BARN CATS
Cat's make wonderful pets, but on a ranch, they also help maintain a healthy balance of nature.Have you ever been in a working barn that did not have a barn cat? It is highly unusual to find one without the other. Barn cats help keep the rodent population down by instinctual hunting. They hunt and kill mice and other vermin, which keeps grain, feed and hay from being raided by these pests.Female's are the best hunters. Barn cats should always be spayed or neutered to prevent unwanted litters of kittens. and to prevent the breeding of more feral cats.

Some animal rescue facilities will place spayed or neutered feral and unsociable cats in homes with barns. It's an alternative to being euthanized. A feral cat is an untamed cat, second generation, that has never lived in a domestic environment with people. Once adopted, the cats are kept in crate-like playpens to live in for the first few weeks of life in their new home. The crate allows the cats to acclimate to their new home so they don't run away looking for their old territory. With love, time, and patience, a feral cat can be tamed.

In the past and regretfully still in some locales, barn cats were left to fend for themselves. They may receive a squirt of milk now and then as the cows were milked, but had to depend on their own hunting abilities for food. Barn cats were not vaccinated, spayed, neutered, or treated for medical conditions.Tape worms from mice and fleas can cause barn cats to become malnourished and sick. As the public becomes more educated about cats, more barn cats are receiving the care they need and deserve.

           

Barn Cats and Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS)

 HPS is potentially deadly illness, carried by rodents, especially the deer mouse. You can become infected by exposure to their salivia or droppings which dries out and becomes aerosolized. The virus is then transmitted by inhalation. Researchers believe that you may also be able to get the virus if you touch something that has been contaminated with rodent urine, droppings or saliva, and then touch your nose or mouth. Researchers also suspect that if virus-infected rodent urine, droppings or saliva contaminates food that you eat, you could also become sick.

Symptoms include fever,body aches, shortness of breath and coughing. At this stage the disease progresses rapidly, resulting in hospitalization. According to the CDC, cats are not known to be carriers of HPS. However, "They may bring infected rodents into contact with people if they catch such animals and carry them home." The virus can be transmitted to humans in barns, sheds and other buildings that become infested with rodents. Barn cats help prevent infestation.

           

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