Feral Cats

They live in the shadows - the alleyways, empty lots and condemned buildings - of almost every neighborhood. Their lives are short and usually harsh. They struggle to find food and water in an environment filled with the constant threats of disease, starvation, cruelty and predation. They are the abandoned, the lost and the wild - and they need our help.

The ASPCA endorses Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) as the only proven humane and effective method to manage feral cat colonies.

How can you be part of the solution in Kitsap County? TNR Kitsap has a coalition of organizations ready to help. PAWS of Bainbridge and North Kitsap, Kitsap Humane Society, PAWS of Bremerton and Kitsap Spay Neuter Council all have resources to help you with feral cats.

If you feed feral cats contact us today for assistance with trap, neuter, return.

We have humane traps to trap feral cats for sterilization at Kitsap Humane Society and return to their colony.

All kittens under 6 weeks of age can be socialized and adopted into loving homes as part of our "In From The Wild" program. Please make every effort to contact us as soon as you see kittens. PAWS of Bainbridge Island & North Kitsap and Kitsap Humane Society have skilled foster homes to tame these kittens. While it is best to capture females and sterilize them before they are pregnant, it is imperative to capture kittens and remove them from the colony before they perpetuate the reproduction cycle.

In From the Wild

Most adult feral cats are not able to be socialized to the point where they can be adopted as household pets. Feral kittens, on the other hand, can often be tamed if captured young enough. Considering the short life span and inherent dangers in the life of a feral cat, those kittens which can be tamed and adopted by humans are indeed lucky.

The process of taming kittens can take from 2-6 weeks, depending on their age and state of wildness. Individuals can differ

Feral Kittens are socialized and adopted to loving homes.

greatly in temperament even within the same litter. This requires a major commitment on the part of foster homes that spend many hours working with kittens before they reach a stage where they are adoptable.

PAWS of Bainbridge Island and North Kitsap works with TNR Kitsap to utilize a trap-neuter-return approach with adult feral cats who have a committed caregiver. Working with caregivers, PAWS provides assistance to trap nursing mothers and litters, bringing them into trained foster homes. As soon as kittens are of weaning age (4-6 weeks), the adults are sterilized and returned to their colonies. Kittens are separated into smaller groups to allow for more human contact and socialization.

Feral kitten tamers expose kittens to human contact and household experiences. Kittens observe regular household activities: vacuuming, dishwashers, telephones and the like, from the safety of taming cages. Physical handling and contact is increased daily until the kittens readily accept human touch and seek out the company of people. In From the Wild kittens make sweet, lovable pets who bond with their family as any other kitten does.

All PAWS kittens are adopted to indoor only homes and are sterilized prior to adoption.

If you would like to volunteer to work with feral kittens, please complete a foster home application found on our volunteer page.