Apartment Complexes | Addison Cat Crew

Feeding At Apartment Complexes

Apartment complexes can sometimes be tricky places to establish feeding stations.

Ideal placement:

Out-of-the-way green spaces, spaces in between bushes for example
Along back fences or hidden corners where people rarely walk
Areas near your apartment that are fairly private, such as a patio or row of plants or greenery (Consider artificial greenery screens that can be attached to a balcony railing, if allowed.)

Apartment-specific setup tips:

Keep stations small and hidden
Don’t use paper plates or any other disposable containers that could blow away
Use small, shallow bowls in neutral colors; light brown to match sidewalks, green to match the grass etc.
Try not to leave food out overnight. If you must leave it out because the cats don’t all show up at the same time, find a place where the bowls are completely hidden. Let the cats see you place the bowls there and they will get used to going to that spot.
Keep everything spotless and pick up any trash. Make it impossible for people to point out that cats are being fed there.
No matter where you decide, make sure the cats see you putting the food down and that you see them enter the space. Make sure it's not too far from where you were feeding them before. Cats are very much creatures of habit and may refuse to move. You might have to move them gradually, a few feet at a time over the course of a week or two.

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Dealing With Hostile Neighbors

Unfortunately, not everyone will be kind to animals or interested in helping them.

Stay calm and non-confrontational when approached by these people. Escalating to an argument doesn’t solve anything and can result in harm coming to the cats. Study documentation well from official advocate organizations such as Alley Cat Allies so you can be well-informed if confronted. They have great literature that you can purchase for a small fee to keep on hand.

Alley Cat Allies

Advocacy Tools: Public Education

How to Live with Cats in Your Neighborhood

Just the Facts: Community Cats

The Humane Society (A document you can save and print out)

An Overview of Caring for Free-Roaming Cats by the Humane Society

Article on saveacat.org citing many professional references

The Human Benefits of Feral Cats

Also, do some research into your local animal control organization and see if they support TNR. If they do, it might be a good move to contact them and see how they can help you promote this program.

There are probably a lot of supportive neighbors that are eager to help. Maybe you can come together to advocate, host a community meeting, or have a representative from a local community cat organization speak to the group.

Talking to Apartment Management

Sometimes it’s hard to know how apartment management feels about the cats being fed on property. They may already be aware and just aren’t sure who to contact. That’s why it’s important to be prepared and ready with answers.

If they are already educated and enthusiastic about community cats and TNR, then great, the hard part is done!
If they are hesitant, go through the same explanations and literature that you would use with hostile neighbors. Emphasize that you are helping keep cats healthy and monitoring them for trapping and neutering. Explaining their role in rodent control and in preventing other un-neutered cats from moving into the area is also very effective.
Have success stories that you can provide, such as the number of cats you have trapped and neutered. Hopefully, you’ve also had cats that were socialized and adopted out. Keep detailed records with dates and information about the cats who were neutered or adopted. Contact a local rescue beforehand so that you have a resource when you take in a friendly cat.

It's a lot of work, but it is very rewarding, and you are providing a great service to the cats. They will be very grateful even if they can't express it in words. You'll see it in how they run when they see you coming!