Cat "rescued" and turned into a shelter

I was looking on Petfinder.org today to see if Peaches' owner had posted and I came across a found ad that said something like:
Found cat, looks very well cared for, has on a Harley Davidson collar, person who found him will put up flyers in the neighborhood"!
Ack! I emailed the lady and asked if anyone bothered to knock on doors to find out whose cat they "rescued"! She emailed me back and said it wasn't her who picked up the cat but she is hoping they can find the owners soon.
Someone is missing thier kitty all because a "good samaratin" rescued him.
Kinda makes me upset

OMG! I hope kitties mum turns up soon.

That is kindof silly! The poor kittie might have been "rescued" from his own home doorstep

You won't believe this!!! There are a lot of ferals and strays in the area where I live. In my town certain people "rescue" cats that they find outside, and they just automatically assume that any cat they see outside is a stray. They either keep the cat themselves, or find a new home for it without EVER making any effort at all to find the cat's REAL owner!!!!!

I guess if the person who turned him in is taking the trouble to put up flyers he probably just wanted the cat to be in a safe place until he could find the owner.. you can't blame him for that. I actually think that's going above and beyond, I mean really you probably know what animals most of your neighbors have, at least I do.. and I'm sure he didn't just take it straight to the shelter, he prob waited a few days to see what happened..

Sometimes it's a hard call to make. About ten years ago a neighborhood cat started hanging around our house, begging for food. She had a bad scratch above one eye, and ear mites. We took her in, and started asking around, trying to find her owners. Several people said she belonged to a family living in a nearby apartment house. The thing was, nobody was home. The people were away on an extended vacation, and had apparently put her out to fend for herself. I took her to the vet's, and she spent every night in our house, cuddling and playing in the evening, and then sleeping between our pillows. After several weeks, a man showed up, demanding the return of his cat. When I said no, he threatened to report me to the police for stealing his cat. I threatened to report him for abandoning the cat, and kept her. The law here says that whoever is feeding a stray cat and getting her medical attention is the lawful owner. That, obviously, can be a double-edged sword (so get your cats microchipped!). Pussy Willow made no attempt to return to her former owners. Unfortunately, we never managed to turn her into an indoor cat, and she was hit by a truck and killed at an all-too-early age. I owe her - she turned my husband into a cat lover, who is now prepared to go that extra half-mile to help abandoned/feral/unwanted cats.

It is a shame there is no tag on that collar! I just ordered new tags for all my guys to put on there collars.

I'd tag, microchip and tattoo, and make sure the cats are registered.