OK, I moved to a new house a few weeks ago. On the first day we got here, a black and white cat was hanging around the house, and it was all we could do to stop it getting in. I just put this down to it being naturally inquisitive. Since moving in, it has been hanging around the house an awful lot - more than I would say a cat generally does in its own neighbourhood. It has been in the back garden a lot, and doesn't seem to stray far from either our front or our back garden, apart from occasionally sitting on the next door neighbours window ledge. I went out to see it a few weeks ago after I finally noticed just how much it was around, and noticed when I stoked it that it was, in my opinion, very thin. Its fur is very flakey, with what looks like very bad dandruff, its backbone is very prominent trhough its long fur, and its hip bones are also very prominent. This is difficult to see without touching the cat as its fur is mid length and quite 'tufty' and so its coat gives it what looks like bulk. I have started feeding it tuna every day (I am off to get some proper cat food this morning) but now I am concerned obviously for its long term welfare. One of our sets of neighbours hasn't mentioned anything about the previous householders owning a cat, but I have always missed them to actually ask them if they know of this cat and who it belong to (they both work very long hours, and I work weekends). The neighbours on the other side do not speak any english, and in any event the man of the house seems extremely aggressive (a lot of late night violent arguments, and sounds from next door of things being thrown), and I am actually quite intimidated to go over there. I am worried for the cat and would like to take it to the vets to check that it has been wormed adequately etc., but am worried where I stand legally on this. Could I get in trouble for feeding it, or if I do take it to the vets? I tried calling my local RSPCA centre, and they are always on answerphone with information for emergencies in the case of injurred animals. If the cat turns out to be a stray, or left by the previous owners, I would love to take it on, as it is very, very friendly, but if it does belong to someone, do you think they should be reported because of how thin the cat is (I think it is old, as it looks rather gummy, but I don;t think this is a reason for it to be quite so thin, with a bad coat). What do you think I should do?

If you can take it to the vet they could check to see if it is chipped - I'm sure they wouldn't charge (but who knows !). The best thing to do, if possible, is to make a paper collar. Write on it that if it does belong to somebody, could they let you know so that you don't feed it. That way the owner, if there is one, can contact you and put your mind at rest.

Val

Personally - Even if the cat does belong to someone it doesn't sound as if it is very well cared for. It could be unwanted, lost or neglected.

I would be tempted to take it to the vets, get it checked over and ask their opinion - they will be able to scan it for a microchip and tell if the cat is malnourished or if they think it's condition is a side effect of an illness. You could always 'foster' the cat and leave your details with the local vets and rspca in-case anyone should come looking for it.

With regards to your neighbours - could you pop a note through their door asking if the cat belongs to them? That way you don't have to speak to them, even though your neighbours don't speak English all the time its likely that they can read/speak it but choose not to?

All else fails I think it wouldn't be unreasonable to foster the cat and in a few weeks/months assume ownership - you clearly only have the cats interests at heart and I don't think anyone could be angry about that if they did come forward.

Let us know how you get on :)

I have just checked with the neighbours (plucked up the courage) and they spoke enough english to confirm that the cat wasn't theirs and they have no idea who it belongs to. I have left a note for my other neighbours, and in the meantime bought in some food for it. I think I will take it to the vets, and I am worried that a simple answer to the lack of weight might be worms. Also, the coat condition concerns me. I have come home and it is no longer in the garden, but it is a very cold day here, and this morning it was curled up on the decking outside at 8:20am, and I kind of thought a cat, if it had owners, would be in in the warm. I am thinking of doing this paper collar idea, and I think I will take it to the vet in the next week to check it for illness in connection with its weight, or for a microchip. Thanks for the replies, as it has kind of helped me make my miind up on the best course of action.

Thanks.

This cat has been very lucky to have found you, if you ask me.  Lucky Lucky Puss :) :D

Well, I got some cat meat today and it has so far eaten one sachet this morning, and another one this evening. It obviously wants more but we don't want it to gorge itself and be sick. It has been sitting on our bed upstairs, and generally exploring the house (we ended up letting it in as it have been very windy and cold today in Surrey). I check with one neighbour but have yet to hear from the others about the question of ownership on the cat. Once I have a clearer idea of the status of this cat, I am going to take it to the vets to get it checked out. I bought some flea treatment today that I will give it this evening, but I think it also needs to be wormed. I am also going to put a paper collar on it tonight and see if anything comes of that.
It is a lovely, lovely cat, and I really cat believe it has been abandonned. It rolled over on its back on our bed and while I was tickling under its chin (while it lay on its back with paws in the air...!) it reached out one paw and very gently put it on my face. It is so sweet and gentle. The only problem is I have two pet rats, so we are obviously concerned for their welfare. They live in the spare room, so we have put a lock on the spare room door, which will keep them safe, and myself and my partner will just have to be vigilent with that.
Thanks for all the advice and I will let you know what happens. xx

Have you given it a name ?.

Thats how we ended up with Noodle :)
she turned up one day and never left- used to sleep all night on the doorstep and no one claimed her :(

Their loss as shes a real cutie :D

Cats very seldom will over-eat, so she/he will know how much is good for him/her :)

The RSPCA have an appauling record with stray cats, my grandmothers next door nieghbours left their pregnant cat behind after they did a "moonlight".  We called the RSPCA and they said they would have to leave her and the expected kittens for 7 days, to make sure they were strays.

I took the cat on and she went on to have four beautiful kittens, all of which I kept :)

I'd go with the paper collar idea too. You never know although it does sound as if she/he has been abandoned. And I think I would do the same as you.
It seems whatever comes about you have been "adopted"

Well, she had to go out last night because we have no litter box here (but she went out after three sachets of cat meat and a bowl of water). My partner is going to get litter etc. today so she can stay in tonight. We are toying with calling her either 'Mog' (after the cat belonging to the witch character 'meg' in the children's 'Meg & Mog' books, or 'Fee', short for 'Felix' as she looks exactly like the cat on the Felix adverts!
I am going to do the paper collar thing tonight when I get back from work, and see what comes of that. She is absolutely gorgeous though, and I really can't believe she is unwanted (if it definitely turns out that she is). She is so friendly, a real sweetheart. Sitting on my bed purring she was adorable (if someone can tell me if I can attach pictures I will send one, as we took some of her last night, after she decided her new special place was on an old blanket under the clothes rack..!)
Well, I will let people know what is going on with her. I was very worried for my poor rats yesterday, but we locked their door to the room they live in, and last night was a success (no nasty surprises!), and because the cat isn't as young as it was, it isn;t the most agile cat in the world (no large leaps or the like). I think that if I haven't found out what is going on with the ownership of this cat by the end of the week I will take it to the vet.
Thanks again for all the good advice and suggestions. 

NannyOgg - whereabouts in Surrey are you based?

Well, I think if I were her I'd stay put now !. She sounds very content. Is it a new built house you are in or did anybody live there before ?. She hasn't come back to her 'old' home has she ?.

Val

PS - I like Fee best !

You should call it Greebo! ;)

That's Nanny Ogg's cat in the Discworld novels :D

Ah, well I never thought of Greebo!

I am based in Guildford, and the house is a victorian semi. It was around from the first day we arrived, and so it is possible it once lived in our house. I spoke to a neighbour a few doors down today and she confirmed the cat has been around trying to get into houses along the street for at least the past three weeks. She fed it a few times, but has just herself got a new kitten, and didn't want to let the stray in because of the health risk to the kitten. She reported its behaviour to the local vets, and they have apparently got the cat on their 'missing' books for people who report missing pets, but as yet there has been no news on anyone reporting it missing. I am going to call the vet in the week to find out what is going on (I couldn't today as I was working).

I have just given it its flea treatment and put a flea collar on the cat, which it seems fine with so it has obviously had a collar before. I bought it some jingling spangly balls to play with, but it doesn't seem to understand 'play' and just comes over and acts affectionately rather than playing, but that is fine. I am going to take it to the vets next week after I have spoken to them on the phone.

The next test is to get it in a position where I can see what sex it is!

If she is old as you say there is a chance she just does not deign to play. My two rarely play now and if they do we "humans" get so excited they stop as if reminding us who is in charge - them of course.

Karen

Sounds as though she's landed on her feet with you!  It's amazing how many people are adopted by cats, rather than the other way around.

One thing I would disagree with is the assertion that cats rarely overeat.  This is an extremely common misconception.  Some cats will regulate their intake but most will eat what they can get, latest stats suggest that about 30% of pet cats are obese so once she's regained condition keep an eye on her diet.

Anyway, don't want to sound like I'm lecturing.  I can't really talk as one of my cats is grossly fat (he came from a vet friend of mine who insisted that he was just big boned!).  I've tried putting him on a prescription weight loss food but he moved next door!  All our neighbours feed him so I've given up.  He's 15 anyway so it's a bit late.

Hope you have lots of fun with your new addition.

I am still concerned about the issue of ownership for this cat. My partner and I are due to get a puppy in August, which we have budgeted for(we even have our own savings account for it!), and we can afford to set ourselves up as owners (i.e. the initial costs of buying everything you need, paying for the puppy itself, vaccinations, worming, vet check fees etc) as well as the long term costs of feeding, insurance, puppy classes, worming etc. We are worried about taking on this cat though with any unsuspecting health problems it may have. With a puppy, we are taking on an animal which comes from meticulously health checked parents, and which will come to us with a clean bill of health from the breeder, who will have it vet checked the day before we collect it, before we ourselves also take it to the vet the day after we bring it home. With this cat we are taking on an unknown factor. We talked last night and can afford to keep it if we take out insurance on it, and we can afford the food it eats, as well as flea treatments and worming, but we can't face the massive bill we might have to take on if we take it on as of now. We could even afford monthly medication for it if necessary (I was wondering with how much it is eating, and its skinny appearance, whether it had a thyroid condition, but now its eating is appearing to calm down a lot, and it is choosing to leave food and come back to it later rather than wolf it all down at once). I was wondering what our options are in terms of the RSCPA. We need this cat to be checked for a microchip, and obviously the issue of ownership does need to be researched, which would ideally be the RSPCA's responsibility considering how this cat looked when we first started to feed it (in four days it has filled out, but when I brushed it last night, underneath the coat its backbone is still discernable, as is the pinched appearance at the hips). However, if we took this cat to the nearest RSCPA centre, explained the situation and told them we would be willing to rehome this cat, would they health-check it for us and give it the all-clear (for one its breath stinks, which might be a sign it has been bin scavaging, but also might indicate that it needs extensive dental work...)? Before anyone gets annoyed with me, I would never see this cat destitute, and if we did have to face a massive bill for it, we could probably pay it (my mother-in-law has offered to contribute to its vet bill), but things would be extremely tight, as we are currently in a battle with our old landlord over a substantial deposit that he has so far not paid (even though we passed our inventory with flying colours and have not put a foot wrong with him in 4 years...) if we had that money we would be fine, but at the moment we have no clue when it is coming.
It is one of those situations where we both love it, both feel for it, and have both sat down with pen and paper and can afford it, if we can be sure of its health status, and I feel angry that the original owner did not keep up with the responsibility of ownership and keep this cat's health as the top priority, instead it looks as though it has no molars in its mouth at all, just the incisors, it is skinny, has flakey fur (getting much better with brushing) and has been outside in cold night-time weather for god knows how long, and now someone else has to foot the bill of care. It really is very annoying, as I take special precautions to budget (and I always overestminate) before taking any animal on, and all the pets I have ever had have two yearly vet checks regardless of health (this is even so for my two rats!) and because I am so vigilent with care and research so much into food types etc. I have been very lucky with the pets I have had in my life in terms of their health, but it is unthinkable that people out there take on an animal and just either through willful neglect or personal circumstances, leave it to fend for itself instead of taking the responsible route of ensuring its health and rehoming it through a charitable organisation.
Anyway, rant over, but essentially I need advice on the RSPCA and the role it would play in this.

I don't know about RSPCA but what about the Cats Protection League?    Also, you should be able to get pet insurance, from M & S/Asda/Tesco/Direct Line - worth checking how much they would charge for a rescued moggy!

Margot

Before anything else I think it would be best to talk to a vet. If this cat has been a stray for some time then there is a chance that it may have FIV, the vet will be able to do a test for you. Any rehoming centre would do this to before it could be rehomed. Sadly of course, if it were positive then the poor thing would be pts. Once the vet has given you an idea of the age and health problems this cat may, or hopefully, may not have, then you will have a clearer idea in your mind what you want to do.
Val

I wouldn't touch the RSPCA but the CPL are usually excellent & the follow they have given my cousin who took on two feral kittens(who are now totally laid back domesticated cats)has been super, they got them neutered for him & have made sure they are ok with loads of follow up calls etc They are quite picky where their cats go to & neutering/health is high on their priorities

Hi...... I think you are 1 amazing person for taking this cat in and feeding it etc......... If you are willing to keep this cat, ring the R.S.P.C.A and explain the situation and i'm sure that they will help you.... if they can't help with the costs at a private vets, i know that they have there own clinics in different area's.... so it may be worth checking this out.

Take care & Good luck

kerry xxxxxxx

If you are concerned about the initial vet bills then im sure there are lots of organisations that can help. You can try contacting the RSPCA or CPL and see if they can advise on the situation - i think the CPL offer discounted treatments and you can explain that your neighbours registered the cat as homeless with your vets some time before you came to be involved (that should help show you are genuine and not just looking for free treatments) on from that if they wont help try your local yellow pages. There are lots of lovely small rescues and organisations that help owners take in stray cats. I have previously worked in a veterinary centre and we had a lovely lady who ran a local cat charity and would help rescue owners pay for treatments if they kept the cat after (instead of her having to find it a home etc..)

Its all worth a try, but the first thing is defiantly just to visit your vet - get the cat looked at and have some routine bloods done, once you know the health then you can decide what you want to do :)

Hi

I think Moonmaiden is right. Call the cats protection league. There number is always advertised in local papers. As the always rehome, neutered, cats that have full innoculations, health checked etc. If they took the cat on. They would have it fully health checked etc. Before rehoming. So they will probably be willing to help. My sister has 2 cats both from the CPL. I'm currently thinking of going there myself for a cat over the next 6 months. As we always have had cats. From being a child. And the house isnt the same without one.

Good luck, This cat is so lucky to have found you both

Alix

Here here, big cheer for cats protection league.  I have always found them very very helpful.

Some friends of mine had a similar visitor to yours but as he was an entire male he would intimidate their own cats.  They took him to the vets and had him neutered.  Several months later they found out which house he lived in!!  The owners have never mentioned the fact his "bits" had gone but he's a very well fed puss!!!

LOL my cousins cats are now very well fed & super kitties, they had to go into kennels when he when into hospital(the kennels also house our rescues)the kennel owner & her kennel assistants are always happy to have CPL cats as they know they will be health checked etc & in the case of my cousins cats very very laid back & mega friendly

>>>>Also, you should be able to get pet insurance, from M & S/Asda/Tesco/Direct Line - worth checking how much they would charge for a rescued moggy!<<<<<

We insured Noodle with Argos with no problem- they asked how old she was and i said i didnt know as she had been a stray etc - there was no hesitation and they insured her right away even with out past history of illnesses etc and it costs £4 something a month :)

I have just spent the day sorting things out regarding this cat, and I must say the Cats Protection League have been absoultely brilliant. I reported the cat to the local Cats Protection in Guildford, telling them the whole story, I then was transferred over to the Lost and Found lady, who took a description, gave me some advice regarding its care in the meantime and said she would be back in touch. Within half an hour she was back in touch with only one possible match for this cat, but it turned out not to be the case. She has also organised for the cat to go to a vets tomorrow, and the Cats Protection will pay for all of its initial medical expenses and treatment, as well as for microchipping and vaccinations. They have been amazing. At the moment though, I have to 'foster' the cat for two weeks (although it had been reported as a possible stray/missing cat three weeks ago, they need to leave it for two weeks from when it was first reported to them), I do have to check with local vets tomorrow to see if it has been reported missing, but as of tomorrow it can be wormed, health checked etc. and stay here for two weeks until we know what is happening. I did tell them we are getting a dog in August, but if it does turn out that this cat does not like dogs (something we have not yet checked) my mum is happy to take on the cat (my parents live in a very rural area - no cars, just a few houses in a country area), and I think that would be a dream retirement for a cat as they have a HUGE garden, two conservatories (lots of heat and sunshine all year around!) and lots of fuss from my parents for a cat that is elderly and happy to just look out of the window. Preferably, it will stay with us, as obviously it knows this area, but at least if it doesn't get on with our lifestyle, there is a 'retirement' home waiting for it.
When I had to check over the cat on the phone to the Cats Protection lady, I got really upset again about how this cat looks. Its front teeth are nothing but stumps (with no molars at all), it is skinny as hell, has a shabby, flakey coat and is just generally in a poor state, but in terms of affection, this cat is adorable. It is extremely loving and friendly, and I still am trying to hold on to the fact that this cat is just missing, and not a stray as a result of neglect or mistreatment. It really is very sad. Anyway, I will let you all know what comes of things tomorrow!

Sounds like you're this cat's 'Last Chance Saloon', NannyOgg. Bless you for caring.
:)

Well, we took the cat to a Cats Protection approved vets, and it turns out it has been chipped, but has not been registered. It looks as though this cat was previously in a shelter, we treated for problems with its teeth (it has had extensive dental work, including removal of its from incisors etc.), and was chipped for rehoming. We are now waiting to hear back from the shelter, which is based in London, which specialises in cruelty and ferrel cases, and was traced by the vet nurse. Hopefully we will be able to find this cats home. It looks as though a likely senario is that this cat was brought to its new home, and either the owners didn't leave it in the house for long enough for it to adjust, or the cat ran out at the nearest opportunity, and has since been hanging around the area. No cats fitting the description have been reported missing, however, but the shelter should have records of who took on this cat. I am sad in a way (when the little chip reader made a buzz, I admit to having a little sinking feeling, as I am very attached to it), but I was really happy that this cat had been cared for with a shelter, brought back to health and was obviously wanted by an owner that went to a shelter specifically to give an animal a new home, and the cat has just done what cats do sometimes and decided to go on a wander. I am waiting to hear back from the vets to see where this cat actually came from and who owns it. The nurse speculated that its low weight was either part of its initial abandonned/ferrel/cruelty situation on arrival to the shelter, or the cat has not been able to eat properly, as after the dental work it does seem to have sufferred from some swelling on the gums, which when the cats mouth was opened, looked red and inflamed. It may be that the owners were given medication to give it, but as the cat has done a bunk, it has not been receiving the antibiotics. Another possibility is that it is sufferring from feline AIDS (which shows similar gum symptoms to this cat), but the nurse said if it had been through a shelter it would have been checked for this, but we still have to keep it in from now on as a precaution (the cat is a bit peeved about this as it likes to sit in the sun on our decking!)
Anyway, it is sitting on my bedroom floor at the moment after eating soem cat meat we blended into slop (poor gums can cope with chunks), and it is looking very contented (even after the drama of trying to get it into a cat box, and then taking it to a vet - it was NOT happy), so maybe it knows it is going home!

God, I feel terrible. Today we found out the owner of the cat actually lives at the end of our street. We put a paper collar on it with a contact number for the charity that originally rehomed it with its owners, and it eventually went home). The owner is currently in Italy, and his ex-wife and daughter were supposed to be looking after the cat. The ex-wife apparently phoned up the charity with which the cat was originally chipped (through the number I supplied on the collar - the chip was put in the cat by the shelter on the understanding that they registered the chip), and got really stroppy on the phone, saying how distraught her daughter has been without the cat. Now I feel terrible. She apparently also got in touch with her ex-husband and he is angry that we took the cat to the vet for the chip to be scanned. I have only just moved here and now I feel like I have got off on the wrong foot with people because I tried to do what I thought was the right thing. I just don't understand - Everyone I spoke to was convinced this cat was a stray or lost, and no one knew of any owners for it. It was reported a possible missing cat by another neighbour a month ago, and as my partner and I were worried that it was looking thin, we fed it until we could find out who owned it. The only way we were told we could do (apart from knocking on EVERY door in the neighbourhood) was by checking if it had a chip. We did this, the vet admitted he thought the cat was underweight, that it looked like it was suffering from gum sensitivity cause by inflamation of the gums that needed to be treated with antibiotics, and the chip was unregistered. Now my partner and I feel terrible, the cat is sitting outside my back door and I can't let it or feed it. The charity apparently told the owner what number house we are at and he wants to see us. I am worried he is going to be really rude about all of this. I would never, ever have got myself into this situation if it hadn't been for the fact that this cat was begging at doors for months, and that since we moved in ourselves just over a month ago, it had been in our garden everyday for all that period, and was looking thin, had no collar and was out there in all weathers. I feel so bad. Do people here think I did the wrong thing? I seriously feel terrible.

I should also add that at no point was this cat 'locked in' our house by us. It was only in to be fed and if the weather was very bad, and then it was out, so it had ample opportunity to go home and would just sit in our garden the whole time. I feel so bad, I want to cry. We moved here to get away from a really horrific situation and had such high hopes for fitting in with a new community and now it feels like already we have done something wrong.

NannyOgg..... i know it's hard but please dont feel bad, you did the RIGHT thing..... the cat was under weight and like you said you didn't lock it in your house... it came by it's self, and for months the cat was roaming, your an animal lover and did what you thought was right at the time.... i would have done the same as you've done.

If there so concerned about the cat why are they still letting it out..... if he comes to your house being rude just either dont answer the door to him... or tell him what happened if he's not willing to listen then tell him to go away and keep his cat in doors.

At least you showed you care by taking him to the vets... which is more than they've done, and if that was my cat and he'd ran off... i'd of gone round the streets asking my neighbours if they had seen my cat.

You just remember that you've done NOTHING wrong.... only care for an animal that was being neglected.

Take care
kerry xxxxxxxxx

Don't worry, nobody would blame you for the actions you have taken. I do wish you had done the paper collar I mentioned on day one though - I used to be a volunteer at a cat rescue, it's what we told everybody to do - so many cats are just nosey and greedy !. Anyway, at least you now know where the owners live. It is very possible that the people in the house before you had been feeding this cat which is why it has been around so much. If the owners want an explaination then just tell them exactly what you've been telling us. Your concern was for the cat, it was constantly around your home, you had no means of identifying it. The neighbours you'd already asked can clarify that you had been searching for it's owner. Please try not to get upset, you've done nothing wrong. The wrong thing to do would have been to take this cat in as your own - you did the right thing by looking for it's owner.

Val

Makes a bit of a mockery of the chip if the owner hasn't registered it ? I thought all that was done when the chip is put in, a tattoo would have been so simple a call to Jill the registar & the owner would have been notified as Tattooist sends in all the paperwork not the owner

What have you done wrong in having the cat scanned that is what chips are for as for feeding etc him again should you have let him go hungry ? When he went missing they should ahve been knocking on all the doors not you

They should be happy you care !

Well said Moonmaiden :-D

dont feel bad. The owners cant have been that worried about the cat or else they would have made more of an effort to find it. I cant understand why they are annoyed that you had it scaned. Isnt that the point of a chip? Anyway even if they take it back cats have a knack of finding where they want to live and who with so it will probably come back to you.

You did the right thing most definitely - had you not done so, the cat might not have survived!

As you said, you asked around your new neighbours - had it been me, looking after a cat which disappeared whilst in my care, I would have been up and down all the roads, asking neighbours if they had seen the cat, posted notices in the local newsagers/vets, etc - its sounds to me as if the "carer" is having a go at you because she is guilty of NOT having done these things!

The owner might be very grateful to you, once he knows the circumstances - you could always print off this thread to catalogue what you did, for the welfare of his cat....

Margot

I do wish I had done the whole paper collar thing straight away, but I was actually told by the vet to keep the cat in for a few days until I heard from the animal shelter as he was worried the gum problem may have been a symptom of feline AIDS, therefore I could not put a collar on it and send it out. I only went by on what I was told to do, which in the end conflicted with what the animal shelter (the Celia Hammond Animal Trust) told me to do. Other neighbours commented that the cat was underweight, which was why it was initially reported as a possible stray or lost cat a month ago by a neighbour a few doors up from me. It has now put on weight and looks really healthy, so I am not sure if the cat lost weight while the owner was away, or if she was thin before that. If she was a good weight before he left, and then she lost weight as a reult of not being fed properly/not sticking around at home to be fed etc. then he will not necessarily take our word for it that she was underweight. I just hope he doesn't get really mad about all this. I couldn't understand why he was so angry about us getting the chip scanned.

I am really thankful for everyone's kind words on this. I seriously couldn't sleep last night for the worry. I hope he thinks about it on his way back from Italy, sees the cat is fine and healthy, and understands why we took the action we did. It doesn't stop me worrying though.

I'm sure if you ask the vet you took the cat to would be happy to phone the owner and set him straight about the cat's condition and why things were done as they were.

If it helps, I think you did the right thing.
:)