I've Been Adopted By A Stray And Now Her Friends Want To Adopt Me Too..

[Natnatnat]

Hey, I'm just wondering if this is normal cat behaviour or if anyone's experienced similar. I live in an area with a large feral cat colony close by. Last summer I discovered mama cat with her babies in my shed and contacted the local cat rescue. I left them there and fed mama until they were old enough to be re-homed, they analysed the mamas behaviour (she was scary as hell, I was never really a cat lover and she would hiss, run at me, attacked the cat rescue lady) and said she couldn't be re-homed so they took her to see if she was chipped and also neutered her and set her back out to live with the colony. But, she came back looking for her kittens and we cried in the garden together that night. It was devastating. I left my back door open and next thing I know she comes in, looking for the kittens and I cried some more. She didn't leave the garden and i continued to feed her. Slowly but surely we became companions and she now lives in doors with me, has been chipped etc and it the most affectionate lovely thing, she even deals with my two year old amazingly. So anyway, since this happened, her boyfriend Mr Tom comes calling for her every night (he seemed to be protecting her when she lived in the shed and I shooed him away once thinking he was guna hurt them all and I got the telling off!) she's introduced me to him, literally running back and forth between me and the open back door until I went to see what she wanted and there he was just sat on the doorstep. He's a beast, a massive warrior of the alleys and literally everyone around here knows of him because he beats up the other cats. Now, he calls for ME!(I don't feed him but put water out on hot days) and mama (renamed Meara) gets jealous and smacks him where they usually play and kiss on greeting. Just now, he came in my house! Meara was OK with it until I was like, no, no Mr out you go and then she gave him a whack on the way out. Does he want in too? I've promised meara this is her safe space and feel she's happy that way. Also, I get other strays coming to see her, I got told off by meara again cos I thought she was being bullied and went out the garden to back her up but she told me off. Other cats just come sit at the windowsill too. Are these her feral friends? Why the hell have they chosen me? I've never known it in any place I've lived and I've lived in alot of places. What the heck is going on?

 

[keeneland]

What the heck is going on?

Sorry to inform you but when you feed them they will come! It sounds like our house. We had 6 but it has been a constant stream of cats & 3 dropped kittens that have turned up at our house. I am guessing we have fed between 12 & 15 in the last 3 years. We got 2 kittens adopted and most of the other cats are hit or miss how long they show up. We even had what appeared to be a Purebred British Shorthair Silver Tabby show and ate with us for about 3 weeks. Not ever day you see a cat that cost $1000 eating with a bunch of ferals. About the only advice I can give is to keep your one cat inside and don't feed the others if you do not want them. If you feed them they are going to stay and that's just speaking from my experience. We have just been feeding anything that shows up and don't let anyone go hungry. Some may feel differently but we know that we can't afford vet care for all and have no intent to make them all our cats.

 

[Natnatnat]

Thanks for the response Keeneland. Wow you're an amazing person for doing all of that and I understand the costs that must come with it. The thing is with me, I don't feed the others, just the one who adopted me and her food bowels are always inside. Perhaps that's why Mr Tom came in the other night seeing Meara had made a home here and he thought he would also try his luck. I know there's a local cat man around here who is so kind and feeds the ferals as you do but I'm not financially set up for that. These cats just seem to come speak with Meara, maybe it because they're from the same colony?