Taking a street cat to the shelter?

alphacat626

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Mar 17, 2016
Messages
7
Purraise
1
Hi guys, there's a small side street not too far from where I live in Brooklyn that I walk through several times daily. For about 2-3 months, I've been randomly seeing a small black-and-white cat (we've named her "Oreo"). She looks to be about 6 months old (based on how big she is, I'm by no means an expert) and is EXTREMELY friendly and will come running to you if blow kisses at her. We've put dry food for her a few times (we tried wet food once but she didn't seem to like it) and she is happy to eat it. She doesn't seem to be at all afraid of humans; in fact, if you just pet her she flips over on her back and exposes her tummy and plays with you. Awesome cat. I always see her in the same general area, and the times I've seen her range from the afternoon all the way up to about 4:30 am. She has the tip of her left ear clipped, leading me to believe that she is spayed.

There are a few street cats that live on that block, and I asked around and was told that one of the neighbors feeds them. But I don't know if Oreo actually belongs to anyone. I called my local shelter (about a 10 minute walk from where I see her) and they said I can bring it in when they have space. I'd hate to take her if she belongs to someone, but on a few occasions when I've asked the neighbors if they know who it belongs to, they told me to take her home.

Can you guys advise me on what I should do? Should I bring her to the shelter or just leave her? And how can I transport her? Will the ASPCA cardboard box I brought my kitten home with be fine? She honestly seems pretty content where she is, but then again the weather is relatively nice here in Brooklyn. Once the winter comes I don't know how she'll fare. And she's so sweet, I'm confident anyone would be more than happy to take her home. And if she does belong to someone and I find out only after bring her to the shelter (they probably have a microchip reader), will returning her to where I found her cause any problems for her? For instance, will she be scared of human interaction and not want to return to her home?

Thank you for your help!!
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #2

alphacat626

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Mar 17, 2016
Messages
7
Purraise
1
I actually ran into the person who lives in the house that feeds the cats...I asked him if the cat belongs to anyone and he said it's his. Just goes to show you that it's important to ask around before assuming it's a stray/lost cat! I would've felt so bad if I had taken it to the shelter and separated it from its owner.
 

Norachan

Moderator
Staff Member
Moderator
Joined
May 27, 2013
Messages
32,673
Purraise
32,856
Location
Mount Fuji, Japan
That's good, I'm glad she has some one to take care of her. Is she part of an outdoor colony that your neighbor feeds? Or is she his outdoor access cat? It's great that she is spayed and gets fed, but of course she'd be better off indoors at least some of the time. I always worry when I see cats outside.

Thank you for caring about Oreo.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #4

alphacat626

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Mar 17, 2016
Messages
7
Purraise
1
From what he said, it sounds like she's indoors most of the time. Even when she goes outside, she usually hangs out in the vicinity of his house. It looks like she's befriended at least one of the neighborhood street cats though
 

Norachan

Moderator
Staff Member
Moderator
Joined
May 27, 2013
Messages
32,673
Purraise
32,856
Location
Mount Fuji, Japan
That's nice to know. She sounds like a lovely little thing. Maybe you could suggest he gets her a break-away collar so that people know she has a home. The glow-in-the-dark kind are great for cats that sometimes go out at night. Car headlights make them stand out for miles away when they shine on them.

 
Top