And awaaayyy we go!

A couple of friends of mine are doing a TNR project in LIC and they have been kind enough to let me join them!

Fortunately, there are many feeders in the community, just no-one spaying and neutering.

I would like to introduce you to the colony manager...
This cat is the first one to come out every time we go and the last cat to leave. He/She is amazing! Watching us, following us, present at every turn.

Our first task was to establish a regular daily feeding time.

Same bat time same bat channel.

This way, eventually they all come out together at the same time and we can get a count.

This also helps to prep them for trapping!

If they eat every night at 7pm and you go trap at 7pm,

you have a better chance to get the whole colony.

Although, it is hard to ID all the cats in the dark, so some daytime recon is necessary.

Make a few day time trips (with or without food) to get pics of each cat, front and side pics, note any markings etc that will distinguish them from others.

You may also get a heads up on vet care.

For example, the guy on the left has a hematoma on his right ear.

It was initially thought there were 2 of these gray tabbies,

but with some additional recon, we learned there are 3.

This guy has a white chest (and humongous paws)!

This one was identified earlier as pregnant, but now not...

She is a nursing mom, and we need to find out where he has stashed her kittens.

This guy was noticed limping with what looked like a bad break and an abcess.

He was taken in and is being evaluated by a vet.

This one has a bob-tail.

There are a couple of bob-tails in this colony.

Here are what we assume to be a mom and her 3 to 4 month old kitten.

Other kitten below.

Here is the other baby about 3 to 4 mos old.

These kittens seem to be in pretty good health.

This black kitten has a small white dot on his/her chest and a curly tail.

The other black cat is all black, a little bigger and has a regular tail.

So as you can see, the recon is very important to find the correct number of cats in the colony for planning how many traps and spay neuter slots you need. And having each cat individually identified helps you to know if you have missed anyone.

Another helpful thing to do is fundraising.

Big or small, every little bit helps.

This was a bake sale at the office.

Thank you to Faith Popcorn's BrainReserve their contributions!