how do you know he's stray

for you that find stray cats how do you go about determining if he's actually stray or is just a cat that goes outside or even ran away? I was walking home from school, on the railroad tracks, and there was a cat crouched in there looking at us. I said "hi kitty" he did not move or run, just sat and looked with no reaction at all. If I knew he was a stray I would have gone back with food and a carrier to see if I could catch him and get him to someplace safe but I have no idea if he was. So how do you prove they are stray?

Originally Posted by Maxy24

for you that find stray cats how do you go about determining if he's actually stray or is just a cat that goes outside or even ran away? I was walking home from school, on the railroad tracks, and there was a cat crouched in there looking at us. I said "hi kitty" he did not move or run, just sat and looked with no reaction at all. If I knew he was a stray I would have gone back with food and a carrier to see if I could catch him and get him to someplace safe but I have no idea if he was. So how do you prove they are stray?

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Whenever you find a cat...you should put up "found cat" flyers around the neighborhood and contact your local animal controls and shelters. You need to give sufficient time for the potential owner to contact you (at least a week). Another thing to do is take the cat to the vet to have it scanned for a microchip. Check to see if the cat is in good health and also whether it has been spayed or neutered.

Katie

Unless ferals are part of a colony and cared for, they usually bolt when they see people - and if not then, as soon as you start towards them. That's the easiest test!

Katie's advice is great - it's always best to put up flyers. And if you trap kitty and the vet informs you he or she has been neutered or spayed - but the kitty has no "ear tip" (most feral colony caregivers have the top of one of the ears nipped off so it's easy to see they've been trapped before) - then kitty is likely owned by someone who is looking for him/her or who lets kitty roam.

Laurie

If they are out, running around, no identification, friendly or not, I catch them, or try to at least, put up fliers and in the meantime speuter them. ESPECIALLY if they are intact and friendly. They are neutered asap whether I figured out if they have a home or not. There are so many dumped her at my apartment complex that I don't even wait anymore cuz no one ever comes to claim them.

I usually go by the overall health of the cat. If it looks well fed and is not a dirty mess I assume it is owned. IF the cat looks bad to me or is not fixed (can tell with males) I assume it is a stray. I always put a found ad in the paper before I find them a new home (only once did someone call but they never came to get the cat). But in the past I have found 2 unfixed males roaming my property. I took one to a humane society and my mother's neighbor wanted the other one and got if fixed the day they took it.