How to tell if a cat is a stray?
acave
How can you tell if a cat is a stray? Recently a very sweet cat began
hanging out at our house. She did not seem to be starving or suffering,
but happily ate the dry food and drank the water we set out for her.
She spent about two days on our front porch. I called the Humane Society
and local animal shelter to see if anyone had reported a missing cat, and
combed the neighborhood to see if anyone had posted a lost cat sign.
Nothing. I didn't want to take her in, in case she belonged to someone
who let her roam outside. Finally, we decided to take her in, and tried
to take her to the vet to get her checked out for FLV (we have two house
cats who have not been exposed). The cat freaked out when we tried to
put her in a cat carrier, and has since disappeared.
I would like to think that she belongs to someone, and has returned home.
But I am wondering if there are any good signs that a cat is a stray.
There are a number of cats that roam our neighborhood, and I would hate to
cause one to stay at our house instead of going home - but would also
hate not to feed a stray cat that was hungry. Does anyone have any
experience with this?
TIA
Alison
Jshartwell
The CPL recommend the following:
Put a collar (the safety kind) in the cat with a tag saying 'Is this cat a
stray?' and giving your phone number. If you get no response after, say
21 days, it is fair to assume that the cat is unowned.
You could put a photo of the cat and a similar inquiry in a shop window in
the locality.
Sarah
Sharon Talbert
The above method might work, but a disgruntled owner is quite likely to
toss your collar and message and the cat is still out on the street (and
in 21 days is likely to be dead or in dire straits, if it is indeed
homeless).
What's more, collaring the cat will give the impression that the it does
have a home, so that others out there who are growing concerned will relax
and stop feeding/worrying.
Why not get the cat off the streets and into safety -- then look for that
owner? If the cat is already in poor shape, the animal is likely
abandoned or lost.
Sharon Talbert
Friends of Campus Cats