Is he a stray or not?

happyviking

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This gorgeous big male has been in our garage all afternoon, wanting to come inside. My neighbour saw him in their yard yesterday, then when he went for a walk today he saw him about 200 feet away, and the cat followed him home. Then the cat saw my kids and came by our house. He seems clean and well cared for, seems healthy. He's nice and slim, but not skinny. It's definitely a male, I can see the male organs when I "go looking", but because of his long fur I am not able to tell if he's been neutered or not. So far no spraying. Not declawed.

He seems very affectionate, a lap cat. And we did cuddle him a bit. I gave him some water, but he didn't seem interested, but drank it after a while.
He just stays here in our garage, not wanting to leave. Once when he got scared he took off, but then came back after a bit again.

Does this sound like normal cat behaviour for a cat that has a home? How long should I wait before I take action to either keep him or bring him to a shelter? Or do I start feeding him after so many days and post pictures around? I'll be contaction neighbours tomorrow if he's still here... I would think he's hungry, but feeding him will make him stay, right?
 

leesali

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Your big gorgeous male visitor sounds like someone's pet. I can't stand when other's let their animals roam like that...too many things can happen to them.

Anyway, I would definitely check around the neighborhood and see who is missing a cat. Personally, I would feed him and if he stays...he stays. Shame on whoever let him out & about!! Just my personal feelings...get's me a bit upset with those that let these gorgeous animals roam the streets.
 

tnr1

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I agree that he doesn't sound like a feral....you may want to check with your neighbors to see if he is owned by any of them.

Katie
 
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happyviking

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I am positive that he has had a family, he is very well socialized; he likes to be picked up etc. But I'm wondering if someone left him, if he's lost, or if he's just choosing to hang around here for a while and then go back home?
My dh feels we have enough with our two cats, so I don't want to make him stay because we are feeding him, if he in fact has a home already. I mean, if we can't keep him already?
I just wonder when a cat is considered a stray, and when this behaviour would be considered normal for a cat that has just decided to leave for a while before returning home. We had a male when I grew up, who was inside/outside, not neutered, and he'd be gone for a week or two at a time, then returning. Whether he lived on mice etc. or whether he took it at a new family in the meanwhile, we don't know..... But that's why I'm not sure about this one in my garage...
 

mrod1

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Ask around the neighborhood, put up posters and let the local shelter know. Don't describe the cat to people, if someone is missing a cat let them describe it to you so you can be sure it is the right owner. If no one claims him, then you can decide for yourself if you want another cat, or you could help find him a good home. If he does belong to someone, they are probably missing him, if you do reunite them, hopefully they will learn their lesson to take proper care of him.
 

jane_vernon

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Often pets may have multiple homes and has decided your his next target!!! If he wants to go home he will, so I would feed him and if he wants to stay, he wants to stay!
 

StefanZ

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Originally Posted by jane_vernon

Often pets may have multiple homes and has decided your his next target!!! If he wants to go home he will, so I would feed him and if he wants to stay, he wants to stay!
Yes, but as the others already said, do poster him up as FOUND.

It is a nuisance with people giving food to homecats going around. It is partly because of that cats disappears or not return home several days, while desperate family seeks on...

But as you dont recognize him from neighborhood, he may have come astray. Or perhaps unlucky rode a bus or something - so he must have some help finding back again.
Or even is left by his humans... Such things happens. Then he must have help.
 

crazycatnipper

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I agree about putting up posters, and would also suggest that you take him to a vet or shelter to see if he is chipped. Sometimes people who chip their cats don't bother to put a collar on them (dumb, IMHO). If he is chipless and nobody responds to your posters, then it seems like you have been adopted by this fella...there are worse fates out there
 
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