| |  |  |  | How Do I? | Online Services | | | | | Feral Cat Populations What is a Feral Cat?  A feral cat (or stray cat, alley cat) is a cat which has been separated from domestication through abandonment, loss, or running away, and becomes wild. The term may also refer to descendants of such cats, but not to wild cats, whose ancestors were never domesticated. Adult feral cats that were never socialized with humans can rarely be socialized. Feral kittens can sometimes be socialized to live with humans. The ideal time for capture is between six and eight weeks of age. Taming at this age may take only a couple of days. Older kittens can be tamed, but it takes longer. Also, an older kitten may bond only with the person working with him or her, which can make adoption difficult but not impossible. Feral cats may live alone but are usually found in large groups called feral colonies. The average life span of a feral cat that survives beyond kittenhood is usually cited as being less than two years, while a domestic housecat lives an average of 12 to 16 years. Feral cats are often apex predators in local ecosystems, and their predation on small mammals and birds, particularly endangered ground-nesting birds, is of increasing concern. Feral cats contribute greatly to the killing of songbirds and other endangered birds, with estimates that bird loss is at 100 million a year due to predation. Are You Feeding Stray Cats? Who can’t resist the urge to put out a dish of fresh cat food and water for the stray cat that knows you look out the window to see if she is there every night? Scenarios like this are played out day after day in neighborhoods and communities across the country and around the world. Only ten percent of the animals received by shelters have been spayed or neutered. About 75 percent of owned pets are neutered. The cost of spaying or neutering a pet is less than the cost of raising puppies or kittens for a year.
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