Stray cat - WWYD

Woodlane7 I'm glad you've kept her and are looking after her - Meadow is a lovely name. I'd had cats for 41 years, the last one die almost 2 years ago (he'd been feral and we had him for 11 years). We didn't intend having another, but I'd been feeding a little, thin, tatty, unneutered male for a while, and now he's decided to live here . I'm taking him to the vet's next week to see if he's chipped (unlikely) and will get him neutered, chipped and checked over. The GDs have named him Jaffa. He'll have a good home for the rest of his days here

Your new boss has made her decision.. the cat distribution system at its best ❤️

My neighbours were adopted by a little cat, they did find out who it belonged to but the woman wasn't really interested. The cat was very persistent so my neighbours agreed to adopt her.

Not long afterwards she presented them with four kittens! All have been found homes now.

WoodLane7

PS We have named her Meadow

I am so pleased that you are keeping her. She picked you and she knew what she was doing.

PS We have named her Meadow

Thank you everyone for your kind messages and words of advice. Its been well over a week now and we will be keeping her; I have made an appointment with vet for neutering, inoculations, microchipping (I have no idea if she is either inoculated or neutered but lack of microchip suggests answer is likely not; good idea about keeping the receipts though, just in case the owner does come out of the woodwork). She has been free to leave the house as our back door is often open (and we have also done cat flap training with her) but although she goes out she mostly doesn't leave our garden and if she does its only to hop into next doors. She has totally bonded with us and I think its fair to say she wants to stay - so my guess is even if the original owner did show up (increasingly unlikely I would say) I am not so sure she would want to leave us anyway, and I certainly wouldn't give her up easily. Thank you again to those who took the time and trouble to read and respond to my post

loopyloo

As of June 24th all cats in England should be microchipped.
You should take it to the vet and see if its owner is registered . If not adopt it!
Lucky you!

I took her to the vet within a couple of hours of her walking into our house as we wanted to trace an owner before we got too attached; sadly no microchip

Many years ago, when I was cooking late at night, a cat appeared at my back door crying so I gave him some food. He had a collar which was too tight. I recognised as a kitten that used to come and play with my cat. I put a notice up in the local garage but the only phone call I got was from someone from the other side of the village with a cat that had turned up in similar circumstances. We concluded that someone had moved away, leaving two cats behind.

I fed him regularly for a while and them he disappeared, returning a couple of days later with a cyst on his ear. At that point I decided he was obviously homeless, took him to the vet, had him neutered and kept him. We called him Ginger and he was a beautiful cat, very loving.

When we lived in London a young cat used to visit our cats. He was a beautiful silvery grey tabby. We weren't the only people he visited. One day my DH was talking to someone who lived up the road, this cat appeared and she said that's so and so. My DH said " we call him.... (I forget what it was). He'd been visiting this couple too.

In your position I would most certainly not contact the woman . If this were my cat I would be off asap to collect her! Have the cat microchipped to you , claim ownership and enjoy her company.

Well WoodLane, as most of the other comments have said, congrats to you, as you've made all the right moves, and have gained yourself a lucky new cat!

You've also had a bit of luck, as new arrivals can provoke some hissy fits, even a spat or two, but you seem to have avoided that. Our present cat seems to hate all others, though we heard he lived with three, perhaps that caused it?!

And for QuaintIrene, yes, that can happen, cats do indeed vote with their feet! We gained one some years ago, she'd got fed up being used as a toy by 2 little children, so came and found us. Our existing cat at the time soon got over the insult, as she (a Mastermind of cats), was able to lord it over a docile and much dimmer companion, who in turn was happy to have a quiet household. We made sure we fed the bossy one first (about 30 seconds difference), seemed to keep everyone happy.

Oh, PS, ignore any suggestion about re-contacting the woman who thought it might be hers. If she'd had a problem, she could have phoned.

Calendargirl

X posts Crossstitch, sorry.

No need to apologise, Calendergirl, but thanks for contacting me. No problem at all.

Please post again to confirm that you are keeping the cat and not handing her over to anyone. I worry that you will give her to the other women and that she is not really a cat lover.

I don't know who - or who-with....but register you cat ( with a vet, probably! ? ) - and get her chipped & collared/tagged
(with an elastic collar if she goes outside) & chipped.
Congratulations, YOU have now been adopted by a small, now-not-so-thin cat.

My cat adopted me. I wasn’t looking for a cat, or any pet come to that.
The actual owner (let’s call her Jane) lived a few doors away and had been advertising for her all over. Jane came straight away and took the cat home. Cat returned to me within the hour.
I tried not feeding her and taking her back every time. I saw the basket and full food bowl and scratching posts and cat flap.
One freezing night I saw the cat from my window huddled close to the wall on the roof of my outhouse surrounded by snow.
After a cuppa with Jane and a long chat we agreed that she had chosen me to be her staff and left Jane who was definitely a loving owner. I also found that Jane had taken in a friend’s dog while friend was in hospital and the dog had since become a permanent resident with Jane.
Six years on, Jane still visits ‘her’ cat, and brings “child support “ in the form of large bags of kibble - I she’s definitely recognised and becomes the centre of cat’s attention while she’s here. I’m ignored for some time after too 🤣but although the cat is free to return and the basket is still at Jane’s just in case.
So I now have a cat and a new friend 😎

X posts Crossstitch, sorry.

She already said the cat had been neutered

I think the OP said the cat had been checked for a microchip, hadn’t got one. Don’t think neutering was mentioned?

Some years ago we lived on a council estate and the couple whose garden backed on to ours had a cat and a German Shepherd. One day they had a massive row, smashed the house up, and disappeared, leaving the animals behind. A neighbour removed the poor dog and, after a couple of days the cat moved in with us. There was still no sign of the owners so I had the cat spayed. More time passed and then the woman returned and wanted her cat back. I pointed out that I'd had the cat for a while now ans had her spayed, so she said she would give me money towards the operation but her children wanted the cat. I spoke to the RSPCA but they told me that, because I hadn't previously reported the cat as abandoned, she would have to go back to her owner. After a couple of weeks the woman brought her back and said that as the cat didn't like being played with (I wonder why!) I might as well have her back. So I did.

Over the years we've had two missing cats, and turned heaven and earth to find them by knocking on doors and putting up posters/cards in shop windows. The first was reported as having been seen at the side of a nearby road, apparently dead and we immediately went to the spot and sadly it was her. Brought her home and buried in the garden. The second was reported having been seen in a nearby field. He had been gone for two weeks but we went to look for him immediately. It was him. He had become feral but we managed to catch him ( me suffering cuts from his panic) and with good care he became his previous loving self and lived a long life with us and his "brothers".

I would write this woman off as not caring sufficiently. The cat is settled with you. That's his life now. Get him checked over, wormed, jabbed and chipped. A tad expensive but animals are. Sounds like he's a lucky cat with you as his owner.

If all cats are supposed to be microchipped as someone posted perhaps cat has been abandoned rather than owner pay for the chip. Other "owner" maybe made contact as feeling guilty but then changed her mind. Get the cat chipped, will be registered to you.

Please op come back and update us. Apologies if you have already. I’ve done the unpardonable and not read all the posts. I will later.

loopyloo

As of June 24th all cats in England should be microchipped.
You should take it to the vet and see if its owner is registered . If not adopt it!
Lucky you!

Wise advice.

It has been a law in Spain for several years and the European Union as well.

It identifies the owner and contact details.

Buttonjugs

grandtanteJE65

First find out whether you are legally permitted to keep the cat, when someone has claimed her.

If you are, go ahead and keep her, but do please have her neutered and vaccinated. Otherwise you put your two cats at risk of infections they may not survive, and you land up with a litter of kittens you cannot find homes for.

I myself would contact the lady who has been in touch, asking if she is going to come and see the cat and decide whether it is her cat, and if she wants it back. Make it plain you are willing to keep the cat.

If you return the cat to her, and it walks back to you - for any cat I have ever known could cover 3 miles in the course of a few days, if it really wanted to, you will be facing a new dilemma, which it might be well to broach if the former owner does want the cat. If she does, ask her what she wants to happen if it does make its way back to you.

She already said the cat has been neutered. Why don’t people read threads?

Buttonjugs,
Where exactly does it say she’s been neutered??
As you yourself say, why don’t people read threads?

loopyloo

As of June 24th all cats in England should be microchipped.
You should take it to the vet and see if its owner is registered . If not adopt it!
Lucky you!

She has already taken it to the vet! She said so in her post!

I'd contact her again. My MiL & FiL had many cats (sequentially) & took Susie from a friend who had to go into residential care. They'd had her 3 months & she seemed perfectly happy, then she disappeared. It was a full 12 months' later (despite posters & asking vets etc) when someone saw a cat that looked like her & it turned out she had turned up just when Susie went missing, & with her unusual coloring it was obviously the same cat. The adoptive family gave her up & she lived with my in laws for a further 3 years without straying again although always allowed out, until her death (she was an elderly cat when they got her). Cats are unfathomable. Just cos she's left home, doesn't follow that she prefers your house. But you are to be congratulated in being careful who you hand her over to.

So this cat is old enough to have kittens so that is your number one issue. Vet would have to do an exploratory look under anaesthetic to be sure. Number 2 after 7days with no chip you can adopt. My friend runs a cat charity and this week she had a phonecall for a very young cat approx 7months old was seen in a persons garden with 4 kittens aged about 4wks. This mum cat was obviously very poorly and my friend trapped cat and kittens. Mum cat was rushed to vets put on drip and kept overnight. Sadly she died the next morning and vets said she was already pregnant again! So many unwanted cats or cats whose owners dont neuter. Sad sad times. Well done for giving a home to this deserving cat.