Page 10 | To think you take a killed cat to the vets, not dump it on a grass verge

CoastalWave · 2022-01-07T13:43:37+00:00

Post on FB says 'Found' a dead cat in the middle of the road. Couldn't do anything other than move it to the side as I was busy. " Posted the FB update five hours after doing this. Cat had been moved about 4m from the road so quite a distance and was hidden from site (not quite sure even how they'd moved him the state he was in) Poor thing was in a really bad way. I had to put my big girl pants on and take a lot of deep breaths before I dealt with him. I took clean towels and gave him a dignified trip to the vets. No, I don't like picking up dead cats - particularly after losing one myself to an RTA. But AIBU to think that if you've got time to shift the cat, you've got time to take it to the vets to be scanned?? Or did they move it because they were the ones who killed it?! Would you stop to take a deceased cat to the vets?

vivariumvivariumsvivaria · 07/01/2022 15:01

Cat lovers don't let their cats roam.

A cat should live 12 years. The Bristol Cat study looked at how many were injured on roads before 12 months, can't recall exactly how many but it was around 5%. About 3/4 of them died.

So, traffic means the actual life expectancy for a cat is less than 5 years old.

I've never understood why cat lovers don't think that keeping them safe from hazards is part of responsible pet ownership.

Sparklingbrook · 07/01/2022 15:01

@NichyNoo

What would a vet do if the cat is already dead? I don’t think I would even stop the car if I hit a cat/fox/squirrel/rat.

Scan it for a chip and notify the owner. i think this has been mentioned quite a few times now.

EmmaH2022 · 07/01/2022 15:01

@NichyNoo

What would a vet do if the cat is already dead? I don’t think I would even stop the car if I hit a cat/fox/squirrel/rat.

Woah! You wouldn't stop the car even for a cat (or dog)?

RedskyThisNight · 07/01/2022 15:02

As a non-pet owner it wouldn't have occurred to me before reading this thread, that the vet could identify the owner from the microchip. I would have thought leaving it at the side of the road would be more useful so that the owner was more likely to find it. That would still be the case if the animal wasn't chipped.

And even now I know that taking it to the vet is a good idea, I still wouldn't do it - our local vet is only allowing people in the surgery by appointment. And it's next to a nursery so I don't think I'd want to leave a dead cat outside.

Thecurtainsofdestiny · 07/01/2022 15:03

@PinkSparklyPussyCat

Yes I do know that vets can scan for a microchip. But so does our local council, and they have a budget for dealing with dead animals/ other waste found in the road.

The vet is a private business and I see no reason why they should have to pay for a random dead cat scanning/ disposal when the council is able and willing to do so.

EssexLioness · 07/01/2022 15:03

I’m in two minds over this tbh. We lost our cat several years ago, right outside our house. Somebody had moved her to the verge, right by our driveway, so we obviously found her straight away the next morning. (Hated her being out all night but she didn’t usually stay out once it got dark)
If somebody had taken her to the vets instead, we would’ve been out looking for her for hours, if not days. Knocking on neighbours doors, checking sheds, looking under bushes etc. Wouldn’t have occurred to us to check the vets, at least not initially. As shocking as it was, to find her crumpled body, it saved us a lot of worry and not knowing

Kljnmw3459 · 07/01/2022 15:03

I would not take the dead cat anywhere, I would just leave it where it is. Wouldn't know what to do with it tbh.

Bigboysmademedoit · 07/01/2022 15:04

Some very good responses on this very judgemental post. If you choose to let your ‘pet’ roam wild then you cannot expect others to lift its corpse, contact you etc. Your choice, your responsibility.

ZenNudist · 07/01/2022 15:04

Personally I wouldn't touch the dead cat. I'd drive around it if safe, or over it if it wasn't going to touch my wheels.

I think it's a kind thing to put it to the side of the road so it doesnt get mushed. And to try and warn people on FB.

No way I hell would I put a dead animal in my car.

WoodenLegs · 07/01/2022 15:04

@Bigboysmademedoit

Some very good responses on this very judgemental post. If you choose to let your ‘pet’ roam wild then you cannot expect others to lift its corpse, contact you etc. Your choice, your responsibility.

100% agree.

PrincessNutella · 07/01/2022 15:05

Why is it bad for a cat to be eaten by wildlife? It is an animal that eats wildlife. It's the cycle of nature. I don't think the cat would mind at all. I think it is perfectly natural for an animal. I do think humans feel differently about humans. But cats don't have the same consciousness about themselves that we have about them, and I don't anthropomorphize that.

Sparklingbrook · 07/01/2022 15:05

If somebody had taken her to the vets instead, we would’ve been out looking for her for hours, if not days. Knocking on neighbours doors, checking sheds, looking under bushes etc. Wouldn’t have occurred to us to check the vets, at least not initially.

The vet would have contacted you first after getting your details from scanning her chip.

EssexLioness · 07/01/2022 15:05

Sorry, meant to add, but I also understand why someone would take to a vets to check for microchip etc. Does that mean they would then contact the owner? In which case then I suppose we would’ve probably found out that way too as all our details were up to date… sorry I wasn’t really thinking about that!

Pootles34 · 07/01/2022 15:05

Sorry no, if it's dead then no, I wouldn't. I'd probably do exactly what this person did, and move it and then post on FB.

I have however called the local vet out and stayed with a deer that was hit by a car, so I'm not entirely horrid - I just think once it's dead, it's dead?

EssexLioness · 07/01/2022 15:06

@Sparklingbrook thank you, cross posted!

BungleandGeorge · 07/01/2022 15:06

For what purpose do you think the cat must be taken to the vet? If it’s to scan for a chip and locate the owner I can appreciate that. But that could be achieved by other means such as rescue centre scanning them or in a smaller area a photo on fb group etc. Or by looking for a collar and calling the number. I don’t think vets necessarily provide a storage and disposal service for unknown animals. I would feel a desire and obligation to try and identify the owner but not specifically to get the body to a vet. When I’m dead I don’t particularly care what happens to my body either, that’s not my belief system.

Imissmoominmama · 07/01/2022 15:06

I’ve moved two dead cats to the side of the road, then knocked on the nearest doors.

I wouldn’t have taken them to the vet.

Calennig · 07/01/2022 15:06

I did not know people chipped their cats

I wasn't either really till we decided we'd finailly get some cats and started researching how to care for them.

We had a cat as a child and did friends and it wasn't a thing then and collars very much were - now collars even quick release ones are often now seen as potential lethal hazards so are much less common.

Skeumorph · 07/01/2022 15:07

AIBU to think that if you've got time to shift the cat, you've got time to take it to the vets to be scanned??

You are seriously suggesting that it takes a similar amount of time to stop and move a creature to the side of the road, as to find materials to wrap it in to put in your car, look for the nearest vet, drive there, and wait until you can get some kind of emergency/quick appointment to get the cat scanned for a chip and deal with the resulting paperwork.

Um. YABU. How totally bizarre.

Lovemusic33 · 07/01/2022 15:07

@BungleandGeorge

For what purpose do you think the cat must be taken to the vet? If it’s to scan for a chip and locate the owner I can appreciate that. But that could be achieved by other means such as rescue centre scanning them or in a smaller area a photo on fb group etc. Or by looking for a collar and calling the number. I don’t think vets necessarily provide a storage and disposal service for unknown animals. I would feel a desire and obligation to try and identify the owner but not specifically to get the body to a vet. When I’m dead I don’t particularly care what happens to my body either, that’s not my belief system.

People here always take them to the vets, there’s nowhere else near by that can check for a chip 🤔.

mumshouse · 07/01/2022 15:08

I'm surprised that a website full of mothers would just leave a dead cat lying by the side of the street. I wonder if the opinion would change if it was on their precious darlings direct route home from school?

I would move a dead animal for its sake, its owners sake, and because I don't like to think of a child skipping home from nursery or school and having to see kitty cat with his brains spilling into the road.

Furries · 07/01/2022 15:08

Am always amazed at the hate for cats on MN!

Surely it was obvious that the OP means so that the cat can be scanned for a microchip and reunited with its owner. My vets absolutely do this.

Dogs (plus numerous other animals) are different - you are required by law to report hitting them with your vehicle.

In real life, I think there are plenty of cat lovers around the country. Am pretty sure each village etc could come up with one volunteer each. Issue them with a microchip reader and they could respond to FB posts like this in their area. I’d definitely be willing to do it for my local area (I’d find it incredibly sad, but better than a family not knowing what had happened).

Elodeastar · 07/01/2022 15:09

While I think that it's a lovely thing to do, if you can, it simply isn't always possible (for a whole host of reasons).

Sparklingbrook · 07/01/2022 15:09

There's nowhere local to us with a scanner except vets. If hit by a car a lot of the time the collar will no longer be on the cat either.

www.gov.uk/government/news/cat-microchipping-to-be-made-mandatory

worriedatthemoment · 07/01/2022 15:10

@Furries but the person posted on facebook so that an owner may eb identified , when this happens near me often some know its there cat from description or alternatively a lady ( maybe cats protection) will scan if they have a chip which seems not that often