Cat territory question

[DonyaQuick]

Short answer is one cat will not keep feral cats away

Indeed, from the various replies here I'm crossing it off my list of possibilities.

(Suggestion 2)
Alternatively, you could start feeding the feral cats. (It will cost money.) Then all the local ferals that you aren't attached to will limit some of the new ferals coming in to their territory. Maybe you'll be about to catch some to get them neutered and vaccinated, but it'll likely be very expensive.

This is not something I'm willing to do with the current population. I already got sent on a visit to the hospital due to a recent encounter with one to be checked out for disease risk; it's just fortunate I was well protected clothing-wise. At worst it had rabies (non-trivial possibility in this area), and at best it was the most aggressive cat I've ever seen with a serious respiratory infection. They are all extrermely aggressive regardless of disease situations and the vets here won't work on aggressive animals. If I were ever to see one that behaved in a less totally horrendous way towards humans, I would consider trying to befriend it though.

Making sure your birds are more secure than they are now will be top priority

Perhaps ironically, the chickens are all completely safe when I'm not working on their enclosures in broad daylight. And they're completely safe from the wildlife when I'm there, just not 100% for the cats. The local racoons and coyotes don't sneak round behind me and test coop doors to see if they're just resting shut vs latched when I'm a mere 10ft away cleaning a waterer. I have of course been more careful now about latches for quick in/out situations but it's an annoying amount of extra fumbling.

Call your local animal control, Humane Society, and ASPCA. One of them is bound to neuter the stray cats for free. You might have to catch them yourself, but they would probably have traps you can use.

Animal control doesn't exist out where I am since I'm not in a well-populated municipality. Already tried the other organizations and no help.

 

[Sefirothe]

Are there common diseases for cats that can't be vaccinated against or protected against with a monthly pill type thing?

Yes. FIV (feline immunodeficiency virus) has no currently available vaccine (in the USA) or other preventative.

Feline Leukemia Virus has a vaccine but it isn’t 100% and the virus is highly contagious and easily transmissible between cats.

Not to mention kitty herpes viruses that can cause life long upper respiratory issues. Again there’s a vaccine but it isnt 100% and doesn’t cover all strains.