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Cat Forum / Rescue / April 2005Question on rescuing
We live in an apartment complex, and for the past several weeks we have seen a beautiful white young adult cat (I'd guess she's 12-18 months, maybe?) hanging around the pool area. We see her during the day, evening, whenever, and I've made friends with her. She'll come up to me when I call, likes being petted, purrs for me, and she'll let me pick her up and hold her for a couple of minutes. She's not declawed, and seems to be in good health with good weight. To be honest, I'm not 100% sure it's a she, but am guessing from the brief look under her tail. =) We're not sure if she's truly a stray, or if she's an "outdoor cat" that "belongs" to someone in the apartment complex. Would I be ethically wrong in trying to coax her inside and either finding her a new home or keeping her ourselves? Many people walk their dogs without leashes in the complex (even though they're not supposed to), and when brought some food down for her, she narfed it right down (when she wasn't distracted by trying to catch the birds). My rescue experience has been pretty much limited to transports of dogs, so any advice is greatly appreciated. =) Thanks, Tirya -- TDC Inca Jeeper A girl and her Jeep... it's a beautiful thing... >Would I be ethically wrong in trying to >coax her inside and either finding her a >new home or keeping her ourselves? I don't think so. Do her a favor and take her in. Get her vet checked and they can shave her tummy to check for a spay scar. AFAIC, a cat that is without ID, obviously hungry, and is free roaming all hours of the day and night is at risk of serious harm and in need of rescue. Megan  Signature"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray > >Would I be ethically wrong in trying to > >coax her inside and either finding her a [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > Megan I went out just a couple of minutes ago and ended up talking to her "owner" - she was lying in the grass near an apartment and a guy was out on the porch. I asked him if she were his cat, he said yes. I told him I thought she was a stray because we saw her all the time, and he admitted that she lived outside mostly. I petted her a couple of times and started to leave, and she followed me. =) I told her that now that I knew she belonged to someone, that she should go back home, but she stayed by me, flopped over on her side and let me scratch her belly, put her paws on my feet, put her rump against my leg, and basically would probably have followed me home if I'd kept walking. The guy finally came over his porch rail and picked her up to take her inside. ::sigh:: Tirya >> >Would I be ethically wrong in trying to >> >coax her inside and either finding her a [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > > Tirya This sounds like a cat that really does need to be rescued. What did the guy sound like? Do you think he would be open to a request from you that he consider letting you adopt her (and possibly even a token payment)? You would be doing the cat a big favor, and it sounds like you would get a delightful companion. MaryL > >> >Would I be ethically wrong in trying to > >> >coax her inside and either finding her a [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > > > > ::sigh:: > This sounds like a cat that really does need to be rescued. What did the > guy sound like? Do you think he would be open to a request from you that he > consider letting you adopt her (and possibly even a token payment)? You > would be doing the cat a big favor, and it sounds like you would get a > delightful companion. He says she belongs to his four year old daughter, so I doubt he'd be open to the idea. But if she follows me home and comes inside, that's a whole 'nother story. =/ The "very" sad part is, many people do not know that a cat [like humans] need love and attention. Rescue this kitty if you can. I have 8, very abused cats that my husband & I have taken into our lives. The biter, Smozzie [got bit about 9 times in 2 years] has even come around & let's us cuddle her. It took time to get her trust. Smozzie would have been put to sleep, she was un-adoptable. Your heart is in the right place, go with it. > This sounds like a cat that really does need to be rescued. What > did the guy sound like? Do you think he would be open to a request > from you that he consider letting you adopt her (and possibly even a > token payment)? You would be doing the cat a big favor, and it > sounds like you would get a delightful companion. As an alternate point of view, Tirya did say that the cat appears to be in good health, and she's obviously not afraid of people. Maybe she's just an indoor/outdoor cat who's also a lap fungus and eats food whenever she can get it. I've certainly read plenty of stories of apartment cats who go from door to door, mooching food from the complex with their "woe is me" looks, while the owner is frustrated that the cat's diet just doesn't seem to be helping it lose weight. I know a lot of people immediately equate cats being allowed outdoors to animal abuse, but I don't think it's that black and white, even though I keep my cat indoors. Signaturemonique, who spoils Oscar unmercifully pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca Monique wrote: >As an alternate point of view, Tirya did >say that the cat appears to be in good >health, and she's obviously not afraid of >people. And this is the single best reason why this cat shouild not be allowed to roam at all hours of the day and night. For you to defend this practice is thoughtless and stupid. She is exactly the type of cat that is easy to pick up and walk off with, especially in an environment where you have a large population of people concentrated into one area (the apt. complex) and many types of people coming and going all the time. This puts her at a serious and very real risk for being taken by people with nefarious intentions. She could be sold to a lab, used as bait for training pit bulls or be subjected to abuse, torture and death. To allow her to roam free day and night is extremely irresponsible, and to put her at risk for any of the above is unconscionable. If it were me I would quietly make her "disappear" and then reappear into a home where concern for her welfare is first and foremost. Megan Signature"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray > Monique wrote: >>As an alternate point of view, Tirya did [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > > Megan Megan really would do this, too -- and I applaud her for it. Cats should not be seen as "property" that can be disposed of like a piece of old furniture or left outside to the whims of whoever might take advantage of a friendly cat. When I was in college, one of the biology profs actually sent students out to roam the town and pick up "strays" that were then used for biology experiments. The practice stopped when some students appeared with a gorgeous white Persian-type cat wearing a collar. Some stray! Laws have also been passed since that time that should eliminate the practice, but these laws have not prevented private individuals from grabbing pets and either selling them to labs or subjecting them to other types of cruelty. I literally cringe at the knowledge of some of the things that happen to these unfortunate cats and dogs. MaryL (take out the litter to reply) Photos of Duffy and Holly: >'o'< http://tinyurl.com/8y54 (Introducing Duffy to Holly) http://tinyurl.com/8y56 (Duffy and Holly "settle in") I've certainly read plenty of stories of > apartment cats who go from door to door, mooching food from the > complex with their "woe is me" looks, while the owner is frustrated > that the cat's diet just doesn't seem to be helping it lose weight. A friend of mine saw this hungry looking skinny cat and taking pity on her, took her home. She turned out to own the local vet....So Rosemary (Friend) starts having a go at him about how as a vet he should know better than to starve a poor cat and he had to explain that she was perfectly well fed but unable to resist scrounging. I don't think the vet ever forgave her even when she did a version of the "Parrot sketch" which involved a tortoise. (I mean how do you know when a tortoise is dead? Especially when it's supposed to be hibernating, she had to walk in and plonk said tortoise on his examining table and ask the classic question "Is this tortoise dead?") Lesley Slave to the Fabulous Furballs My white cat Henri RB was an outdoor indoor cat but mostly indoor and no way would he ever have attached himself to some one else, He would let the neighbours talk to him and pet him, but he knew where he lived and was loved. He was 13 when I lost him Jean.P. > > This sounds like a cat that really does need to be rescued. What > > did the guy sound like? Do you think he would be open to a request [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > > pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca I belong to a rescue group. In my area, and most I'm familiar with, if you let your animal out it must have a collar and rabies tag or is considered a stray. I would say the cat is at risk and would pick her up. Joe > We live in an apartment complex, and for the past several weeks we have > seen [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] > TDC Inca Jeeper > A girl and her Jeep... it's a beautiful thing... If you looked under the cat's tail and it was not very obvious then the cat is a female. Male cats have testicles that can be seen easily even when they are walking away from you. A cat does not usually eat unless it is hungry. if she is downing the food as you discribed she is probably a stray. The only other possibility is if she is lactating, then she would eat 2 to 4 times as much as a non lactating cat. Cats nurse kittens for about 8 weeks, so if that amount of time has gone by, it would probably be okay to adopt her. Just make sure to take her to a vet as soon as possible. Cat lady of Navarre, Fl Just remember that it's a grand illusion Deep inside we're all the same STYX The truth is out there. X-files
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