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

[CoastalWave]

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?

No. I love cats and dogs but I don't know where the nearest vet is, or have towels to use for this sort of thing.

Everyone just presumed SOMEONE ELSE will do something.

I think a lot of people have said they WOULD take an injured animal to the vet. I know I would at least try (might be a bit skittish about getting bitten by a very distressed animal but I would try).

What I wouldn't do however is provide an escort to the vet for an already dead animal - cat or dog, doesn't matter.

I'm talking about cats that have minimal injuries that can be easily moved to a much safer place so they don't get eaten in the meantime.

But your OP was about dead cats. And surely people posting on FB is a reasonable attempt to find the poor cat's owner. Who might not be thrilled to receive a vets bill on top of losing a much loved pet.

I'm not sure 'I don't know where the nearest vet is' is that much of an excuse in 2022 with the technologies available.
If this happened to me a long way from home, I wouldn't know but I could find out very quickly.

It's weird that you'd assume people who choose not to move dead cats around make any assumptions at all about whether someone else will do it.

If I could stop safely I would do so and make sure it was dead, but if it was dead, I would move it onto the verge and leave it. I would post on a local group to see if anyone was missing a cat but I wouldn’t take the body to the vets. I love cats but I don’t have anything in my car to pick up and transport dead things. If it was alive and injured I’d sacrifice a coat but not for a dead one!

@Sparklingbrook

I'm not sure 'I don't know where the nearest vet is' is that much of an excuse in 2022 with the technologies available. If this happened to me a long way from home, I wouldn't know but I could find out very quickly.

But then you also need the means to get the cat to the vet, and also the time. If you are too busy, you are too busy. Taking a dead cat to the vet is hardly an emergency.

We found a cat at the side of the road that had been hit by a car. We had a cat at the time, and I couldn't leave it there, on a busy path near the local high school. So we called a vet and they advised that if we could collect a cat carrier from them to pick it up and return it, then they would scan and alert the owner if there was a chip. There was a chip and the owner wrote us a letter saying how grateful they were.

The vet was only a couple of minutes drive down the road however, which made it fairly straightforward.

But then you also need the means to get the cat to the vet, and also the time. If you are too busy, you are too busy. Taking a dead cat to the vet is hardly an emergency

Well obviously. If you have a car and the time it takes a couple of minutes to find where you need to go (should you want to bother yourself) won't be a problem. I wasn't referring to how busy anyone was.

People don’t need to give an excuse for not doing something that isn’t their responsibility.

@PurpleDaisies

People don’t need to give an excuse for not doing something that isn’t their responsibility.

And yet here people are on the thread doing just that...

I think if owners want notification about it really they should wear tags like dogs. My cats do.

“Name
I have a home
Street name
My phone number”

Most cats roaming are not chipped, spayed or vaccinated though. More kittens got on preloved and then just let out. Owners then horrified when fluffy is dead at the side of the road.

Would take a bloody good vet to resurrect it - even if its name was Lazarus!

@IDespairOfTheHumanRace

Would take a bloody good vet to resurrect it - even if its name was Lazarus!

It's not to resurrect it, it's to scan for a chip and locate the owners to tell them.

I found a dead cat at the side of the road recently. It was 6.30am, I had to be in work for 7.30am and the vets didn't open till 9am. I couldn't have taken the cat to work in the boot of my car and dropped it at the vets afterwards.

After a quick knock on a few neighbouring properties to see if anyone knew whose cat it was (nobody knew), I picked up the cat using a blanket and box belonging to one of the neighbours and she said I could leave it in her yard until the evening. Posts on neighbourhood Facebook groups didn't locate the owner so I collected the poor cat and took it to the vet when I returned home.

Yes it was a faff, the vets was a 30 minute round trip out of my way, but I'd much rather do that than leave the poor thing at the side of the road to be eaten by birds/rats or run over by another vehicle.

@Sparklingbrook you know not all drive and also maybe people just don't want to and thats ok its their choice , no crime committed
People can decide for themselves what to do or not a few would take to a vet , many wouldn't and thats allowed

@Sparklingbrook yet many cat owners don't chip by the amount that get found and no owners
Soon to be a requirement I think

[quote worriedatthemoment]@Sparklingbrook you know not all drive and also maybe people just don't want to and thats ok its their choice , no crime committed
People can decide for themselves what to do or not a few would take to a vet , many wouldn't and thats allowed [/quote]
Yes, I know. That's what I have said throughout the thread. I'm not sure why you are assuming anything else.

I once, horrifically, killed a dog that ran out in front of me on a road. I called the police and they specifically told me not to bring it to a vet but to leave it at the side of the road for them to sort out.

[quote worriedatthemoment]@Sparklingbrook yet many cat owners don't chip by the amount that get found and no owners
Soon to be a requirement I think [/quote]
I used to work at a rescue and in my experience the majority were chipped. And when we rehomed them they were chipped prior to leaving the rescue. I did link upthread to the Gov.uk page where it's going to be required though.

If at all possible a dead cat should be taken to a vets' so they can scan it for a microchip, and can then alert the owner(s).

I do realise that this isn't always practical.

@Sparklingbrook well rescues chip yes, but in my experience around us many are not chipped
Glad they are making it a requirement but if people don't chip no one will be fined etc as they won't know who owns it when its roaming free

@CheshireKitten123

If at all possible a dead cat should be taken to a vets' so they can scan it for a microchip, and can then alert the owner(s).

I do realise that this isn't always practical.

I think that's a good summary. Especially the 'If at all possible'. Ideally, yes great, it's a good thing to do. For cat and for owner should it have one. But if it's not possible for whatever reason then it's not possible.

@EgyptianCat

I once, horrifically, killed a dog that ran out in front of me on a road. I called the police and they specifically told me not to bring it to a vet but to leave it at the side of the road for them to sort out.

That was because people are supposed to report running over a dog. - Road Traffic Act 1988 -

www.insurethebox.com/guide-what-do-if-you-hit-animal-while-driving/