How can I tell if it's a stray?

nicolegray

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Hey folks,

In the past few days I've occasionally seen a large black cat in my neighborhood that I haven't noticed before. My boyfriend has also seen her and doesn't recognize her. Today, she came up to us for pets, and we realized that she is either massively pregnant or very fat.

Our instinct is that she's a stray (probably dumped not too long ago, since she's in good condition and friendly), and that we should get her inside, feed her, and find a foster through the rescue group we volunteer for.

The problem is, just about every house in our neighborhood has outdoor cats, many without collars! (We live in downtown Toronto, and people who are familiar with the neighborhood will know what we're talking about).

So what do we do? We don't want to risk her giving birth outside by herself, but we also don't want to "steal" someone's pet. Any advice? I'd read something about giving the cat a collar with a note attached telling the owner to call us, but don't really know how I would do that without her ripping it off.

So any ideas would be greatly appreciated. How do we tell if she's a stray or just the pet of a somewhat irresponsible owner?
 

natalie_ca

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I would take her in and put up posters in the neighbourhood and see if anyone claims her.

If you have other cats, keep them apart. Set her up in a room by herself with her own litter box, food and water, just in case she has worms, fleas, ear mites etc. You don't want to make your own kitties sick.

If no one claims her in a few days, take her to the vet and have her checked out. Maybe she has a microchip. If not, still have the vet look at her and consider making her a part of your family.

Unfortunately black cats in shelters don't fair too well. Not many get adopted
Except around Halloween when everyone wants a black cat as a novelty item, then they dispose of it afterwards
 
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nicolegray

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We managed to get a paper collar on her, so I think we'll give that about 24 hours before we bring her inside. We had a bad experience a few months ago where we took in a cat that the entire neighborhood thought was a stray, and really upset the incredibly distraught owner (we posted signs, but she was still freaked out when her cat didn't come home in the morning).

If no one claims her in 24 hours we'll follow your advice. Also, we would be trying to find a foster home for her with the rescue we work with, especially if she's pregnant. We'd love the foster and/or keep her, but our roommate is a pain in the a$$.

We'll also leave out some food and water tonight.

Thanks!
 
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nicolegray

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We just got a call from the owner! Apparently the cat was a stray before she found him and he has slipped $50 worth of collars and hasn't yet learned how to control his appetite.
 

epona

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Originally Posted by NicoleGray

We just got a call from the owner! Apparently the cat was a stray before she found him and he has slipped $50 worth of collars and hasn't yet learned how to control his appetite.
That's great news! Your 'call me' collar worked and you know he has a home, that's fantastic


I too live in an area with several indoor/outdoor cats. There used to be just the ginger cat (very loving cat who once spent the night in our flat out of the rain!) but now there is also a red tabby and white, a black cat, and a small brown tabby and white, all of whom have homes but are out during the day.

It can be worrying when a new cat turns up in an area like mine, here I am very unusual in that my cats are indoor only, so a new cat outside is not necessarily a stray or abandoned, and they don't all have collars. What I try to do is see if they are friendly and pet them to see if they are too thin, then watch their comings and goings for a few days.

Most people who let their cats roam during the day let them out before they go to work and call them back in for their dinner when they get home - so once you know their routines you can spot the cats on a '9 to 5' schedule
 
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