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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.

Original poster

Look what the wind blew in ml!

131 replies

TheLongRider · 27/10/2018 12:30

Myself and DD were cycling to school yesterday morning. About 500m from our house DD spotted a cat trying to cross the very busy road near the park. I called the cat and it mewed and it's tail shot up in the air. We stopped the bikes and I managed to grab the cat and get it and DD to safety.

The cat wasn't injured and purred when I picked it up. I had to make an instant decision, take DD to school and hope the cat would be ok, or bring the cat home and check it properly. The decision was made for me by DD bursting in to tears declaring we couldn't leave the cat.

With the cat in one hand, bicycle in the other, myself and DD trudged home. The cat was pretty good. I had to put it down to get the gate open and it meowed and followed us home.

Once home I had a proper look at it. It sniffed around, registering that there are three other cats living in the house, they were out at the time. My DH brought our now chirpy DD to school with a tale to tell.

We brought the cat to our vet. It was easy to catch and put in the cat box and apart from some unparliamentary language there was no trouble.

The vet gave the cat a good going over and ascertained that he's an un-neutered 7 month old boy. Apart from some matted fur, he's in great condition. He's booked in for the snip on Thursday.

At the moment he's at home. He's a real purr monster, very people friendly and confident. He's used the litter tray and scoffed plates of food. He's growling at the other cats who are put out but tolerant.

This is Leaf!

Look what the wind blew in ml!
OP posts:
whatifido · 27/10/2018 15:04

Yetanother seeing as the OP picked up a well fed, healthy, friendly, housetrained cat, renamed it, introduced it to her own cats and has booked it in for surgery, all without attempting to locate its owner, who could for all she know live in the houses by the park she took him from.... id say stolen/catnapped is quite an accurate description!

Original poster
TheLongRider · 27/10/2018 15:06

DD will be fine. We've fostered before. I don't see how one post and then a second post confirming that I would search for his owner 15 minutes later is a dripfeed.

RTFT.

Again, I will search for his owners but knowing the status of cats in this country I don't hold out much hope.

I have had cats for 40+ years, some have gone missing, some have turned up dead, one pair went back to their part-time owners (the grass was greener). I know DD would be devastated if her cat went AWOL.

OP posts:
bitheby · 27/10/2018 15:14

My cat once strayed from where I was living in London. He was slightly brain damaged and was on medication for another problem. I put posters up everywhere. This was in the time before social media.

He turned up in a block of flats a few miles away over two weeks later. The residents were giving him scraps.

Luckily someone had travelled into my neighbourhood and seen the posters and recognised him.

This cat might've strayed outside where the posters are. And you admit you haven't looked for posts on social media yet.

You're making massive assumptions. Maybe he is a stray. Otherwise there might be a very upset little girl or boy out there thinking their cat is dead.

Original poster
TheLongRider · 27/10/2018 15:25

@bitheby You didn't read my second post. There's nothing on any of the local lost and found sites either

I have searched my local online rescue pages and Facebook for the last three months.

OP posts:
Ceilingrose · 27/10/2018 15:57

I reckon you stole a cat. You were very pleased to find it. And lovely long hair, isn't he?

kaldefotter · 27/10/2018 16:00

What do you mean by "I have searched my local online rescue pages and Facebook for the last three months."?

You stole the cat yesterday. You've not given the owners a chance to advertise their lost cat. You clearly have no intention of advertising that you've found a cat. You're completely amoral, but think the people telling you that are the weird ones.

viccat · 27/10/2018 16:00

Usually vet's and animal rescues have a 7 day period when they advertise the cat as found and wait for owners to come forward before declaring the cat as stray, if the cat had to be rescued immediately from a dangerous location or was unwell. (Otherwise it's best to put a paper collar with your details on the cat and leave it where it is for 7 days.)

As he is unneutered, he shouldn't be out anyway although it's possible he escaped of course. I suspect he might have a home but not the best home if they are letting him out unneutered and unchipped.

I think you should still put a few posters up within about a 15 minute (walk) radius of where you found him, and post on some of the lost pets sites in case he got there as a stowaway in a car or something. Then by all means get him neutered and keep him if no response by this time next week.

bitheby · 27/10/2018 16:25

You've only just found him. Owners might be hoping he's on his way back.

LaurieFairyCake · 27/10/2018 16:29

Obviously rescuing the cat from trying to cross a main road was completely the right thing to do.

And he shouldn't be unneutered. Yes, look out for posters and put some up but please don't return him to the main road as he will likely get run over and killed.

legalseagull · 27/10/2018 16:32

Wtf? A cat was crossing the road so you stole it?

Flower777 · 27/10/2018 16:37

He probably wasn’t missing until you took him to your house so no one would have had a chance to put anything online or posters up!

AndSheWas85 · 27/10/2018 16:56

@TheLongRider. I honestly think you did your best for taking this lovely cat home before he became roadkill.

You checked with the vet for any chip. It's not there. He was also not neutered, most responsible owners neuter their male cats at 6 months old, and have them chipped at the same time, with full vacations.

He looks very happy with you.
If people missed their cat "loved" cat that much, their pictures would be on every social media sites and stuck on to every old style lamppost in the 10 mile radius.

legalseagull · 27/10/2018 17:15

@AndSheWas85 not if the OP has literally just nicked the cat! The owners probably think it's still just out and about or are hoping it'll turn up soon. The vet said it's very young so maybe he just hasn't been neutered yet. The OP is clearly one of those awful people that steal other people's cats.

Madratlady · 27/10/2018 17:22

My cat now lives with someone else who refused to return her (we think she got lost initially as she’d only been allowed out very recently after a house move). My 4yr old worried and worried that our other pets would ‘go away’ too. Chances are that cat has a home and family who miss him. You need to put posters up and post on local Facebook groups at the very least to see if you can find his people.

MrsCatE · 27/10/2018 17:46

What is wrong with people on this thread?!!
Well done OP! A cat not microchipped at circa 7 months is either a neglected at or a stray. Has this just been moved to the Litter Tray?

I can't imagine real cat people behaving like this.

SoupDragon · 27/10/2018 17:50

I can't imagine real cat people behaving like this.

Really?

legalseagull · 27/10/2018 17:51

@MrsCatE really??? Because it's not microchipped it MUST be neglected??? Have a word

HoleyCoMoley · 27/10/2018 17:54

You can search for missing and lost cats on findmycat, you can also post a pic of this kitty. Photos up at the vets is also a good idea. There are plenty of search for lost pets or found pets, cat protection have a site.

MrsCatE · 27/10/2018 18:02

Because when I'm privileged enough to own cat, first thing is to take to vets to get checked out, vaccinated, wormed, claws clipped (if necessaryl and effing MICROCHIPPED so if lost, can be found. Mine was a rescue at 6 weeks old and all above done. How does that make me irrisponsible owner when following veterinarian advice??

Ollivander84 · 27/10/2018 18:05

I picked up a dead cat the other week. Beautiful shiny coat, really good weight, healthy and hit by a car. Wearing a collar
Wasn't a stray, wasn't neglected
No chip

SoupDragon · 27/10/2018 18:10

I must be a fake cat person. One of my cats had a failed chip and it turned out the other was still registered to the CPL.

Grumpyoldpersonwithcats · 27/10/2018 18:25

A recent RSPCA report (Jan 2018) says that 9 out of 10 pet cats are not micrchipped. Doesn't make them all strays or neglected.

SuburbanRhonda · 27/10/2018 18:33

My cat had a tumour on her shoulder that grew around her microchip. So when her tumour was removed, so was the chip.

I’d have been very pissed off if someone had assumed she was a stray.

KittensAndCake · 27/10/2018 18:46

OP, well done for rescuing the cat from the road but I agree you need to do more to locate the owners. It might not be local, could've jumped in a van and travelled miles. Can you look on the National missing pets websites??
Whereabouts are you? The mn cat posse could help track his owner.

KittensAndCake · 02/11/2018 10:06

Any update @TheLongRider ?
How's kitty doing?