I am working on the rescue & relocation of a feral cat colony. I had 7 cats in the guestroom (waiting to go to the vet), and one got loose in the house. He got into the air duct system in the den, which was bad enough. But ,I just went into the guest room, and it seems he walked through the system to that room, opened the vent, and YES; he freed all of his furry little friends. Now all of the cats are in the duct system, and I feel like I'm living in ALCATRAZ. Well, I just got one out. ANYONE HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS? ANYBODY?????
2007-12-22 03:14:20 · 7 answers · asked by windybreeze 3 in Pets ➔ Cats
Cat food in one room away from an open vent and stay by the door to close it as they come through--put the caught ones into a safe room with more food. Use a live trap if you need to, but usually doing a food call will get them out, then you close the vent off.
2007-12-22 13:31:47 · answer #1 · answered by Elaine M 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
OMG!!! TOO FUNNY! I sympathize though! The same sort of thing happened at the clinic with a truly wild feral girl that was brought in by a good samaritan for spaying. She was to be released back to the wild once she was spayed but, we never got that far. LOL
Brought her into the exam room and she went ballistic - climbing the walls etc. The central air system was being serviced and the grate in the exam room was off and don't you know that she headed straight for it. Totally freaked everyone out. Wild girl headed straight for the basement via the duct work and since there was an open window in the corner of the basement we figured, after searching for her for hours, that she had just popped out the window. There was also one duct pipe that looked like it had lost it's screws and thought she might have squeezed out through that one into the actual basement. Alas, free but, not spayed.
It bothered the vet and I for over a month and I constantly thought about her until one day...I was sitting at my desk doing some paperwork and I felt like someone was watching me...I could have sworn I saw eyes in the grate. Well after several of these feelings over the day I finally heard a mew and I went to the basement and pulled down EVERY duct I could. What a mess but, I found her. She was dirty, skinny, had trouble walking and blind! We put her in a kennel and hung towels over the door so it would be dark and started a feeding regimen. Over the next couple of weeks "Sheena"
ate and got stronger and regained her sight. She came through the ordeal with no lasting affects to her health. She also started accepting love from the staff which was a complete personality change for her. Ultimately, she was spayed and has resided ever since at the clinic and is about the most lovable cat ever. It is almost hard to remember that she was a real firecracker when we first met - almost!
I am sorry I took so long to tell this but, I haven't ever heard of anyone who had this happen to them before. I got sort of excited to find a kindred soul!!!
My suggestion is take EVERYTHING apart until you find them all. I would never give up if faced with this situation again. Call the fire company - yessss that is an excellent idea although you can probably take the ducts apart as easily as I did - they are usually held together with hex screws.
GOOD LUCK and I have never meant that more in my life!
2007-12-22 12:02:26 · answer #2 · answered by chcatmom 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
OMG your story is too cute (although not to you) I would open the vent and put food across the room ( I hope they are eating food already? count them until they are all out and close the vent. You could very well have poo in the ducts now and it will smell when the heat blows. I would start pricing duct cleaning now. They might be staying there because possibly mice have ran through the ducts and the kittens can smell that.
2007-12-22 11:24:13 · answer #3 · answered by Dance 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Call the fire department, their non-emergency number, and ask them if they can help you out of this mess. I mean, animal control might come if you called them, but the fire department is trained to deal with fires and the ways they spread, and that is exactly why they are qualified to help you flush cats out of your air duct system.
What a hoot! Sort of cross between "The Cats' House" and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"
Good luck to you!
2007-12-22 11:35:03 · answer #4 · answered by Mercy 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Set out some food and water and here's hoping they come out on their own. I would also call the ASPCA to see if they can get someone to help. Sounds like a nasty situation......by the way.....how did the kitten unscrew the vent to get it open? Talented kitty.
2007-12-22 11:36:48 · answer #5 · answered by Lilah 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would certainly keep that first guy. He's smart & could be interesting to see him grow up. lol
They will all come out once you put out some milk or food out for dinner time. I'd keep the heater off till you get them thou..... gl
2007-12-22 11:23:51 · answer #6 · answered by Ellen 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
wow that sounds like a predicament! i have no suggestions other than... time- it's gonna take awhile. good luck!
2007-12-22 11:22:21 · answer #7 · answered by monkey91581 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋