rescue cat hardly home

[yumscrumfatbum]

Long story sorry! We adopted a rescue cat in July. Shelter unsure of his age some where between 12-18 months. He was abandoned as a kitten and adopted. Adopting family then took him back to the shelter as their relationship broke down moved into rented accommodation no pets allowed. They had kept him indoors at all times. Whilst he was at the shelter he escaped twice. Shelter advised that he was a cat who needed to be allowed outside. He is a lovely friendly cat who has been super affectionate. He is on the skinny side and not hugely interested in food. We kept him in for three weeks then fitted a cat flap to allow him access outside. All good but over the last few weeks he has been spending more and more time outside only coming in at night and hardly eating at all. I put a do not feed me collar on him but he was able to remove it. Over the weekend he wasn't home for 4 days. We knocked on all the neighbours doors and one neighbour told us they have been feeding him "occasionally " they had seen his collar too! They rang us this morning and we collected him and brought him home. I have kept him in all day but he's desperate to get back out. Do I have to accept that he is self sufficient and won't be owned? I have put another collar on him but it's only a matter of time before somebody else starts feeding him/letting him in

[yumscrumfatbum]

I usually give him wet food in the evening and he seems to get fed up of them quickly. I'll try the soups. I know you are right though. I'll have to resign myself to him being happy with us even if it's not the relationship I hoped it would be!

[user1478353766]

I have 4 cats and I only let one of them outside. Another cat of mine used to go outside during the day but got into a lot of fights and we ended up with a £200 vet bill and after that we kept him inside. At first he hated it but then he got used to it and is now a lot more affectionate, indoor cats live longer as well. I wouldn't have a cat flap, if you just let them out the door instead of a cat flap then it's easier to control when he goes out. If you don't already, make sure you have his name and your number on the collar, he should get used to it. If he isn't taking it off himself he's getting it caught on things. If you stay with the cat flap he should settle into a routine. With my cat who became an indoor cat, we let him out sometimes into the garden and he happily chills out there without trying to get away. If he stops coming round or comes very little it most likely means he has moved onto another family or something similar. That's why I find it easier to keep my cats indoors. And with the food, try him on dry cat biscuits (make sure there is a supply of that throughout the day) and then wet food in the evening or once a day, just a different brand might make a big difference

[yumscrumfatbum]

We have asked them not to feed him usual but I'm not confident they will stop. I'm going to persist with the collar even though I know he hates it so that he looks owned! I've been leaving dried food out all day because we ve seen so little of him. I've just given him a wet pouch as he is here plus worm and flea treatment in case he goes walkabout! My children are keen to keep him in but I think it's going to be difficult he's something of an escapologist!

[yumscrumfatbum]

By the way he is definitely pinging the collar off I keep finding it on the drive! I need the old fashioned kind these ones are designed to be quick release if they get caught on something

[user1478353766]

He will get used to the collar. If he isn't already neutered I would do it asap

[Allergictoironing]

Trouble with the old fashioned kind is if the cat gets it caught on something it won't release and you could end up with a very dead cat - that's why they make them quick release these days.

Can you try to find out what food the neighbours are giving him, it may just be that he prefers what they are offering.

[Weedsnseeds1]

They are designed to be quick release so your cat doesn't accidentally strangle himself! Don't get an old fashioned one! I assume as a rescue he's neutered, because un-neutered tom's tend to wander more. Try bribing him with Dreamies or those cat salami things they sell in Lidl and Aldi. Cats can be awkward about food, so try a few different kinds. You can buy single pouches in a lot of places and if you look at manufacturers' websites, they will often send free samples. Doesn't mean the one he likes will still be in favour in a month's time though!

[Weedsnseeds1]

They snap off so the cat doesn't accidentally strangle himself! Don't get an old fashioned one!Try buying single pouches of different brands, look at manufacturer's web sites as you can often get free samples. Bribe him with Dreamies and the cat salami sticks from Lidl and Aldi. Most cats like those.

[Weedsnseeds1]

Sorry, post didn't appear initially and I tried again!

[yumscrumfatbum]

I can only find the quick release kind anyway. They have been giving him cooked meat. They don't have a cat (Get your own!) Yes he is neutered as he is a rescue cat

[lljkk]

they are such little Tarts.
Try to keep him in at night if you can. But doesn't sound bad. If he was unhappy, he'd be off like a shot.

[MollyHuaCha]

Just an idea... how about you get another cat to keep yours company? Maybe your cat finds being inside your home less interesting than being outside? Another cat for a companion might do the trick. Or it could all go horrible wrong...

[parklives]

Just let him live his life, that's cats for you. He will probably settle down after a while and stay in more and get under your feet! :-)

[froglou]

It's sounds normal to be honest! My cats spend a lot of the day and evening out (not sure if they're going to other people's houses I honk they mainly hunt!) but they come in at night between half 8/9 and I keep them in at the night so I know they're safe and warm! As long as they're not locking him in and he comes home to you at night you have nothing to worry about.
My neighbours however leave there cat out all day and all night and only let him in to feed him, he spends a lot of time in our house playing with our 3 cats and also just sleeping, they've complained to us about this but we have our window open all day while we're out at work for our cats to come and go so we can't really help it without punishing our cats. The difference here is they complain about him being In our house when the reason for this because they've locked him out of there's (we never lock him in and put him out if he's in when we want to lock our in)!!! The compromise they seem to have come to is too keep him in all weekend so but they still leave him out the rest of the time. It sounds like your situation is different but my point is it's possible your neighbours may think they're doing the right thing especially if he is on the skinny side, so maybe approach why they're doing it?
The other thing is what are you feeding him is it just wet food? If so it doesn't usually really fill cats up that much as it's mainly water so try a dried food if you don't already it's also better for there teeth. You could also go down the route of asking neighbours not to feed him because he's on a special diet (you can just lie they won't know any different!)

[yumscrumfatbum]

I feed him dry food in the morning I leave it out if he isn't home and wet food in the evening. They don't have a cat but are feeding three of the cat's in the street. It's a bit complicated to explain but their house isn't actually in our road but it's side boundary is and they have a big metal gate that is no longer in use but that opens out onto our road. They have a big plot full of trees sheds etc. Lots of wildlife and Isuspect rodent life. The three cats play in there all day long. It's something of a cat paradise! I wasn't concerned until this weekend when he cone home at all for four days. From what they tell me he'd been there the whole time. I wondered if there was anything I could aside from feeding him and giving him love to encourage him to see this as his home xx

[Weedsnseeds1]

Maybe he's hunting in their garden and gorging on mice?!

[yumscrumfatbum]

I suspect so weeds. I kept him in all night, he dashed out with the teenager first thing!