possible stray... what to do?

[MissAnnersleyismyhero]

A very nice black cat (smallish, think he might be just grown up from being a kitten) followed us home last night and cried to come in, it was raining so we let him inside and then put him out this morning to see if he'd go off home or not, he did go away for about half an hour but then came back scratching at the door and poking his paws through the letter box to get in.

He looks quite well cared for but has no collar.

Will a vet be open on bank holiday? Will it cost a million pounds to find out if he is chipped? Are there places who take care of strays? (We have no pets, so I have no clue what to do!!)

It will be free to see if he's chipped and that should be the first thing. It sounds as though he may well be stray. Are you sure he's male?

There are plenty of cat shelters, but they're all really full. Would you be willing to take care of him for a few days to see if his owner can be found? If he turns out not to be chipped then I would put a few notices on lamp posts saving 'cat found'. Don't give too many details about him though, you need the people who claim him to be able to tell you about him so you know you've got the right people. Unfortunately people sometimes try to claim cats that aren't theirs - even for unthinkable things such as dog baiting. It sort of depends what sort of area you're in really.

Failing all that then yes try local shelters but make sure they're 'no kill' ones. Avoid the RSPCA.

Don't risk taking the cat to be scanned in anything other than an proper cat carrier though. Perhaps you have a cat-owning neighbour that could lend one to you?

Thanks thecat I'll try to borrow a cat carrier off our neighbours. Not too sure if they're in though

I don't mind looking after him for a couple of days, but DH not keen on keeping him if he turns out to be stray.

not sure he is a boy, how can you tell??

Bear in mind that today is a bank holiday so there won't be many vets open. The vets inside Pets at Home should be though if there's one of those near you.

To tell if he's male feel to see if he has balls or something that seems like the remnants of balls (as he may already have been neutered). If there are no little (or even big) lumpy bits round his back end then the chances are 'he' is in fact female. If he has big balls then it's even more likely that he's stray, as most owners (and certainly all responsible ones) get their cats neutered - and it's unneutered toms which are the most likely to be stray. They can smell a female in heat from literally miles away. They then go off following the scent and can't find their way home. Oh and the urine of unneutered toms smells appalling incidentally.

If you're going to look after him for a couple of days you will need a litter tray. You can pick them up for a couple of pounds in big supermarkets.