Choosing barn cats

[Cherryblossom]

So after a particularly bold 4 legged beastie was spotted up on our window ledge while the terrier was away barking at leaves, we decided we need a barn cat. And of course by ‘a’ barn cat, I mean two! A friend works at a rescue and they had a mother and 3 older kittens in (all boys, all been neutered) so we’ve agreed to take a couple, and are collecting them tomorrow. Problem being, I can’t decide which to take home! Do I take mum on the assumption that a grown semi-feral cat will be a) a better mouser b) harder to rehome, or take two kittens in the hope that they’d become tame-ish barn cats?
Other than the usual keep them locked in for a while/ keep them well fed advice, does anyone have any tips on raising good barn cats? I’ve only had domestic cats before, but I can’t see the dogs living peacefully in close quarters with a cat!

 

[Meowy Catkin]

I would go along and see which ones take your fancy.

 

[ester]

you need a girl, boys are a bit pants on the hunting front. Ours was pretty good (farm born) but nothing compared to the farm/yard girls.

(ours was most definitely tame, not wild lol)

 

[splashgirl45]

not all ferals are good ratters so its a bit of a lottery .. the trouble with getting kittens is that it will be quite a while before they are any good and the idea is for them to be outside and therefore not tame indoor cats. i always prefer to take the adults as they will be harder to re home but kittens can often be tamed enough to be home cats....we kept ours in for about 3 weeks and fed them in the same place once they were allowed out...we put cardboard boxes with bedding in for them so they could keep warm in the barn. i just cut a hole in the box so they felt safe in there, we didnt see our 4 for the first couple of weeks but the food kept going and eventually they were brave enough to stay around when we arrived. we fed twice a day, biscuits in the morning and wet pouches in the evening and water always available.. the 3 girls did a great job and kept the population down...the boy was decorative!!!!!

 

[HeyMich]

We took on a feral cat in March this year, and I think the number of times we've seen her can be counted on one hand. But her food is always eaten, and there are no more wee beasties around the place so she must be doing her job! We chose her by going 'yeah, she's a cat, and she'll do'!

We definitely didn't chose on what she looked like or how she was with us - as we never see her, and don't expect to much.

If I were you, I'd take the mum and one of the kittens, as she'll be able to teach the wee one how to hunt.

 

[ester]

Squishy says I lie, he was a lean mean killing machine really

lol, the main difference between him and the girls was size of prey, he liked it small... whereas the girls would happily take rats and rabbits.

 

[Meowy Catkin]

What constitutes a good hunter? The size of the prey, the frequency or going for the prey you want them to catch?

All out cats are male at the moment and they vary a great deal in what they catch and how often. One pretty much feeds himself despite being a pet (cat food is frankly beneath him), but he hunts in the fields and mostly gets voles and mice. The black feral is an excellent hunter and likes to catch pheasants... so no vermin caught there. Another doesn't hunt much, but when he does he's very skilled and has caught rats in the barns so was actually very helpful there. We won't mention my cat... he definitely fits into ester's 'pants' description as he doesn't hunt often and when he does the prey choices are interesting to say the least... Our sadly departed Burmese tried so hard to teach him to hunt rabbits like he did... he had no luck. I don't know enough about the new feral to say what his hunting habits are like.

 

[Cherryblossom]

Mum and son it is then! I’m a bit sad that I’m not getting a teeny tiny fluff ball of a kitten, but the benefit of getting one that’s already been neutered/vaccinated/microchipped is too good to pass over!

off to collect them tomorrow- I’ll have to work out how to post pics so you all can give name suggestions!

 

[Meowy Catkin]

Squishy definitely has it in for that cat toy!

 

[Cherryblossom]

And Squishy is super cute btw!!! I mean... a fierce and terrifying hunter!

 

[ester]

Squish would eat the whole thing, so was tidy at least and TBF we are more field than yard. Equally knowing they won't pick up a rat can help if you do want to poison- though it can still be a concern obv.

The white cat at livery used to catch rabbits, then the terrier would steal them which always seemed quite unfair!

cat toy lol, (schooling whip) , he was very good to lunge too.

 

[splashgirl45]

looking forward to the pics

 

[ester]

we will need pics, message if you get stuck.

 

[splashgirl45]

we didnt ever use poison as the cats did a really good job.and ate them.... they didnt ever eat the feet or the tails and it was weird finding them around the place

 

[honetpot]

I have had several ferals and non of them hung around, even though they were fed. Mention living outside and they seem not to want to give you a partially domesticated cat.
It was expensive to, in total I must have spent £200.
In they end I got kittens one of which is a beast. He main residence is the garage but he also sleeps in the feed room.
My best mouser is Tokenise, she spends most days hunting and usually catch’s at least two mice. She was bought as a house cat and lived the first year and a half in my daughters flat but the country life suits her better.

 

[Meowy Catkin]

Where's me glasses? LOL.

That burmese was utterly dreadful during baby bunny season. He'd sometimes catch three a day and would eat their heads leaving the bodies and the odd loose eyeball where he fancied (usually in the house). There's nothing like standing on an eyeball when you get out of bed...

 

[Cherryblossom]

We’re overrun with rabbits, so if they do catch them I’d be delighted! Our lurcher is easily fast enough to catch them, but has no killer instinct and just runs alongside them with a big smile on her face. The terrier has plenty of killer instinct but cannot keep quiet so loses any element of surprise!

 

[SamBean]

We took in an 8 month old male who was caught, neutered and bought to us straight after. I think even when we were keeping him in the mice packed up and left! As above when we let him out his food was always eaten but would never get more than a glimpse of him passing through the field. The last few weeks though he started to wait and look out for me which turned into him deciding I am his human and has fusses from me now twice a day. Completely overwhelming as he has never had human contact like that in his life.

 

[dogatemysalad]

It's pot luck really. I currently have two sisters that came from a remote farm when they were teeny fluff balls. Once they made their first ( joint ) kill at around 12 weeks, they reverted to the wild. Now they only appear at meal times and cuddle up to the dogs when it's raining.
I took a male 6 month kitten from a farm and once he discovered how comfortable being indoors could be, he became a great big softie who never killed anything and loved being with the family.

 

[ihatework]

Where's me glasses? LOL.

That burmese was utterly dreadful during baby bunny season. He'd sometimes catch three a day and would eat their heads leaving the bodies and the odd loose eyeball where he fancied (usually in the house). There's nothing like standing on an eyeball when you get out of bed...

I know that feeling - my Burmese are the most amazing hunters. My first full size rabbit was dragged through the cat flap at 6 months old. I’d say my current girl averages 2 mice/voles/rats a day but I think the record was 11. I get the odd bird and the odd slow worm and occasionally a rabbit but she definitely has a preference for rodents.

Although this delight did give my poor cleaner quite a fright!!

OP I’d definitely take the Mum, in general I find girls hunt best.

 

[Cherryblossom]

So mum and son came home last week, and have been hiding inside a pallet ever since.... but you know the way once you start collecting animals, it’s hard to stop? My uncle knew i was looking a barn cat and had a friend who was feeding a stray, so a month ago I said if he could catch it I’d take it. I actually forgot about that until yesterday, when I messaged my uncle. This morning he’s responded with a pic of the cat in a carrier, ready for delivery!! It’s tabby and white, and looks big enough to be spayed/neutered, so I’ve pre-emptively booked it into my vets for tomorrow. My questions now are- what do I do tonight? Do I let it out in a very small area and then try to catch it again? I can’t really leave it in a carrier for 24hrs, right? How do I integrate it with the other two? I do have room that I could put him/her elsewhere if needs be, but I’d rather not if I can get away with it. And most importantly- how do I hide it from husband? Can I pass both tabby and whites off as the same cat??? 😂

 

[Meowy Catkin]

We put one feral in the downstairs loo overnight. The room had enough room for a cat litter tray, food, water and the cat carrier (with comfy bedding). When we opened the door in the morning the cat hid in the cat carrier, so we just shut the door and took her to the vet. It was lucky she did that as it meant everything went smoothly and with as little stress as possible.

 

[Cherryblossom]

That’s exactly what I’ve just set up! Hopefully it works as well for me as it did for you!

 

[Alibear]

And most importantly- how do I hide it from husband? Can I pass both tabby and whites off as the same cat??? 😂

I think you're in with a good chance, similar colours and only likely to be seen from a distance

 

[Blazingsaddles]

You need

So after a particularly bold 4 legged beastie was spotted up on our window ledge while the terrier was away barking at leaves, we decided we need a barn cat. And of course by ‘a’ barn cat, I mean two! A friend works at a rescue and they had a mother and 3 older kittens in (all boys, all been neutered) so we’ve agreed to take a couple, and are collecting them tomorrow. Problem being, I can’t decide which to take home! Do I take mum on the assumption that a grown semi-feral cat will be a) a better mouser b) harder to rehome, or take two kittens in the hope that they’d become tame-ish barn cats?
Other than the usual keep them locked in for a while/ keep them well fed advice, does anyone have any tips on raising good barn cats? I’ve only had domestic cats before, but I can’t see the dogs living peacefully in close quarters with a cat!

You need another outdoor terrier. Both my BTs decapitate rats in a milisecond. . A much kinder way to go imo. Cats enjoy teasing their prey, which I cannot bear.

 

[Cherryblossom]

You need


You need another outdoor terrier. Both my BTs decapitate rats in a milisecond. . A much kinder way to go imo. Cats enjoy teasing their prey, which I cannot bear.

i need another terrier like I need a another hole in the head! I love him with every fibre of my being, but a patterdale x JRT with an abusive background is not likely to make you want to fill your life with more of the same!

our newest feral arrived last night and I’m slightly concerned we may have received stolen goods. it’s not very feral... as in climbing on my knee purring levels of ‘not feral’. So Im off to the vet tomorrow to have it scanned for a microchip plus whatever else needs done to prevent my cat collection from growing further!
The other pair came out to eat in front of me today, so hopefully tomorrow I can get pics of everyone and you can all help me name them!

 

[Cherryblossom]

Hopefully here are two pictures of my only tabby and white cat. Definitely the same cat. Any suggestions for names?

 

[Meowy Catkin]

Hopefully here are two pictures of my only tabby and white cat. Definitely the same cat. Any suggestions for names?

Gorgeous cat! LOL! I love the movable markings.

Sorry I'm terrible with names, so no suggestions.

 

[Blanche]

I would go with Madge for the 'clean' nose and Nellie for the 'dirty' nose, though not sure what sex 'dirty' nose is. I often start off with one name and it morphs into something else as I get to know the animal.

 

[splashgirl45]

tabatha for the tame one and fizz for the feral....