Things You'll Need
- Assistant(s)
- Bright portable light
- Live animal trap(s)
- Safety goggles
- Long, heavy gloves
- Canned cat food
- Materials to seal entrances
Instructions
Preparation
Watch closely for a few days and nights to get a better idea of how the cats are using the space under your house and what your best course of action might be. Does it seem to be a mother caring for kittens, a single cat, or several cats using it as their den? Do they look healthy or sickly? Do they seem to actually live under your house or just use it as a resting place? Are they using more than one entrance?
Decide if you will need to have professional help. If the cats seem sick it is best to have animal control or a professional animal trapper come to remove the cats. Although in most parts of the country it is unlikely, the cat could have rabies.
Contact a local feral cat organization to see if they will take the cats once you have gotten them from under your house. They will usually be willing to work with you to move the cats to a better location, or integrate them into an established colony. They may even be willing to help you get all the cats out from under the house and trapped, if they have enough volunteers. Remember these are all volunteer organizations so be respectful of their time, expertise and feelings.
Feed the cats at the same time each day, using canned cat food. Place the food just under the house at first. Then gradually move it closer and closer to the entrance until finally it is out from under the house and the cats will still come out to eat it comfortably. This will probably take 5 to 7 days or more if the cats are truly feral. It will take fewer days if the cats are just lost/abandoned pets.
Trapping
Set up a live animal trap and place cat food just outside the entrance to the trap. Once the cats are comfortable eating the food while out from under the house, cover the trap with a blanket, tarp or bushes, and gradually move the food farther inside the trap until it is all the way to the back of the trap.
Set the trap once the cats are going all the way inside to eat. The trap should be long enough that the cat's tail does not stick out when it is eating the food. When you set the trap, be sure the cat food is all the way to the back of the trap.
Set up additional traps as needed, until all the cats have been caught. You can sometimes borrow traps from animal control, which would allow you to speed this process up by using multiple traps.
Seal it up
Go under the house with a bright light to be certain there are no kittens, sick or injured cats under there. This is not a job for a child. An adult should go under the house; a sick, injured or rabid cat will be dangerous and so will a mother protecting her newborns. Wear protective goggles and long thick gloves. Take a small carrier with you in case you find kittens or a sick cat. If you are not comfortable with this task, hire a professional to check under the house for you; it must be done.
Immediately seal every possible entrance under your house. Do not wait even 3 minutes as another cat could wander in. If there are many small entrances it is best to have helpers so you can all seal the entrances at the same time. Have your materials ready to immediately seal all entrances. Remember that cats are small and flexible and can get through some very small openings.
Double check all sealed entrances for security. Push, pull and wiggle every cover to see if anything comes loose. Anything flimsy or that could be knocked loose by kids or weather will eventually cause you the same problem.