stray vs lost, what to do?

Hi all, i am a newbie in the cat world - ive never cared for one before. I live in a rather large apartment development, and there are also a lot of houses nearby. A very friendly adult black and white cat started coming around recently, and i want to help but i am unsure the best thing to do. My initial thought was that she (im just guessing on the gender) belonged to somebody and ran away, because im fairly sure ive never seen her before and now i see her almost daily for about the past week and a half. She is also not afraid of people, in fact rather than run away if she sees us she will run towards us and rub on us without any hesitation. She has also been noticed meowing/pawing at the door like she wants to be let in. No collar. She looks to be in good health, clear eyes, healthy clean fur and a decent weight. I started leaving food out and made a little shelter with a laundry basket and some old junky blankets (which she will sit in to eat the food but does not actually use for shelter, i dont think she is too comfortable with it yet. But i wish she would use it, its so cold out!) but we are moving away in about a month and i am starting to worry about her. It is winter here, it has been snowy and rainy the past few days. I see her less on the bad weather days, and im unsure if shes just hiding away somewhere, or if maybe she does have an owner and is maybe an indoor/outdoor cat. My question is, how can i find out if she is stray, lost, or if she is just a friendly outdoor cat? Do people microchip cats like they do dogs? Like i said in the beginning there is a huge residential area all around me, so i could put up signs but that honestly sounds like it would be a huge undertaking for probably little response. I dont want to take her to a shelter just yet in case she does have an owner who is looking for her. But i find it hard to beleive she hasnt wandered her way back home, she recognises/ comes to my door almost daily, how could she not find her own house? I just dont know what to do about her and it breaks my heart that she is out in the cold. Sorry for rambling Haha thanks for any helpful advice guys

People do microchip cats, for sure - in fact, we just had our feral microchipped ourselves. Based on the behavior described and my (very limited) knowledge, it does sound like the little one is at least recently wandered away, because feral cats aren't nearly as friendly, I don't think. I can relate to your concern, though, and I'm not sure what I would do for sure - instinct says take care of the beast, because what if somebody moved away and kicked it out or something - on the other hand, you don't want to steal the guy from a loving home. In our case with our youngest child, the cat was definitely previously owned, but was on his own long enough that he was desperate for food/shelter - so after putting up some signs in the area, and checking to make sure he wasn't microchipped, we just ended up adopting him. I can live with that in my head because if one of my guys wandered off, I would rather somebody take care of him than not doing anything ....

I first would start with putting up some fliers.  Maybe someone in the apartment complex knows of this cat.  You want to get the word out and see if he/she is owned.

If after a few days, you do not get any responses or you find she/he is a stray, then if you have the funds you can make a vet appointment.  First check to see if the cat is micro chipped and secondly if you would like to adopt the kitty, check on its health.  It is most important to check to see if the cat has been spayed/neutered. 

Thank you for taking the time to help this stray.  With it being winter and very cold she needs help to survive outside.

If it's comfortable with you a novel suggestion I got was to go to your local PetSmart or similar pet store that will print up custom collars - simply put "If found call - #your number#".  That way if he's an outdoor cat the owners will call you to clear it up.  As suggested, posters/flyers - a HelpingLostPets.com listing (which will email you a poster you can print out), kijiji lost pets section has had a lot of feedback for me.

Most counties and cities have a local pet lost and found page on FaceBook. I'd advise you take the cat's picture and post it on that page, and also search it to see if someone on there is looking for this cat . You can also hang up flyers in your  neighborhood.  You can also call your local animal shelters and ask if anyone has called them to inquire about a lost cat fitting the description of this cat .If you don't have the time or money to take the cat to the vet before you leave in a week, then I suggest you take the cat with you. You can make the vet appointment later.

This is what I know to be true. When a loving pet owner is missing a cat, they hang up flyers with its picture on it and a phone number. They call shelters. They post pics on social media and ask neighbors if they've seen the cat. The one time I thought one of my cats had gotten out, on Easter day, 6 neighbors and I were looking for him on the block, in the woods, driving around (turns out he was scared from my company and dug a hole in the bottom of my box spring in my bed and was inside the box spring, lol). When my outdoor feral went missing for a week, I drove around in freezing temperatures and snow and showed his picture around to people, called the Humane Society, notified all my neighbors. This is what responsible pet owners do. If no one is looking for this cat, then it is likely a dump. Taking it with you will likely save its life, and if it's a female who hasn't been spayed, will prevent dozens of unwanted kittens from having to live a harsh life on the streets. So go for it!  

Yep, put out "FOUND" ads and scan for a microchip.

That's how I got the kitty pictured in my avatar. I got no replies to my ad and he wasn't chipped. So I adopted him, collared/tagged him, and eventually microchipped him as well.

It sounds to me that this one you've found has definitely been someones pet or still is. When we're faced with such a situation we make sure to check them out and watch the attitude. If they are obviously starving there's one sign of being abandoned or lost. If they stick around even when our brood is telling them to bug off, chances are it's a stray. No domestic with a home will go through the trouble of working for food and attention when either is available without effort..ya know, the Cat Credo that all domestic and feral live by

Hanging flyers is great idea and the social media in your area....it's also a great way to get out and meet neighbors, but since you're moving guess that's not important.

Bottom line, following the suggestions above will hopefully reunite and good cat and worried owner...if not hopefully you'll be able to adopt "her" and provide a great life for her.

Blessings Be,

I agree that she probably is or was somebody's pet. It could be that she lives nearby and is new, or just figured out how to get outside. My older girl used to escape from the house when my boyfriend lived with his mom (I eventually bought her a collar myself).
My advice is the same as JMJimmy - go grab a collar and a tag. I know my PetSmart has a machine that engraves whatever you want on tags, but you could probably attach a little note instead if you wanted. If you're not comfortable pouring your phone number on it, you could always just say "hey I found your cat, get a tag so I know it's yours" or something. :lol3:
I'd also take a picture of her and bring it to local vets and shelters. A vet might recognize her if she's someone's pet, and shelters are the first place a lot of people would think to bring a "lost" poster if she is lost.
Good luck!

I think the cat most likely is a dump. There are lots of dumped cats where I live, especially on my block since there's a small patch of woods around it and it's a dead end street. We get about 2 dumped cats a year. People decide they  no longer want their cat for a variety of reasons--they' re moving and can' t take the cat with them, they don't want to spend money getting the cat fixed and it's either spraying or in heat and yowling, loss of job, or they just don't want to be bothered anymore. They call the local Humane Society and are told they're full and can't takel the cat. They call the shelter in another county and are told there's a fee to take their cat. So they dump the cat somewhere. As I said before, if a cat has a loving home, it won't be constantly roaming around without a collar, and if it's lost, someone would be looking for it.  I say take the cat with you and give it a good home, and   blessings to you.

If your ads have yielded no replies and you've scanned the animal for a microchip and they don't have one, you might have found your new best friend! I absolutely adore my adopted stray!