  The last hold out was Shilpa, the beautiful long-haired tortoishelle-colored kitty.  She is as wild as any tiger and for three years eluded capture.  I hatched a plan to urge her into the have-a-heart trap.  Here's how it went: I thought food was the only way to get her into the trap, but every time food is put out, the other two come and eat it.  If, for example, I were to put food in the trap, then fearless Neo would go in and take it.  I needed to maker her only option for food in that trap.  I took the other two cats (Neo and Monique) to the kennel and thereby removed them from the equation.  They were not pleased.  I thought it might take three or so days before Shilpa was sufficiently hungry to go in the trap - she has never gone into it on other attempts.  After dropping the other cats off at the kennel, I came directly home and set the trap (which does not harm them in any way, it just closes and they can't get out).  Within 30 minutes Shilpa was in that trap!  I could not believe my eyes...after three years...THREE YEARS...of trying to urge her into that trap, she finally took the bait!

I called the vet and this wonderful veterinarian newly transplanted here from San Francisco (huge cat problem there) agreed to spay Shilpa right away.  I brought the kitty in and by the next morning she was all done!  No more kittens!  She was having approximately two litters a year, so this one operation goes a long way to reduce the suffering in this particular colony of feral cats.  All it took was some ingenuity, persistence and, oh yeah...$500.00.