Big battered tom cat wants to come in. What do I dooooooo!!!?!

[AtYourCervix]

He is a beaut. Big, chunky, one eared.

Been hanging around for a couple of weeks and is a bit skittish and nervous but keeps moving closer.

So.... what to do?

Ignore?

Put some food out?

Open the door?

I don't want him peeing all over the place. Resident cats don't seem to mind him at all.

[EnlightenedOwl]

see my thread!

My stray moved in!

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/the_litter_tray/2026299-Stray-Cat

[thecatneuterer]

Put some food out. It sounds as though he needs neutering. Could you do that? (Not yourself obviously - I mean could you pay for it?). Then you could let him in without him spraying, or not, but either way he'd be better off.

[AtYourCervix]

Aaah.

One of my treasures is a humphrey and arthur drawn by Graham Oakley.

I might have already named this boy Hercule.

I shall keep a vague eye out for him and see what happens.

[AtYourCervix]

I think he's too skittish to grab. I could bribe him with crunchies.

[AtYourCervix]

H has just confessed to putting put some food yesterday. Soft bugger.

[Fluffycloudland77]

You need dreamies & patience.

He's still checking you out in case you turn out to be a cat murderer!.

Food & water is what he needs.

[AtYourCervix]

We do have a spare bowl......

[EnlightenedOwl]

I called my stray Samson after Samson the Church Cat in the Graham Oakley books.
Here he is. Caterpillar murderer.

[ThisFenceIsComfy]

Is he definitely homeless? Otherwise you might get done for catnap

[AtYourCervix]

No idea fence. Don't want or need to catnap. But he keeps gazing at me.

[ThisFenceIsComfy]

The reason I say is that someone tried to lure my cat off once. Unless he looks homeless/not cared for then I wouldn't feed him or entice him in at all. There may be someone who loves him who would be gutted if he never came home again.

[figgypuddings]

Dreamies catcrackcocaine

He will hang about demanding more and progress to the harder stuff like expensive tins of Sheba.

[AtYourCervix]

I'll try and get a photo tomorrow and ask the neighbours.

[EnlightenedOwl]

Sorry I should say. We did know our stray was a stray as he had been in area at least six months living as a stray, and asking around, putting up notices etc didn't bring an owner forward.

[thecatneuterer]

If he's unneutered then he's almost certainly homeless. If he is neutered then he may not be. I would encourage him enough to get him to a vet. They can check for a chip and neuter if necessary.

[issey6cats]

it took me 4 weeks to get my stray charlie to come in the house voluntarily (bribery of course) and im glad i did he had huge matts in his fur (long haired) all round his neck and some at the sides which though the poor lad looks scratty now with baldy patches hes better off without the matts, and under the matts found an abcess so got that treated while he was at the vets had him checked for a chip advertised him as found and no one has come forward for him, hes only about 1 year old so looks like i have another resident

[AtYourCervix]

He appeared at his normal time. I was out so H gave him chicken

[cozietoesie]

Chicken indeed?

(I take it that H has bonded. Is he calling him by his name, yet?)

[chemenger]

We had a stray tom who was very sweet apart from smelling and spraying liberally. He once made his way into our livingroom and cuddled up beside me for half an hour before taking himself back outside. I had arranged with the local shelter to bring him for neutering with a view to incorporating him into our household (against the will of dh). Unfortunately he then appeared with a series of pretty collars on, he had been adopted by someone else. Even more unfortunately they didn't neuter him or deflea him (I treated him every now and then) and in the end he died on the road . I went as far as discussing with the shelter if I could kidnap him, have him neutered and return him, but didn't get round to it.