Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Original poster

How would/do you feel about your cat going into other peoples houses?

109 replies

spookyastronauts · 26/03/2024 22:31

How would you feel if you knew your cat was visiting and spending time at other peoples houses? Would you mind?

OP posts:
PinkPelicans · 27/03/2024 09:09

My neighbour has a beautiful fluffy white cat who often wanders into my house. I don't mind at all.
He stalks round the place having a right nosey at everything like he owns it.
I don't feed him though, but he gets stroked.
The ridiculous thing is that I have a dog who doesn't care either, he just carries on snoozing while the cat carries out it's inspection.
Sometimes if my dog isn't on his bed, the cat will curl up on there, then my dog comes back, looks at the cat like ' huh? ' then lays down besides his bed looking pissed off.

xsquared · 27/03/2024 09:12

Our cat likes to go to our neighbour's garden, but I don't know whether she's made it into their house at all.

Neighbour likes cats as they had a couple when we moved next door, but they don't really like us!

I wouldn't like it for that reason, and I would be even more annoyed if they fed her, as neighbour did at one time have a regular cat visitor who was supposedly neglected by his owner, but he was possibly the fattest cat I've ever seen.

TheLambtonWorm · 27/03/2024 09:14

Fizbosshoes · 27/03/2024 00:06

Ours too.....but I'd be heartbroken and furious if i found she was actually really friendly to anyone else! 🤣

Show quote history

Hate to say it but next doors cat will completely ignore my neighbour when he's calling him, but the cat takes one look at me and will run at me meowing until I open the door / pick him up 🤣

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about this subject:

Cats
Waitingfordoggo · 27/03/2024 09:14

One of ours moved in with a neighbour- I think he liked the food better there. After three months, they moved house so he grudgingly came home. (To be clear, I don’t think they moved house just to escape the cat).

Jennalong · 27/03/2024 09:19

@CharlotteBog

Rupert from next door often tries to sneak in my house

Does Mrs Rupert know ?
😂😂

Iamtheoneinten · 27/03/2024 09:20

Given the number of posts on our local Facebook saying ‘Does this cat belong to anyone - he keeps coming in my house’ etc I wonder if they ever spend anytime in their own homes. One cat is such a local legend, he’s got his own Facebook page with people posting their daily encounters with him, in the homes, in shops, the local pub. He once ended up a few towns away because he’d got in someone’s car without them noticing til they got home. His owner often has to go and collect him from somewhere.

IntermittentFarting · 27/03/2024 09:36

When I was a child a cat called Topsy (name on tag) used to come to our house every Saturday. Just Saturdays. My mum used to feed her, and our own cat always looked miffed. Was bizarre she only came on Saturdays!

My current cat is a bit cowardly and never strays beyond our garden walls, so this would never be an issue.

Alsonification · 27/03/2024 09:49

My neighbour told me recently that our cat goes into her daughter's room. (Daughter is 21). I was mortified cos I had no idea & was very apologetic & trying to decide what to do but she laughed & said no she wasn't complaining. Her daughter is enticing her in with treats & is spoiling her & she wanted to check it was ok with me lol.
I'm fine with it if it makes her daughter happy & they don't mind.

JanglingJack · 27/03/2024 09:49

I hate it! The woman is lovely and her adult children are lovely, however her house is a shit pit, her cats gave fleas and they use dreamies to coax him in.
Her 20 year old daughter and her 19 year fiance live there, they both have autism and other special needs. Both absolutely lovely and I'm friends with Mum, however...
I bumped in to daughter and fiance in local shop and she Omg we had 'name' back today and he stayed all day! Fiance went on to say, yeah this massive black and white cat came round, he loves his dreamies and a tummy tickle!.

I know, he's my cat. You have 3 riddled with fleas and I'm constantly struggling to de-flea him 😡

I didn't say this of course. Mum knows and she works really hard so not always there, she's got an 18 year old, a 15 year old school refuser and tries to say no feeding no dreamies. She's doing her best and I can say to her, please don't feed him - but...

These things happen. I don't mind that he is up there - 10 doors up. I do mind the fleas though. Mum keeps saying she keeps meaning to do them.

On the other hand her dad with alzheimers keeps walking in to my house by accident 😂 poor man, he knows now and I always walk him up. Sharing and caring lol.

Fizbosshoes · 27/03/2024 10:19

TheLambtonWorm · 27/03/2024 09:14

Hate to say it but next doors cat will completely ignore my neighbour when he's calling him, but the cat takes one look at me and will run at me meowing until I open the door / pick him up 🤣

Show quote history

😭😭

Hopefully my cat is not such a traitor and treats everyone with the same disdain !!

miserablecat · 27/03/2024 10:20

Iamtheoneinten · 27/03/2024 09:20

Given the number of posts on our local Facebook saying ‘Does this cat belong to anyone - he keeps coming in my house’ etc I wonder if they ever spend anytime in their own homes. One cat is such a local legend, he’s got his own Facebook page with people posting their daily encounters with him, in the homes, in shops, the local pub. He once ended up a few towns away because he’d got in someone’s car without them noticing til they got home. His owner often has to go and collect him from somewhere.

We have a couple of celeb cats in our town as well! (Alyhough I think one might have passed away)

bombastix · 27/03/2024 10:29

I cannot believe the "does this cat belong to anyone" stuff. Clearly these people don't know cats at all. Cats choose people!

Waitingfordoggo · 27/03/2024 10:31

JanglingJack · 27/03/2024 09:49

I hate it! The woman is lovely and her adult children are lovely, however her house is a shit pit, her cats gave fleas and they use dreamies to coax him in.
Her 20 year old daughter and her 19 year fiance live there, they both have autism and other special needs. Both absolutely lovely and I'm friends with Mum, however...
I bumped in to daughter and fiance in local shop and she Omg we had 'name' back today and he stayed all day! Fiance went on to say, yeah this massive black and white cat came round, he loves his dreamies and a tummy tickle!.

I know, he's my cat. You have 3 riddled with fleas and I'm constantly struggling to de-flea him 😡

I didn't say this of course. Mum knows and she works really hard so not always there, she's got an 18 year old, a 15 year old school refuser and tries to say no feeding no dreamies. She's doing her best and I can say to her, please don't feed him - but...

These things happen. I don't mind that he is up there - 10 doors up. I do mind the fleas though. Mum keeps saying she keeps meaning to do them.

On the other hand her dad with alzheimers keeps walking in to my house by accident 😂 poor man, he knows now and I always walk him up. Sharing and caring lol.

You sound such a nice neighbour @JanglingJack- the fleas are a nuisance though!

I like how the cat and the elderly father are attempting a house swap 😂

Toomuch44 · 27/03/2024 10:47

I had one who did exactly this. He'd go to the lady opposite for a sleep on her bed, the chap next to her for a sit on his lap and a meal and next doors for another sit on a lap and treat. I was frustrated at times and tried to encourage th chap opposite not to feed him. He'd often disappear in the summer for a couple of days and on enquiry I'd find he was in one of their greenhouses.

He wasn't a creepy cat and would let us all know if he didn't want to be touched, but we all loved him. Looking back it was part of him and his personality. He was well treated, regularly fed and had quite spots in our house to sleep. Funnily enough if there was a thunderstorm, he'd always come back to us.

CherryRipe1 · 27/03/2024 11:01

MonsteraMama · 26/03/2024 23:16

I'm fairly certain one of my cats has about seven different "owners". He's such a hussy.

🤣🤣. We've had a few of the local feline sluts sneak in and take over.

hangingonfordearlife1 · 27/03/2024 11:08

if you mind then keep it as a house cat and don't let them wonder.

FunnyCradock · 27/03/2024 11:31

@Inthebathagain I was going to wish you luck with that! But MIL has added the cat (that IS NOT HERS) to the Easter card she sent so I don’t think she’s stopped.
I can’t go to visit because I’m not sure I can keep quiet about this madness. If you want a cat….get your own? How’s that for a crazy idea MIL?? 🤨

BearSoFair · 27/03/2024 11:51

Ours goes next door to pester neighbour's cats if they aren't waiting out in the garden for her to play with...I'm mostly jealous that they never come here in return!

AmandaHoldensLips · 27/03/2024 12:09

Does anybody remember that thread about the woman who's cat got trapped in the neighbour's house and the neighbours had gone away on holiday?

The woman had tried to tempt it out / feed it by shoving bits of ham through a vent.

All kinds of damage plus rotting-ham-in-vents unfolded and the neighbour returned to a real shit show and threatened legal action or something.

It was an excellent thread.

NC03 · 27/03/2024 12:20

I have a not my cat that's been visiting since 2019 Grin

NC03 · 27/03/2024 12:25

The tuxedo isn't my cat

How would/do you feel about your cat going into other peoples houses?
AnnaDomini · 27/03/2024 12:28

I wish mine would go out instead of demanding food what seems like all day long.

LoobyDop · 27/03/2024 12:30

I wouldn’t like it, and would be pissed off if someone was encouraging it. I want my cat to be either outdoors getting fresh air and exercise, or at home safe. Sleeping in someone else’s house is the worst of all worlds.

GoFaster83 · 27/03/2024 12:43

I live in a tenement where the lady downstairs got a cat and asked the guys across the floor to look after her when she had to go away. I often come downstairs to find the cat on their doormat waiting for them so I do a cheeky knock and run away. The first time it was just to be funny, as if the cat had chapped the door but now its just part of our life. The cat once tried to come to my flat but it smelled too much like dog for her liking. I periodically leave packs of dreamies for the cat at the true owners door. She's a proper resident of our building in her own right and we all love her. She's a feisty wee thing and runs rings around my collie!

TheBalletCats · 27/03/2024 12:48

Mine decided as kittens that Outside is a hellscape into which only a fool would venture; & my black cat is terrified of strangers, so no shenanigans here.

Attempts by local felines to visit have been thwarted because I don’t want to risk anyone being upset or stressed. My black cat gets SUPER protective (despite his mortal fear of humans he won’t leave me alone with visiting HCPs & has attempted to intervene when he believed I was being harmed…) so I don’t think he’d be on for any encroachment on his territory.

We did have visiting cats when I was teenager though: someone up the road had some kind of ✨fancy✨ grey kittens & as soon as the wee dotes were let out after having their jabs they wanted into our house. We’d play with them & cuddle them & in hot weather had water for them (& the many cats who liked to hang out in the garden) but we never fed them & we didn’t let them stay for very long: I was really worried about accusations of catnapping, especially as the kittens/cats were mostly visiting when I was in charge, from the age of 15 onwards (& my wee sister was 12).