I'm not sure if you think I thought pets are disposable or if you are just making a comment. Finding a place for the cat and my favorite plants has been more important to me than any of our stuff as we consider this move. So simply finding a place is just not that simple.

It sounds like it is time to bite the bullet and make the cat a house cat. If you are attached to the cat you need to do that. Locking a cat alone in a garage seems cruel. Is it your intention to just keep it there for the months you rent? I don't really understand why you would do this.

if the cat is neutered what's wrong with bringing it inside? There are a lot of ways to work with the cat to tame it so at least you can co exist peacefully. Lots of people have done this, including me. You really don't know how the cat may react; it may settle down faster than you think. I guess I'm puzzled why you seem to not be considering this logical option.

Forget it. I don't know where you got the idea I was going to lock the cat in the garage for months. What I came here for is to see if anyone had any ideas on how to successfully move this cat. We've had him long enough to know that he will not be a house cat, and I do know exactly how he will act because it took a couple of years to get him to come into the garage at night. He isn't happy being inside at night but we have to do that for his protection. On rainy days, he gets so claustrophobic that he paces in front of the door and attacks us. If that hasn't changed in 7 years, it's not going to change in a month.

Have your listing agent put in the confidential remarks that you would like a lease back for 60 days after selling to allow you time to find another place. Start looking at homes now and get together a list of homes that would work for you. As soon as you go under contract, and inspections are done, try to get a contract on a home to buy with a contingency to sell yours. Many sellers will consider a contingency if the buyer's have a contract on their home and it is after inspection/repairs care agreed upon.

Geez, it's not like you said you were going to leave granny in the garage for a few months! Do the best you can and if other people don't like it....maybe they can babysit the cat for a few months. Elpaso1 has a good idea if you can make it work. Oh, btw, I have three cats and we just moved last year.

I don't have a suggestion but Im wondering, don't you think that after all these years where the cat has learned you feed him and love him, that he would come back at night if you let him out of garage? I would feel claustrophobic in garage plus wonder if he resents the smells assoc with cars. Im putting human thoughts on a cat, but what if he's wondering why you lock him up after 7 years (not understanding it is your idea of protecting him). Of course, now that you're moving, it is probably not a time to experiment with changing routines, but perhaps in your new home, after he has become reasonably accustomed to new digs, you might consider not closing garage and see what happens. I'm betting hell come back in the morning for his b/fast/ Good luck finding an interim solution. I know you want to do the right thing.

I'm surprised so many here have first assumed the worst instead of asking more questions of missouribound. What I've read is he/he has asked for help in relocating with an outdoor cat, has no intention of leaving the cat, locks the cat in the garage only at night, and has spent years taming an otherwise feral cat. Not all cats can be tamed to become happy indoor cats and there are many reasons for locking a pet up at night with the main one being wild predators at night. We live in an area where an outdoor cat has a slim chance of survival due to coyotes and my neighbor has to lock her cat in the barn every night to protect him.

Asking for a lease back on your home would be an ideal solution, but even then there's going to be the problem of adjusting your cat to the new (outdoor) location without him disappearing altogether. If it were me, I'd look for a cat-only boarding facility that has large runs and keep him there until you find your permanent home. After bringing him home I'd place him in a large dog kennel (with a wire top & shade protection) so that he can adapt to the new location before releasing him to roam the neighborhood. The best solution, if your new home has a typical sized back yard, is to install a cat containment fence. Here are some ideas.

Thank you annztoo; you understand my situation perfectly. This was a trap, neuter, release cat who decided to stay after he was released.

We can't start building on our land until November at the earliest and rentals are hard to find nearby. And thank you for the link. I got some ideas for fencing in a patio if we can only find an apartment, or a free standing one in a backyard if we get a house without a garage.

Don't know your living situation (number of adults/children) but does your county/city allow temporary placement of a mobile home on the property during construction?

Sorry that you didn't like the initial answers to your questions but you did NOT provide enough information or context in your first post. We can only respond to what we read. You've explained the situation much more fully on the Smaller Homes forum. I wish you luck in working through this situation.

Are there any TNR or Friends of Ferals groups where you live - or perhaps they can be found on the Internet. Theres a trick to moving ferals (which is basically what your guy is, even though he's kinda, sorta friendly), He may have to be confined in his new place for a certain length of time so that he doesn't try to get back to his old house. Cats .... and esp. those that retain a bit of the wild in them... are very connected to their territory and where to find prey... in the wild their survival depends on that connection.

You have my sympathy OP. I will be moving in a few months, with five assorted cats, all rescues .One is, like yours, but not fixed yet. He came to the door here starving soon after I arrived, He would love to be an indoor cat, but on his terms, and his manners are appalling! He would panic if I tried to cage him. But I cannot leave him. Hoping you find a solution; my heart goes out to you!

I moved recently from a farm to a suburb ... I had 2 barn cats at the farm, that also would not ever have become house cats. I caught them and found a barn for them to live in with a neighbor that will spoil them.

The most difficult part was moving 2 of my 3 house cats, semi-feral, but content to live in the house. I thought I had it all planned out and had placed a large dog crate in my living room 2 months before the move, which they then were sleeping in and hanging out in. The morning of the move was another story ....They did not want to be caught. Finally got them in the crate or a cat carrier, but what a traumatic experience for them and me!

I don't have any real suggestions for you, other than asking your buyers if they will care for him for the short time until you can come get him for good.

Feeling for the last poster. I have acquired two humane traps for my two ferals when the time comes to move. Trying to get them into a carrier would be too much. Also going to have to get sedatives for them

Thanks to everyone posting here who moves their cats with them and makes plans ahead of time for it to be a success. I have learned that not everyone does.

aviolet6; which is why there are so many strays. My little ginger and white outdoor boy was clearly left or dumped; he was not a true feral and was used to being handled and fed . I am in Ireland where cats are little better than vermin. I have a little girl feral who was saved when someone caught a farmer trying to bury her and her newborns alive... a rescue raised and homed the kittens and I adopted the mother. This one is a true feral which gets interesting but she is safe and healthy.

Yes, I have rehomed a number of tame cats that ended up in my last neighborhood, and some less tame that also probably once had homes. Have learned not to rehome any to people who are planning a move though, because some of the cats escaped during the moving process in their new homes and were not found/recaptured successfully. Terrible. In my current neighborhood my duplex neighbor family moved and left their dog and 3 cats behind. It fell to the landlady and me to rehome them, which we did and they are better off now than with their original owners, (who had already abandoned their unspayed female cat - one of the 3 - and neighbors felt sorry for her and were feeding her) but it was a stressful process and took time. Wish people were better educated about how to treat animals and that they have feelings too.