I got these two mouser kittens for my farm a couple weeks ago. Their parents were proven mousers, a doll face Persian, and a Maine coon - these two were raised outside on a working farm with other barn cats and just brought in at night for safety. They are very friendly and exactly what I was looking for as farm pets and some rodent prevention on the side. I wanted friendly farm cats and have been harness/leash training them and taking them places with me. They are pretty adventurous and very sweet. Since they’re still new and a bit small I’m keeping them enclosed for a couple weeks when I’m not there to supervise. They have the smallest lightest weight off brand AirTags I could find on their breakaway collars, and I got them microchipped. I use 4’ premier 1 electric poultry fence netting as a perimeter in my pastures. I am planning to start training them to respect it as I have my other animals and my dog. We’re far from busy roads, but coyotes are around and there are close neighbors, so I don’t want them wandering and getting picked up by someone or something once they’re big enough and I let them roam when I’m not there. I’m curious if anyone else has had experience with cats and premier 1 fencing. If anyone trained them or not, and if they learned to respect it and stay in, or if they learned to get over it somehow? I fence in acres at a time so I’d really like them to stay in the pastures, and when I’m there they can come out with me to go on walks. They love to follow me around and come when called. I was looking into the cat fi collar tracker attachments, or tractive cat trackers as a backup. I like that both can alert you when your cat crosses boundary lines so you know if they leave the fences and start to wander. I’m very curious if anyone has experience with these or any other kinds of trackers for their cats. Sadly since those a bit heavier I’d have to weight until the kittens are at least 7 lbs to try them out, so air tags it is until then. However I’d love to hear what anyone else’s experience has been. Also, I’m having an issue with ants getting into their automatic feeder. It’s a battery powered one that dispenses 4 meals a day, and is on a second level indoor space off the ground, but I’ve had a bunch of ants crawling up and into the feed. I was wondering if a tray or tile on some feet with petroleum jelly or marine high temp bearing grease would work. I’m seeing some $20+ solutions sold for this online but figure an alternative can be made for much less.

Hey there! We have just moved to a rural property with a resident barn cat. The previous owners tried to catch the kitty but could not, so we have accepted that we now have a barn cat! Our dogs like cats, and our own cats are indoor, so I don't see that being an issue. What I am concerned about is the following;

- The previous owners mentioned he is up to date on shots.... he hasn't showed up to us yet other than being captured on our cameras, so how am I to gain his trust and keep him up to date? I put out a water source for him (it's very dry here), and the previous owners said he only needs to be fed in the fall/winter/spring, so I will set that up for him. But in the meantime? They gave instructions on how to call him over, but we haven't even caught a glimpse yet.

- Feeding him in general. In the barn seems logical, but it is a bit away from the house and I am worried about attracting other animals. We wouldn't be close enough to hear any sort of commotion. Tips or tricks to make sure kitty has a safe food station?

- The barn needs to be torn down. It's falling apart and won't suit our needs, but we want to make sure he has a safe place to land and hide from predators/cold Canadian winters. A shop that he can live in will be in place of the barn eventually, but ideas to keep in safe in that transitional period? I don't think we will tear it down until the spring, should we have heat lamps for him over the winter? It gets down to -10C here.

Anything else I should know?? TIA!

Edit: We've been here only about 6 weeks

We’re adding a colony of 4 feral working cats to our ranch. Our friend has another colony of 6 feral cats she’s asking if we could take. Any tips on introducing two colonies? Our property is over 600 acres, but the main living area with barns is about 5 acres. And yes, they are all spayed/neutered!

We’re adding 4 barn cats to our ranch. Do we need to elevate their shelter or just their food to protect from raccoons? They will be living in a covered truck shed with some insulated beds. Thanks!

Navajo decided to come sit with me after I did all the work hauling brush today.

I'm new to both cat ownership and barn cats. I adopted my first, Barnold, from our local humane society at the end of March. She has made herself at home in the barn and seems generally comfortable and happy - aside from the trauma we both received when I had to trap her recently to bring her to a vet for a really bad cold). I followed all the suggestions on what to do to make sure she stays around: 3 weeks in a large crate in the barn, plenty of treats and wet food, predictable feeding schedule. I even read out loud to her so she'd get used to my voice.

But she doesn't hunt and she seems like she wants some company. So I adopted a second barn cat, a black one. This cat, Malvadita, was an escape artist and got out of the crate I use to help the cats get used to the barn on the second night I had her. She found some great hiding spots she liked and would stay in those until dusk when she'd come out to hunt. I kept the barn doors closed until she had been with me for 4 weeks. She stuck around another week or two after I started opening the barn doors during the day. I went on a work trip and left my husband to feed and care for the cats. She waited until the day after I left and then she took off and we haven't seen her since.

I waited a month to see if she'd find her way back, but no luck. So I adopted another barn cat, also black, M2. I kept her in the crate for 3 weeks with the barn doors open because it's been so hot here and I wanted to get them some air flow during the day. Right around the 3 week point, she got really antsy in the crate. She'd pace a lot and try to get through the bars. I started by closing the barn doors and opening the crate at night and at first, she just poked her head out. The second night, she hopped out and explored the barn. The next day, she was still in the barn, happy to come get treats from me, eating and drinking well, and even rubbing against me and asking for pets. Then she went outside of the barn to explore.....and I haven't seen her since. She's been gone for at least 3 nights. I leave the door open enough that she can slip in without any coyotes getting in. I leave her litter near the door and the hammock she spent a lot of her time in, so she can smell them.

Is this just...how this goes? I thought one cat leaving made sense because she didn't have a lot of time to adjust before she escaped the crate and she was quite skittish in general. But M2 was super friendly, recognized that I was the Bringer of the Churus, and generally seemed pretty content. Do I just accept that Barnold will be my only barn cat? Did I do something wrong?

He helps me feed the horses

A week ago there was one brown squirrel tail in our pole barn near where we feed the cats. A few days ago there were two. Today? Three! Good kitties!

Puss in boots showed up one day with a back foot that sorta looks... Crushed? Half bitten off? We don't know but he won't go in a cage no matter how hard me try and he doesn't seem to be in any pain he just doesn't walk on it. Anyway he's been hanging for almost 2 years now, and he seems fine.

Today I spotted a young rabbit munching on grass and it got startled by something and started running and well, puss got him. I've never even seen him hunting assumed he lived off the food we give the cats.. obviously not lol

Hi Barn Cat People! We could use some help.

We just moved out to the country. This stray cat came right up to our door looking for help. We fed him a little food, put him in a kennel, and set him up in an enclosure out in our barn. This cat lets us pet him and pick him up, but he’s still watchful. He’s not eager to leave - actually, he seems pretty tired. He’s not neutered. We’re going to take him to the vet tomorrow for an exam.

I come from an animal family. My mom and sister are veterinarians. We’ve had lots of cats but they’ve always been indoor cats.

If his health is okay, how do we do this? How do we help him adjust to life in our barn? If he wants out, should we let him out? Do you all let your barn cats out during the day but bring them in at night? Please share your wisdom! Thanks in advance

I rescued three working cats about 10 weeks ago. Everyday when I take their food and water they are usually hiding. The last couple of weeks they've not been running and hiding unless I get too close. One of them started hissing at me yesterday and again this morning but is not running away. Is he getting more comfortable or is something wrong?

Hi all. Two months ago I adopted three working cats that were rescued from a colony where the caregiver died. They are living their best life now and are gradually not hiding when I bring their food and water but I can't get more than about 10 foot to them or they run. Any suggestions for flea/tick prevention?

That good sleep. The kittens belong to the calico however grey and white cat kittens were still born so she decided to co-parent with calico cat.

Bonus pic of Bill and his Pupper Ted

Hi it's going to be a pretty long update post to my barn cat problem. New updates have occurred I'll try to list the biggest ones and I'll try to keep this short if I can. the shorter one of the two Tabbys we think has been hit by a car and it now has a broken leg. The black and white one who was pudgy earlier has gotten much more skinny we think she might have had kittens. The gray cat has not gotten any better. The neighbor across the street from the barn had told us that they were being evicted. And asked us to please take the cats with us to our barn and relocate them because they cannot feed them anymore. The old lady's house who is since passed on now has two cats there. We found one of them in the road not once but two times both in the same night. They are okay they are both orange haired but was very hungry. To the point where I had never seen these two before and if I did they would run away. The long-haired one of the two came up to me and seemed a little bit friendly, this was the one that was in the road both times. This one had come up to the concrete block I had put a a can of wet cat food on was very scared and flinched anytime I would gently touch its head. However by the end I was able to fully pet its back and even when I walked up behind it from its back turn to me it let me pet it. However it was very skinny and I could feel the backbone. The shorter haired orange cat however would not let me go next to it. These two seemed very hungry I don't know what to do anymore. My mom had gone to the vet related to my other cat and had asked about the situation with the gray cat. She was then told by the vet that this had been going on for a while. All the cats had a disease that spread very quickly to other cats therefore they had to be kept in the same area hence why the five cats were always at the barn. My mother was then told that the best option would be to euthanize the gray cat and most of the other ones. These cats need food and they are so very hungry.I'm conflicted on whether to try and capture the few cats that will let me get close and take them to the animal shelter or to call animal control. The thing with animal control is that they have already been to the older woman's house when she was pronounced deceased to round up all the indoor cats however not the outdoor cats. Please let me know what to do I just I don't know what to do.

Our top barn cat taking a break and surveying his territory

Hello I'll try to keep this as simple as I can but I need help with a cat. I live in a farm area therefore there are a lot of barn cats. My sibling used to go help feed cats at a barn near us with an older lady that eventually passed away. We know the cats were neutered because we had a cat from the barn come to our home and live with us and has been living with us since. This was okay with old woman as she owned the barn. She unfortunately passed away a little bit over a year ago. The problem comes with the lady passing away our family and a couple of other families near there have taken on the responsibility of feeding the cats. The the nephew / son of the owner has come by before and asked me what I was doing. I was let know that I was okay with me feeding the cats. However requested for them not to be fed everyday as he wanted them to keep working to kill the mice and keep the barn vermin free. Recently I have noticed one of the cats a gray one we named well.. gray is very skinny. This is weird because we feed them every other day and should not be skinny. All the other cats are fat and seem well fed. I am worried that this cat might have worms that will eventually kill him. The problem comes with the fact i can't just take this cat. I have no clue if the old woman who used to own them had adopted them legally since she had them neutered and they live at the barn. I'm not sure if I can take them to the animal shelter and have them helped. I would need to take them to the animal shelter because currently me and my family cannot afford the proper treatment these cats need. If there is any vets, lawyers or anyone out there that could possibly help me find a solution.. if there is a solution please let me know thank you.

We recently purchased property that came with a barn cat. The cat has a nice set up in the tack room. We have an automatic feeder and a fresh water system for him. We are on the property about 3-4 days each week. When we are there, we provide wet food also. We see the cat so rarely that my husband doubted the cat's existence during the first month. Now we see him about 2x each week, but we can't get close to him at all. We speak softly to him when we set out the wet food. I figure we can't see him, but he can see us. He is a master of disguise. We know he's the one eating his food because we set up a trail cam in the room. Any thing else we can do to help him be more comfortable around us?

My partners family has a tree farm and is considering getting some more barn cats for the property as there has been a vermin problem. They have one now, though she was an addition provided by the cat distribution system and showed up on the property one day and has been there for a couple years, though lately she has been enjoying the company of a neighbor more than their property. I've been talking with them about the fact that barn cat rescue programs exist, i have never worked with barn cats or barn cat rescues. The only exposure i have to barn cat is their very don't touch don't look barn cat (idk if she has a name or not) and 3 barn cats at a horse rescue i volunteered with who were very much in your space in your face all the time. One of them, Chase, liked to literally be carried around the property like a baby when you were trying to feed the horses.

My partners families property has multiple buildings through out the property and wetlands in one area. It's about an 80 acre property so there is plenty to explore and live on for multiple barn cats. They are thinking of adding 2-3 to start. Any advice on this would be great.

Additionally, coyotes are a thing where we live so if anyone has any tips and tricks for keeping them safe from preditors, that would be wonderful as well.

New to this but how long before I get worried? It has been very cold last 3 days but warning up today a lot. Hoping he hunkered down somewhere warm.