I've taken in a stray kitten that had been making frequent trips to my back porch and have had her for about three weeks now. The first few nights had been alright, but now she's meowing day in and day out to be taken back outdoors. It's possible that she was an outdoor cat that I mistook for a stray, but she wasn't wearing a collar :/ A few days ago I let her outside because I felt guilty keeping her confined, and she came back 6 hours later in a very loving mood. My father refuses to let her be an outdoor cat, though, and tells me that when she gets her distemperment shot she won't want outside as badly as she does now. She wakes me up at odd hours in the morning, scratching at my bedroom door and meowing to be let out. I feel really bad keeping her cooped up, but the stress and possibility that she might not come back to me or that a wild animal might get her (we live in the woods) is really painful for me to bear. What should I do?
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Requesting help in caring for a stray
- Thread starter aiedail
- Start Date
First, she needs to be taken to a vet. There is a good chance she is not spayed and she may be in heat at the moment. Do not allow her to go back outside again as she could become pregnant. If she indeed is not spayed, having her spayed should be the first thing you do.
Also...you need to put "found cat" flyers around just in case she is owned. Sometimes owners do not put a collar or even microchip their cats. She probably isn't owned...but best to be on the safe side.
Katie
You say you live in the woods? If your area is sparsely populated then maybe you can go door to door in the few homes in the vicinity and ask if they've lost a cat or if they have a cat they let out (and ask for a description - don't give too much of a description yourself) Cats usually do not stray very far from home - usually stay within a four block radius. You could also keep this cat a while and post something in the lost and found in the local paper, if you're in a small town, almost everyone reads the paper. Again, do not give a detailed description, let the owner describe the cat. I would not let the cat out though, the dangers are many, foxes in the woods, fleas, ticks (lyme disease) skunks (rabies transmission) other cats (fights, gettinig pregnant) roads, etc.
Even if this cat were an outdoor cat, she can easily adjust to living inside. I agree with Katie - she may be in heat and wants to go out to mate. Getting her spayed now will calm her down far more than the distemper shot will.
Cats in the country can actually wander for miles. Having lived in the country for many years, there are also a lot of cats that are dumped on the side of the road that wander to the first house that looks like there is a cat loving sucker inside (that would be people like us).
Get her spayed, give her loads of loving and cat treats, and make her stay inside a wonderful thing. She will come round and not want to go back outside.
Cats in the country can actually wander for miles. Having lived in the country for many years, there are also a lot of cats that are dumped on the side of the road that wander to the first house that looks like there is a cat loving sucker inside (that would be people like us).
Get her spayed, give her loads of loving and cat treats, and make her stay inside a wonderful thing. She will come round and not want to go back outside.
Yup - having her spayed will do more than anything to help calm her down. She should have her distemper and rabies shots as well. But it is much safer to keep cats indoors! If she's been living outside for even a few weeks, she likely has round worm and/or fleas. She will need to be treated for both, and a visit to the vet is the best way to handle all of her needs.
Laurie
