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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

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Original poster

Cat found, advice needed..

13 replies

Flojo1979 · 27/02/2011 23:14

Hi
This is a wonderful new i just had to share and need some advice. Totally torn.
To cut a long story short, when I was young i met my now exH, we got a cat and when things broke down I moved out and yrs later he asked me to take the cat, so i did. Within 3 months of her being at mine i let her out one eve (for final pee b4 bed!) and she never returned. Looked high n low, was awful, convinced she was dead. This was 9 months ago.
Today I went to buy a car from local garage (bout a mile or so from me) and was stood in office going over details when i felt something on my leg, I looked down and it was my cat!! I couldnt believe it. So so happy that she was alive and well.
She was very fat and clearly looked after by all the staff (place is open 7 days a wk).
I left her there as needed time to think, wasnt sure what to do. Do I leave her there or bring her home? To a home she only knew for few months anyway, compared to the 9 months she been there and risk her running off again and never seeing her again or as i suspect, should i leave her there, happy n settled, with peace of mind that she wasnt run over and has infact been living the life of riley!

OP posts:

Joolyjoolyjoo · 27/02/2011 23:19

Aww! What a nice story! The problem with cats is that they live where they want to live. One of mine moved in with a neighbour, popping back to see us now and then. When we moved, I talked to the neighbour and decided to leave her with them- she was so happy there. Had regular updates and she lived the life of Riley there.

Sadly, she came to the end of her time (she was 15) and I went to my ex-neighbour's house to put her to sleep (I'm a vet, btw, not some kind of mercy-killer!) IMO she had a great life- I was there at the start and the end, and she was very well cared for in between.

With your cat, I would probably leave her where she is, if she seems settled tbh. You can always visit..

eden263 · 27/02/2011 23:26

Oh, how upsetting, I'd be torn, too. How do the garage feel about keeping her? You could always take her home and give it a try then if she returns to the garage you'll know she's made her own choice...

eden263 · 27/02/2011 23:27

One of mine went missing last June BTW, and I wish I knew what happened to her, it's so nice that you've at least found out yours is alive and well :)

Original poster

Flojo1979 · 27/02/2011 23:36

Hi eden, it just goes to show, cats really do have 9 lives so think positive, your cat is probably snug in front of someones fire being well fed and lazy! I'm just worried if i bring her home she'll go again, I'm not sure why she went in first place. I assumed it was to try find her way to my exs but why she left it a few months i dunno.
Yeah she was def settled so i think u r right jooly, tho tbh they were def over feeding her! I havent told my lil boy shes been found yet cos i know he'll want her home, and its things like whether they r happy to keep feeding her and if theres ever vets bills, cos the irony is, the bloke who runs the garage i see him most days as his DC is in my sons class so it might get weird if something ever happened....strange one!

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Joolyjoolyjoo · 27/02/2011 23:46

I'll tell you a story that made me smile.

When I was a student, seeing practice in the local vets, a guy brought a cat in to have it vaccinated before it went to the cattery. A couple of weeks later a woman brought her cat in to have it checked over, as it had been missing for two weeks. In further conversation she remarked that the cat seemed to go missing for two weeks every summer. The cat looked faniliar...

Turned out the lady who "owned" the cat let it out every night. the guy who "owned" the cat let it out every morning. But every year, when he went on holiday, he put the cat into the cattery for 2 weeks, leaving lady mystified as to where "her" car had gone!! Devious little creatures..

Original poster

Flojo1979 · 27/02/2011 23:57

Omg, what a fantastic story! Did the vets tell her what was happening? Thats so funny, not daft are they!

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Joolyjoolyjoo · 28/02/2011 00:15

Yes- we got the owners together and let them into the secret life of their moggy I'd love to tell you they then fell in love, but no such fairytale ending! did save the guy a packet on cattery fees, though

cate16 · 28/02/2011 00:17

We've just had a cat turn up on our doorstep just before christmas that wants to live with us. He had a very distintive mark on him that I recognised from a localish garden centre. I went and confessed we had him, and the owner said he was happy that the cat was happy, and that we could keep him. He's gone from being a semi-wild cat to a lazy house cat!

Fluffycloudland77 · 28/02/2011 08:48

If the cat gets ill who at the garage is going to stump up for vets bills? And yearly vaccinations and worming?

Original poster

Flojo1979 · 28/02/2011 10:28

I need to decide whether to leave her be and then talk to the guys at the garage n check they r willing to take full responsibility for her. They took her to the vets last yr so they have been looking after her well.

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LifeInTheSlowLane · 28/02/2011 18:02

Jooly - I love the story of the cat owned by two people, that's brilliant

My BIL had a cat that just adopted him, kept turning up every day and he eventually took it in. He never knew who it belonged to.

Flojo, I suppose in this case though it depends if you are sure the garage people are taking proper care - what happens if she gets sick, would they pay for the vet or do they just think she's a stray they are happy to feed?

LifeInTheSlowLane · 28/02/2011 18:03

Sorry didn't read your last post properly , glad they are taking care of her

Original poster

Flojo1979 · 28/02/2011 18:26

Yeah they took her to the vets and erm told me she wasnt chipped
I sent a text today to ask him if he was happy to keep her and take responsibility for food/ vet bills etc and he hasnt replied so its a wait n see i guess.

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