Made a mistake and don’t want a cat!

[DontWantACat]

About a month ago, a young cat turned up in my garden (live rural, lots of farms, horses/livery places, therefore always lots of cats), very skinny and obviously been in some difficulty as its neck was missing loads of hair, had healing cuts on it. Definitely not someone’s pet. I put out water and food for it, it wasn’t in great shape and while I’m really not a cat person, I couldn’t see an animal in difficulty without trying to help. Fed it for a week or so and it hung around, got its strength back.

Went on holiday for 10 days and thought it would break the cycle and the cat would move on again. Nope. The minute I got home it was there. Had lost weight again so I fed it again. And I’ve now been feeding it for 2 weeks.

It’s become completely obsessed with me. If it sees me in the kitchen it’s staring in the window/door, it’s sleeping outside the door every night, if I walk outside it’s walking around my feet. If it sit outside it’s rubbing off me and wrapping its tail round me. Or talking to me and doing the blinky eye thing.

But I don’t want a cat! I lost my last 2 pets about 6 weeks ago and I don’t want the responsibility again for a while. I’m also not really gone on cats, and definitely don’t want one in my house. I also don’t want to be responsible for vet bills and such.

I’ve rang the local rescues, they’re full. Shared in groups I’m part of, no takers.

What do I do? Do I stop feeding it? Will it move on?

I dont get why chucked the cat food in the bin.

Please take the cat to the vet. It has only come into your house for shelter because it's learnt to trust you as you have been kind. Blinking at you is a sign of trust. I suspect she was someone's pet, but perhaps the owner passed away or something. Poor cat has no one else to turn to. It is horrible having mice, but its nature and it is a gift. We had a mouse on doorstep on DS's birthday one on Mother's Day!

I never used to like cats, but
DP and DS wanted one so we got a rescue. He is the loveliest sweetest pet and I really love him now.

It makes you wonder doesn't it that she has come into your life when you were sad at the loss of previous pets...

I am sure the vet can help

OP, please get in touch with Garman.

I’m also not a cat person at all, but it’s really upsetting to think this cat has learnt to trust and love you to then have a 180. Please get in contact with Garman, or at the very least take it back to leave with the vet.

There was someone here who wanted to take it if you got a pet passport. Just do that.

The cat came into your home as it wants a family, not because it's audacious or badly behaved. It wants love. Just get the pet passport and let someone here have her.

She was just seeking comfort and felt safe with you. Please don't stop feeding her.

I agree that this seems the easiest way to home her

Poor kitty.

if you want to save some wildlife take it to the vet. If you want to ensure it kills as much wildlife as possible, stop feeding it and leave it wild to produce dozens of kittens. It’s probably pregnant and was checking out house as a potential place to give birth.

also, it’s unhinged behaviour to be angry at a predator for hunting.

OP, you're not responsible for this cat. You don't have to do a single thing for it. Good for you for getting it out your house, it can clearly look after itself and it'll be fine. It can try it's luck at another house and find some other person to blink at through the window.

What reason could you possibly have for not either following up on one of the posters who has said they might take her, or just taking the poor creature back to the vets and signing her over to them? (I don’t understand why you didn’t do that in the first place, when they offered.)

If you really are an animal lover you will realise that’s much kinder than regarding a cat as vile because it’s following its natural instincts (do you object to birds eating worms and insects?), throwing water over it when it’s just doing what you have encouraged it to do, and leaving it to be attacked by other cats and starved.

Why would a cat kill and eat other cats? What a bizarre thing to say?
It's normal for animals to eat other animals, i presume you are feeding the cat meat i.e other animals? Its normal for cats to eat small rodents. The cat isn't being bad or cruel by doing that, its just following its instincts. Its not being bad coming into your house and it's not trying to scare you.

It's really bizarre to say you're an animal lover and then be so cruel and hateful towards one type for behaving like an animal. Take the cat to the vets at least don't starve the poor thing because it showed you affection

Oh gosh @DontWantACat , I can see that must have been a big shock and that if you're a guinea pig/rodent lover that the "gifts" will have been very upsetting. But I do think it would be better to either see if @Garman can help or take it and leave it with the vets. Being PTS would be less cruel than if the cat is unable to get enough food so starves, and the information you have about the cat suggests that is a likely outcome. You are clearly an animal lover so hopefully you can take a short term action to give the cat a happy long term life.

OP, you don't sound like a cruel person. You cared whether the cat was PTS and chose to keep feeding her to prevent that. I'm hoping that your latest update was just a sign of stress and being woken up startled in the middle of the night.

Please do the right thing now and contact @Garman or surrender the cat to the vet's.

You ahve been picked by the cat distribution system and are now stuck. Sorry

You sound like an awful human

I agree. They are natural predators. It is the way of wildlife!! Dogs are not the same thing - we intentionally bred them to be dependant on humans.

Just take it back to the vet, kindest thing for it. Cats choose their person, not the other way round. It's just a pity this one made the wrong choice.

This latest update is absolutely heartbreaking. This little creature has learned to trust and rely on you through your own behaviour and now you're willing to let it starve or be attacked because it did what comes naturally and made you jump in the middle of the night.

I hope once you've gotten over the shock of the middle of the night visit you do the decent thing and take the cat back to the vet or ideally just drive round the rescues until someone takes her. You say you've raised loads of animals in the past you must have some kind of carrier you can put her in.

If you continue with your current plan please don't dare call yourself an animal lover again.

Awful, vile, heartless!

I was the first to say your posts were weird !!!

you don’t deserve anything living near you

You need help

Just take the cat to the vets and tell them to sort it. They already offered to take it, and it would have been wise to accept that offer when it was on the table. I can assure you that next to no rescue places in the UK put healthy cats down. The vet told you they 'couldn't guarantee' that, but it was probably just to cover themselves if it had a disease, or to put pressure on you to take it home. It's really not likely.

The way you've abandoned a cat that was relying on you is far worse than anything a legitimate rescue place would do with the cat. They are full, and generally try to avoid taking in cats, but if this one is not spayed they'd be mad not to sort it, because they're making work for themselves down the line with feral kittens.

It was good of you to feed the poor cat but please get the cat to a rescue, ideally via the vet. If not maybe get the cheapest cat basket you can find and leave it at a rescue place.

OP you started feeding a feral cat and you're surprised the cat thinks she's found a home?

For the love of God do the right thing and put the poor cat in a cardboard box, and take her (and the cat food) to a vet. ASAP before she gets pregnant, if she's not already.

OMG

Is this thread actually fur real? Also, it really would have been helpful if OP could have stated they were in ROI from the start as the situation regarding animal welfare is quite different to the UK. I'm finding it rather hard to believe.

I have a phobia of cats. It's not terrible any more. I can stroke them now but I could never pick one up. I found a dead cat in the road and tried so hard to pick it up in a old jumper. But even though it was dead I just couldn't do it. It's not logical and it's not via choice. Some people are frightened of dogs so I get that OP can't home it even it needs it. Like if you found a xl bullie that's reason enough to take it in.

However I would have left it at the vets when that was a option. Even if just to stop it having kittens and having 11 cats at your door. The kits will be possibly pts if there's no one that wants mum.

I'm sorry you got a scare OP, that would have frightened me too. Now it's not the middle of the night, please consider the options available to you:

1. Take the cat to the vet and leave her there. If you don't have a carrier, they should be able to lend you one. The cat will no longer be your problem.

2. Persist with trying to find her a rescue space yourself. If you tell the rescues that you're chucking water on her, they'll want to help as soon as they possibly can before she's too terrified of humans to catch and rehome easily. Please don't actually throw water on her though. It will take longer for them to catch her and she'll be on your hands for longer. You might be waiting a while but she'll eventually no longer be your problem.

3. Take up the offers you've received on this thread to re-home her. No guarantee that these posters aren't weirdos who will mistreat her, but it seems like a lot of effort when cheap/free cats are available on Gumtree and Facebook. The cat will no longer be your problem.

4. Persist with advertising her for free online. You might get a taker. Likely to be very shady though. The cat will eventually no longer be your problem.

5. Take away her food supply and chase her. She will go away eventually but in the meantime she will be killing a lot of wildlife to eat. She will also breed multiple times so you'll have several other cats about, which will also bother you and the local wildlife. She and her rapidly-multiplying descendants will be your problem for years.

Please PM me if you would like to talk privately. I don't live in Ireland but can and will help with advice, a carrier and popping over to surrender her to the vet if needed.

Wow OP, you are a bit unhinged. Take the poor cat back to the vets.