[Tamlyn]

Hello all,

I am the happy companion of 5 cats, 4 female and 1 male. Over the last couple of months a female stray cat has come to visit about 3 -4 times a week for food.

I would like to adopt her however I cannot be 100% sure she is a stray. She is skinny (but not emaciated) and her coat is quite matted with fleas etc. She doesnt particularly look like she has someone that looks after her. The thing that makes me wonder whether she really is a stray is because she is so approachable and friendly. What if she has an owner (granted one that doesnt look after her very well) - if I took her in would I be stealing? (sorry for the silly question).

Second question is if I did take her in does anyone have any advice on how I would introduce her to a multi-cat household? My tom cat really does not like her and goes absoluetly nuts whenever he sees her through the window.

I hope this post isnt too long

Thanks

T.

 

[kittygirl04]

Oh, please don't feel like you would be stealing that cat. The way that I see it--if that is all the better care that her owners are giving her, then she would be better off with you. It could also be that she is friendly because she had owners and then maybe they dumped her off somewhere near your house--maybe that is why she is approachable. As far as introducing them....I have always kept my cats separated by keeping one cat in a room with the door shut and just letting them sniff each other under the door. They may growl, but at least they can't do any more than that. I have heard that it is a good idea to keep their food near that door so they will associate food (which is yummy) with the other cat--and maybe it will make them a little more positive towards each other. I'm sure you'll get lots of good suggestions--there are lots of smart cat people here!

 

[Jeanie]

Tamlyn, I would call around the neighborhood, and ask the children especially--if they know whose cat she is. If no one knows, call the shelters and see if an animal meeting that description has been reported missing. Cats have been known to travel quite a distance, so I would call all the towns nearby. I'd also put an ad in the paper.

If you get no results in a week, I'd take the cat to the vet. She should be vaccinated before she joins your group. She should also be tested for feline leukemia, which many strays have, and is a killer.

The reason I would take all of these precautions is that people who lose their cats-when a child leaves a door open or whatever-- seldom get them back. I wouldn't want to put a family through that, and I'm sure you wouldn't either. Losing a pet, whether it's lost or dead, is terrible!

 

[AngelZoo]

Do you best to check locally with whom might own this cat.

If you find the owner, you can try and bust them for neglect if they knowingly let their cat out in these conditions and don't treat them.

Look up your local laws, they can help you!

Here in Maryland... if you feed and shelter any stray dog/cat etc, for 3 days, they legally become yours. You are responcible for them from then on etc etc.

Long story short here... I recently had to bring a dog into the humane society, ultimately to eventually be put to sleep, I had no ownership over this dog, it had never been in or near my house, but in the end I was the say so of what happened to the dog because I had fed it and left it in it's old shelter (an empty apartment) and the owners left with no intent to come back...

 

[tiggs]

Also, your vet can probobly check to see if the cat is microchipped. If the cat does have an owner (or used to have one), the chip should contain their info. I adopted an outdoor stray that was super friendly, she had been fed by a neighbor from early on, so I think that human contact was a major factor.

 

[Tamlyn]

Thanks everyone for all your advice,

I will definately try all the things suggested. She is such a beautiful cat I honestly cant believe how anyone could dump her... but we know how cruel people can be. It is like my Tom cat Rajah, he is part siamese and part tabby he is a huge cat with these gorgeous yellow-green eyes. When I adopted him from the shelter I couldnt believe anyone could dump him!! It makes me so mad how people can just treat thier animals like disposable 'toys'. Thanks again everyone


Tamlyn

 

[Lori]

How wonderful of you to want to adopt and care for this cat! It certainly sounds like she may have been dumped by her owner. Disgusting that people will do this. She is so lucky that you found her!!

 

[Ariel]

could you possibly post some pictures of her? I would love to see what she looks like.

 

[Tamlyn]

Thanks Lori

Ariel: I will definately get some pics of her. I bought a digital camera recently but I'll have to work out how the thing works before I post I'll have to find out how to post pictures on this site too! It might take me a couple of days! lol

Tamlyn