- Joined
- Dec 4, 2013
- Messages
- 81
- Purraise
- 69
Hi all -
My feral colony is aging. For the neighborhood that's probably a good thing, but for their care and my funds it's not good. I've got an aging fellow who was top cat at one point. For the past year he's been going downhill. It's mostly aging and I'm not treating a feral for anything more serious that a respiratory infection. But within that past few weeks I've noticed he's causing traffic jams in our little corner of inner city. It's off the beaten track but when it's one cat who no longer knows when to get off the street, it's a problem. It happens at feeding time mostly I hope. That's when I see it as that's when I go out the door and attract the cats attention. The poor guy knows where he's supposed to go but he's in the middle of the street and he just walks in one direction and won't move to the sidewalk like the others when a car approaches. I've decided he doesn't hear them as it's usually when one comes from behind. If I see it happen I move immediately to move the cat out of the way so the people in the vehicles can go on. At that point they usually laugh at me or at least offer a smile if I say thank you for their patience.
But tonight I noticed an out of the ordinary thing and this is why I love these guys so much and take care of them even though the food is expensive and feeding them in winter is a pain. The old guy was walking with me, using me as his guide to take him where he needed to go. He never put this much trust in me before. I was the person who fed them and that was it. Now I was his "guide person". He walked at my side to the food dishes. And where I couldn't assist, another cat stepped in. The cats preferred to be the guides. And then I realized they had been guiding him all along. This evening he decided I would do for some reason. A cat will walk beside him and help him with the street though they don't so much take him to the sidewalk if a car comes. That may be why he wanted me. If he starts off path they bump him back onto his path and they lead him back to the food. It's interesting to watch. I will try to video it. My fear is the poor fellow is going to get run over and it will not be the car driver's fault. The cat just doesn't hear a car when it approaches nor when it is behind him. I don't know if I ought to attempt to catch him and have him put to sleep though he isn't in that bad of shape. He'd be fine if he'd stay in his own yard and area. But I don't want to find him squished in the street. And in our area it's getting more difficult to find a vet willing to put an animal down unless the reason is excellent. Not to be difficult or cruel but because of the drug laws that have taken a toll of what vets can keep in stock. I don't want to take something away from another animal that is really suffering and may need it worse. If his appetite goes and he tells me it's time then I'll feel differently about the situation.
But my heart goes out to the poor fellow. And to the colony that protects him.
This colony has always been this way. It is the way of animals I guess. Once when I first took it over when the previous caretaker passed away, and these guys didn't know me well at all, I came home in the afternoon to find them coming toward me at the house where they live. They were traveling in a V line like geese fly. I met them at the gate to the property and thought "what do they want me to see." At the point of the V they had brought to me two very ill kittens. I guess the mother must of died or something and in my mind I could picture these cats having their version of a cat counsel to decide what to do with two kittens. The decision being "take them to the woman. She'll know what to do!" And so they did. It was a very serious thing for them and I knew they had put thought into it. And I wondered at the trust that it took for them to do that.
Yes, the kittens lived. I took them to my vet who helped and they were adopted out. They were very young kittens and not feral at all, very sweet in fact for where they came from.
So now I feel like I can't let them down. But I also feel like I'm at a crossroad. If anyone has any advice it would be appreciated. Thank you.
annekarina
My feral colony is aging. For the neighborhood that's probably a good thing, but for their care and my funds it's not good. I've got an aging fellow who was top cat at one point. For the past year he's been going downhill. It's mostly aging and I'm not treating a feral for anything more serious that a respiratory infection. But within that past few weeks I've noticed he's causing traffic jams in our little corner of inner city. It's off the beaten track but when it's one cat who no longer knows when to get off the street, it's a problem. It happens at feeding time mostly I hope. That's when I see it as that's when I go out the door and attract the cats attention. The poor guy knows where he's supposed to go but he's in the middle of the street and he just walks in one direction and won't move to the sidewalk like the others when a car approaches. I've decided he doesn't hear them as it's usually when one comes from behind. If I see it happen I move immediately to move the cat out of the way so the people in the vehicles can go on. At that point they usually laugh at me or at least offer a smile if I say thank you for their patience.
But tonight I noticed an out of the ordinary thing and this is why I love these guys so much and take care of them even though the food is expensive and feeding them in winter is a pain. The old guy was walking with me, using me as his guide to take him where he needed to go. He never put this much trust in me before. I was the person who fed them and that was it. Now I was his "guide person". He walked at my side to the food dishes. And where I couldn't assist, another cat stepped in. The cats preferred to be the guides. And then I realized they had been guiding him all along. This evening he decided I would do for some reason. A cat will walk beside him and help him with the street though they don't so much take him to the sidewalk if a car comes. That may be why he wanted me. If he starts off path they bump him back onto his path and they lead him back to the food. It's interesting to watch. I will try to video it. My fear is the poor fellow is going to get run over and it will not be the car driver's fault. The cat just doesn't hear a car when it approaches nor when it is behind him. I don't know if I ought to attempt to catch him and have him put to sleep though he isn't in that bad of shape. He'd be fine if he'd stay in his own yard and area. But I don't want to find him squished in the street. And in our area it's getting more difficult to find a vet willing to put an animal down unless the reason is excellent. Not to be difficult or cruel but because of the drug laws that have taken a toll of what vets can keep in stock. I don't want to take something away from another animal that is really suffering and may need it worse. If his appetite goes and he tells me it's time then I'll feel differently about the situation.
But my heart goes out to the poor fellow. And to the colony that protects him.
This colony has always been this way. It is the way of animals I guess. Once when I first took it over when the previous caretaker passed away, and these guys didn't know me well at all, I came home in the afternoon to find them coming toward me at the house where they live. They were traveling in a V line like geese fly. I met them at the gate to the property and thought "what do they want me to see." At the point of the V they had brought to me two very ill kittens. I guess the mother must of died or something and in my mind I could picture these cats having their version of a cat counsel to decide what to do with two kittens. The decision being "take them to the woman. She'll know what to do!" And so they did. It was a very serious thing for them and I knew they had put thought into it. And I wondered at the trust that it took for them to do that.
Yes, the kittens lived. I took them to my vet who helped and they were adopted out. They were very young kittens and not feral at all, very sweet in fact for where they came from.
So now I feel like I can't let them down. But I also feel like I'm at a crossroad. If anyone has any advice it would be appreciated. Thank you.
annekarina
