Cat visitor advice

[Magnificentbeast]

A friendly b/w cat has been visiting our garden for a while now. When he first visited he was wearing a collar. In recent months the collar has gone and I suspect he's either lost or has been abandoned.

His coat is in good condition but he's on the thin side. He's friendly and playful and just sort of hangs around. He was ok with my little girl cat to begin with and she tolerated him. Her experience with other cats hasn't been great.

He will let me stroke him but then gets a bit bitey if you touch his back so I think he might have hurt himself.

Anyway, I took him to our local vet yesterday. He has no chip and has not been neutered. I am posting him on local FB and other groups to see if anyone knows him. Although I'm not overly hopeful. If someone does come forward how can I tell they're genuine? I don't just want to hand him over to just anyone.

Keeping him myself would not be a good decision for my own cat.

If no one claims him is the next step Cats Protection?

bumping to knock all the cat pee threads off the front page.

can you put a paper collar on him asking his owner to call you, if he has one? if nothing comes from that I would contact your local cats protection. they'd also advise on the paper collar before they can help you with him.

If he isn't chipped or neutered then you can assume he's a stray. Unneutered males go missing all the time as they go chasing females and get lost. The vast majority of stray cats are unneutered males. If he had caring owners he would be neutered.

I wouldn't bother with the paper collar personally in this case. So the first step is to get him neutered. If you are prepared to do it yourself that would be great. Failing that you might be able to get help from CP or other charities - but they demands on their money/time is always far greater that what they have available, so you may not get help for a long time (particularly as we are still in the middle of kitten season) if at all.

Feed him for now. Get him neutered if you can. Make charities aware and hopefully they will be able to help him eventually.

Don't post anything on social media or do posters or anything like that. He doesn't have caring owners as he isn't neutered or chipped, so there is no point trying to find them.

Thanks @thecatneuterer for bumping.

I have already posted on social media. A man has replied saying it might be his cat who went missing a year ago. His sister was supposed to be looking after it. I'm thinking the same as you about the owners not being the best for him anyway seeing as he's not even chipped let alone neutered.

I have thought about getting him neutered but not sure about the logistics of him being around for his appointment. The vet I took him to yesterday is closing down on Friday so they were very busy sorting that out and doing appointments. The staff only found out last Tuesday that the practice is closing.

Yes, don't give him to the man. Did you ask him if his cat wasn't neutered? I very much doubt he is his and if he is then he is obviously an appalling owner who shouldn't have a cat at all. He might want him for dog baiting.

Just tell him that the owner has already been located and remove the post.

If you do get him neutered you will need to get him in the house. Do you have a spare room? If so, get him shut in and then make an appointment somewhere. He will also need to stay in for around 5 days afterwards. If you don't have a spare room then a dog crate would work. Some vets will be able to lend them, as will charities.

Oh, and any owner will need to send you multiple photos of him. Of course though if he is all black then that won't work as they tend to look too similar and people can find photos of black cats all over the place. If he is all black then definitely don't try to find an owner.

Thanks @thecatneuterer I haven't replied to him. I have the lady who runs the local lost & found group on the case. She knows the guy and has intervened.

Unfortunately we don't have a spare room that isn't in use. The kids clothes and toys are in there so there's a lot of coming and going. The after care in particular would be difficult. I'm annoyed I wasn't on the case back in the summer when DH & kids were away.

He's a beautiful fluffy b/W cat with quite a distinctive face.

Could you perhaps do the dog crate thing? That could be anywhere - living room, kitchen, wherever.

I’d do dog crate. And all cat owners have hundreds of cat photos, one of their kids & a screen shot of a product they thought the cat would like.

Plus you could tell your own cat from others, we had three Persians and each looked completely different to us but identical to other people.

I could look into it. This lady on the lost & found might be able to help.

I imagine it will be quite stressful for him to be in a crate for 5 days. Better for him in the long run though.

Why can't people just take care of their pets!

Some people don’t take care of their kids!. Immature? Lack of empathy? Who knows.

Yup Cats Protection definitely.If he has not been done and no owner comes forward they will get him done to reduce kitten problem.

Whereabouts in the country are you, we may be able to recommend local rescues?

In regards to posting on social media etc., it's usually best to leave out some details (such as not say if cat is neutered or even if male or female), and then of course ask for photos. It's amazing how many people seem to not recognise their own cats at all so you'll have to study photos carefully to compare markings... But I also agree that anyone who leaves a cat unneutered and not chipped is not a great owner anyway so there's not much point in making a huge effort to find them!

@viccat I'm in Greater London. Right over on the west.

I've kept details to a minimum on social media. To be fair I don't know much about him.

Don't neuter him, I agree cats need to be neutered but it is not your place to do so.

How is his coat? Does he have fleas or otherwise look neglected?

Swiping you does not mean he is in pain, loads of cats do this.

Lots of cats lose collars regularly without being a stray.

Contact a local cat shelter for advice.

Gingerkittykat - and the local cat shelter will agree that an unneutered, unchipped cat will be a stray and needs neutering. They will suggest where this can be done and if they know of vouchers that can be used etc.

If the OP really wants to she could put a paper collar on the cat with a message to check it doesn't have owners. But that's of course futile as it obviously doesn't. If charities didn't neuter unchipped, unneutered, strays just in case there might actually be an owner somewhere despite appearances to the contrary, have you any idea the state we'd be in with cats breeding everywhere? (not that it isn't bad enough already, but it would be a million times worse).

The vast majority of stray cats are unneutered males. They are either abandoned or thrown out because they become a nuisance (spraying and smell) or they go chasing a female over a huge distance and then become lost. The chances of an unchipped, unneutered male that's hanging around someone's garden actually having a home are so vanishingly small it's hardly worth even considering.

But yes, a paper collar could be used to check if you felt so inclined.