Taking a Stray Cat to the Vet

[Debater Slayer]

There's a friendly stray cat who has been visiting our place for a few months. Recently, I saw her limping around due to what is clearly a leg injury.

I'm planning to trap and take her to a vet, so I need tips on how to best do that. I have never done something like this before, so I want to make sure I don't do it incorrectly.

Side note: I'm very allergic to cats, so I can't keep her at my place. The trapping will need to happen outside.

 

[pearl]

I'm planning to trap and take her to a vet,

You might want to consider an animal rescue instead of a vet, otherwise you get the bill. They should take care of trapping.

 

[Debater Slayer]

You might want to consider an animal rescue instead of a vet, otherwise you get the bill. They should take care of trapping.

I live in a third-world country with virtually nonexistent animal rescue services. I'm ready to get the bill if that means the cat doesn't keep suffering with a limp and possibly die, especially in this cold weather.

 

[Revoltingest]

I live in a third-world country with virtually nonexistent animal rescue services. I'm ready to get the bill if that means the cat doesn't keep suffering with a limp and possibly die, especially in this cold weather.

In my experience, cats with leg injuries require
lengthy care til they recover. If you discover this
to be so, & can't find a care provider, then the
humane thing might be....you know.

 

[pearl]

I'm ready to get the bill

I'm assuming that the charge will be quite less than a visit to the vet here in the US.

 

[Wildswanderer]

In my experience, cats with leg injuries require
lengthy care til they recover. If you discover this
to be so, & can't find a care provider, then the
humane thing might be....you know.

A .22 bullet is a lot cheaper than a vet bill.

 

[ChristineM]

I live in a third-world country with virtually nonexistent animal rescue services. I'm ready to get the bill if that means the cat doesn't keep suffering with a limp and possibly die, especially in this cold weather.

You could do with getting your hands on a cat catcher cage. If there are any cat charity's nearby they may lend or rent one to you. Or buy a cheap one from amazon thought they won't be that cheap.

Place food in the cage and wait.



Once caught try to get to the vets as soon as possible to cut down on stress the cat is go to suffer.

 

[ChristineM]

A .22 bullet is a lot cheaper than a vet bill.

Yes but some people respect other life on this planet

 

[Rival]

Ignore people telling you to kill the cat, imo!

The cat can recover.

Buy a cat box and put blankets in it and some cat food. Wear a mask etc. and let the cat in and introduce it to the food in the box. This may be quite hard as the cat may resist being put in the closed box.

Take it in the box to the vet and be prepared to have to look after it. They can probably give you something for your allergies, too. My step-dad had it and he just took pills.

 

[Wildswanderer]

Yes but some people respect other life on this planet

Yes but some people respect other life on this planet

Yes that's why you do the humane thing and put down injured animals.
Realistically, it comes down to how much is that animal worth to you?
For a random stray, most people aren't going to dump several hundred or thousands of dollars.
They might do that for a cherished pet.

 

[Rival]

For a random stray, most people aren't going to dump several hundred or thousands of dollars.

You would be surprised, thank God.

 

[ChristineM]

Yes that's why you do the humane thing and put down injured animals.
Realistically, it comes down to how much is that animal worth to you?
For a random stray, most people aren't going to dump several hundred or thousands of dollars.
They might do that for a cherished pet.

Your opinion in noted

 

[Debater Slayer]

I'm assuming that the charge will be quite less than a visit to the vet here in the US.

Yes.

 

[Debater Slayer]

In my experience, cats with leg injuries require
lengthy care til they recover. If you discover this
to be so, & can't find a care provider, then the
humane thing might be....you know.

I don't know whether any vets here do that, and I'd rather not interfere than go out of my way to kill her.

 

[Debater Slayer]

A .22 bullet is a lot cheaper than a vet bill.

Thankfully, guns are largely inaccessible here, so no, it would actually be much more expensive to do that. Furthermore, I'd never do it either way. The way I see it, money isn't the only factor to consider in this case.

 

[Debater Slayer]

Yes that's why you do the humane thing and put down injured animals.
Realistically, it comes down to how much is that animal worth to you?
For a random stray, most people aren't going to dump several hundred or thousands of dollars.
They might do that for a cherished pet.

She's not a random stray; she has visited our place many times over a few months. The care also wouldn't cost several hundred dollars here.

 

[Debater Slayer]

You could do with getting your hands on a cat catcher cage. If there are any cat charity's nearby they may lend or rent one to you. Or buy a cheap one from amazon thought they won't be that cheap.

Place food in the cage and wait.

View attachment 69942

Once caught try to get to the vets as soon as possible to cut down on stress the cat is go to suffer.

Ignore people telling you to kill the cat, imo!

The cat can recover.

Buy a cat box and put blankets in it and some cat food. Wear a mask etc. and let the cat in and introduce it to the food in the box. This may be quite hard as the cat may resist being put in the closed box.

Take it in the box to the vet and be prepared to have to look after it. They can probably give you something for you allergies, too. My step-dad had it and he just took pills.

Thank you! I'll look up the prices of cat boxes here and see what I find.

As for keeping her, that's unfortunately impossible for me. I live with family, and we're all heavily allergic to cats. We once tried getting a cat and ended up with a terrible reaction even after taking pills.

I'll ask around our neighborhood and see if any shops or the like could have a place for her during recovery. I could bring them the food for her. A lot of them already keep cats inside.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

There's a friendly stray cat who has been visiting our place for a few months. Recently, I saw her limping around due to what is clearly a leg injury.

I'm planning to trap and take her to a vet, so I need tips on how to best do that. I have never done something like this before, so I want to make sure I don't do it incorrectly.

Side note: I'm very allergic to cats, so I can't keep her at my place. The trapping will need to happen outside.

The cat burrito technique worked well for us getting our own cats into a carrier, but it'll be an extra challenge to catch a cat if it's 1) outside and not in a confined space (e.g. a bathroom) and 2) not your cat and not used to you handling her.

If you've got time to do it - like at least several days - and the cat isn't already comfortable with you, I'd suggest getting the cat used to you by giving her treats and the like, waiting until she's comfortable enough with you to pet her. If she won't let you get close to her, you won't be able to do a cat burrito.

If you need to catch her right away and she won't let you get close, one of the live traps like @ChristineM suggested would be your best bet.

 

[fantome profane]

A .22 bullet is a lot cheaper than a vet bill.

The pro-life contingent chimes in.

 

[fantome profane]

There's a friendly stray cat who has been visiting our place for a few months. Recently, I saw her limping around due to what is clearly a leg injury.

I'm planning to trap and take her to a vet, so I need tips on how to best do that. I have never done something like this before, so I want to make sure I don't do it incorrectly.

Side note: I'm very allergic to cats, so I can't keep her at my place. The trapping will need to happen outside.

If you are not prepared to take care of the cat my advice is to try to find someone who can. A friend, family member, neighbour etc.

Good luck.