Skunked in Corvallis and Other MisAdventures

I got called some time ago by an old acquaintance, who has struggled severely since her divorce, to have a roof over her head and enough money to survive.  She has landed just outside Corvallis again, in a small apartment, with her cats.  Her landlord feeds some strays.  She wanted help getting them fixed.

So off I went, traps in tow.  She had a couple of her own and had fed in them.  She's not so easy to be around, full of hurtful stories of what's been done to her.  She needs to spout them off at someone.  During trapping, it was me.

Life is very hard for many.

We watched movies while I periodically checked the traps. She has no TV reception.  The cats would come in infrequently.  Finally, we had caught four.  Plus her landlord had two in the house supposedly unfixed, so she got one in a carrier, but when she finally got the other into one of her carriers, it fell apart and he ran off and hid.

Black Corvallis female fixed Wednesday.

Young black male fixed Wednesday.

Young black tux female fixed Wednesday.

Big tame black stray male who turned out to be already fixed.

HUGE black male fixed Wednesday.

So five went up but the boy from the landlord's place turned out to be already neutered.  He just showed up with a load of sheep the landlord said, so they don't know his history.  The landlord is very elderly.  He's a nice guy and walks around often with another stray he took in on his shoulder.

The woman helps him out and now she has a little place to stay.  I hope it works out.  Seems really a good deal.

The four wild things were two boys and two girls.  There are others.

First night we caught a fat little teenage possum, who skuttled off quick, (for a possum) when I let him out.  The second night I was sure I had another cat, but then I shone my light over to the porch area, and it was a skunk!  I didn't want sprayed.  No way.  So the woman found a tarp and I advanced on the uncovered trap with the tarp out in front of me.  It was a huge tarp, folded over many times, so it was heavy.

I was able to get almost up to the trap, before I realized it was a teenage skunk, small enough to be able to get his tail up over his head and spray me, if he wanted to, from inside that small trap.  I got the tarp over the trap without incident.  He was young and did not see me as a threat.  Then I just released him and off he skuttled too.

I took the five up Wednesday to the FCCO.


I returned them yesterday after dropping off four tame cats at Heartland to be fixed.  Two girls from Albany and a boy and a girl from Lebanon.  The Albany girl owners were trying to give them away on craigslist unfixed, so I contacted them to see if they could first be fixed.  They agreed.

The unfixed Lebanon cats were rounded up by a family I'd helped before up there.

Albany female Chloe, fixed Thursday, with her sister, Greasy, at Heartland.

Lebanon male Burden, fixed Thursday at Heartland.

In heat Lebanon female Lilo, fixed Thursday at Heartland.

Then it was off to south Salem to help an FCCO volunteer who raises funds for the FCCO, and lives up in Portland but her parents in south Salem and the neighbor has created a cat problem.  The situation is further complicated by the fact the junk property is owned or was, by the occupant's mother, who died, and had been talked into leaving her property to the occupants sister, who promptly sold it to a developer and gave her sister an eviction notice.  60 days to get out.  They've lived there decades.  But in the end, we decided to get all the cats fixed anyway, despite the fact the junk property where the cats live, has been sold.  What do you do?

I trapped 12 there yesterday.  The woman had told us there were five not fixed yet.  Um, double that plus a couple lady!

Off I go with them today, to be fixed.

I was so happy to be able to catch them all.  The last few caught were done in the dark with my drop trap and some guess work.  "Is that the tabby or the black under the drop trap or is their fixed 19 year fat cat?"  Not so easy to tell from 40 feet in pitch black.  I yanked the cord and caught two unfixed tabbies.  They called them "gray and whites".  I call them gray tabby tuxes.  Unfixed.  The both.

Well, I hope it all works out.  I have been stressed badly over the Albany apartment complex who has decreed cats fed there now not be fed.  The thought of them crying for food and an entire complex of people cowed into ignoring their pleas has me on the brink.