I live in an apartment complex. I have two indoor kitties. Well, the last week I noticed a little black kitten outside and where I live it is very common to have outdoor cats (though I don't like it at all). Well, now tonight, this kitten let me get up and close to him. That is how I found out it is a he . He is probably about 4 months old and he has a nice coat, and doesn't look emaciated. Later on tonight, we brought him out some treats while our cats came out with us and he ate like 7-8 treats. I don't know, but I think that could be a sign that he is hungry.
I am just wondering if there is any tests that I can do to find out if he is stray. If he is, I will take him in. My boyfriend suggested we put a collar on him and see if it gets taken off. Or a collar with and engravement or something of the sort saying "If this cat isn't stray, please take collar off."
Has anyone dealt with this before? I just don't want this poor kitty living outside, fending for himself.
The most obvious areas to check are the paw pads and fur on the body. Paw pads that are soft and clean, nails are clean and not chipped or worn usually indicate an indoor-cat. If the pads are really dirty, the nails are dirty or chipped or worn, chances are he is an outdoor cat. If the fur is clean, free from fleas, seems to be shiny and lustrous, he's probably someone's pet.
However, in my opinion, an owner who lets a 4-month-old kitten outdoors without a collar or tag, and no supervision, shouldn't have a kitten or cat. It could be that the kitten somehow escaped from his indoor home, but probably unlikely.
Your boyfriend's idea is a good one, and well-intended, but if you've seen this kitten outside more than once, I would take him in anyway. If you want to go further, you can put a "found" ad in your local newspaper, but chances are, if the owner claims him, they will again let him outside again.
If you do take him in, please get him checked by your vet first, dewormed and tested for FELV/FIV before introducing him to your other kitties.
We went through something similar about a year ago. I figured that the kitten (older - about 9-10 months) was such a sweetheart he just *had* to be someone's pet, not a stray. When I met him, he was hanging out and begging at a convenience store. I took him home and put up signs all over the area, including at the store where we found him. The store workers were thrilled to post the flyer in exchange for my removing him.
I only got one call, and that was from a 10-year-old girl who said she had a cat that matched the description, but that hers lived outside because her mother was allergic. True or not, I told her the description didn't match and I kept him. Maybe he was "hers", maybe he wasn't. He now lives a charmed life of leisure snuggling up every night with my 8 yo daughter.
Upon occasion I have found myself tempted to take in every outdoor cat I meet assuming they're strays...or, shall I say, "un-owned", figuring that anyone who lets a cat wander is irresponsible. You can't let a dog do that, after all. Okay, lecture over.
I think your idea is good about the collar, but I also agree with the previous poster that a 4-month-old kitten oughtn't be out wandering anyhow. I'd take him in and post flyers. Could be that he sneaked out accidentally.
Well, we put a collar on him and I saw him lastnight and the collar was removed. It was just a flea collar that we cleaned off so we could write on it. I am kind of nervous that he took it off himself, but maybe that is also just whishful thinking. It does make me so angry because on the underside of the collar we wrote "Please get him tagged and collared," but he was just running around outside again yesterday w/o anything.
There is a part of me that is so tempted to take him. I am sure he belongs to someone in my building and I just don't know what I would do if they saw him. So, I told my boyfriend that it looked like we weren't getting another kitten and he said, well, for now. I think he is just as tempted to take him as I am. We'll see how frustrated I get and how fast. Thank you for the help.
I just find it a little odd, I didn't see him all day yesterday during the day but right when evening hit he was outside. And then he was still out there at like 10pm when we got home. So they must let him inside during the day, but leave him out all night. Just seems wrong to me.
Wrong doesn't even begin to describe what it is. If I were you I would just take him. If you were able to put a collar on him then I guess you're able to pick him up so the next time he's in your hands, he's in your home. Now this may not sound ethical and almost like stealing but it's obvious that the owners of this kitten aren't being all that responsible. You know that saying 3 strikes and you're out ?? Well with outdoor cats, especially young ones, too many aren't that lucky to make it to 3. I consider your attempt at putting a collar with a note on him to have him properly identified only to find him without it to be strike 1. He obviously can't depend on his owners and maybe in some kismit kind of way is depending on you. You'll feel a thousand times worse if something happened to this kitten; I would do it and not look back.
Also, flea collars and other over the counter treatments can be very harmful and fatal. There's a link on this board with information supporting this but unfortunately I don't know exactly where and am in a mad rush. Hopefully Traci or someone else who knows will be along to post it.
I wasn't trying to treat the cat for fleas. It was 12.30 am and I just wanted to get something on him that I could write on. So I ran to Wal Mart to get a flea collar, washed it off and wrote the message on it knowing that either the owner or myself would remove it within the day.
Oh yes, the kitten came inside my apartment on Sat. Night (just in the doorway). I know I could easily take him. Just plan on waiting a few more days to see how long he is out for. Also, my bf was going to check the bushes he scuttled out from under lastnight to see if the collar was there. I know those collars are easily removed by the cats.
I agree with Cleo 100%....it's time to take this kitten in. I wouldn't worry about a possible owner, since they didn't care enough to keep him indoors for a second time or bother to place an identification collar/tag on him, then he's fair game. If animal shelter picked him up, imagine his fate...no collar, no ID, no proof of vaccination or rabies vax, etc. Think the owner would be responsible enough to check the shelter for their lost kitten? Think they would be responsible to provide legitimate ID or proof of vaccinations? It's doubtful.
Don't wait another minute, get him inside immediately (although still need to get him checked by your own vet before introducing him to your other cats). If you wait too long, it might be too late, the outdoor dangers are just too great (hit by car, attacked by dog, picked up by animal control, etc etc)
As for the flea collar, while your intentions were good, over-the-counter flea collars can be deadly and should never be used, that goes for any over-the-counter pet product such as for fleas, ticks, worms, etc. Even if you washed it off, the chemicals are still present.
This situation reminds me of how we got our beagle, Oliver:
This past February, we saw Oliver running around our small town (located RIGHT on a busy, semi-truck traveled highway) for about 3 or 4 days. He seemed to have a collar, but beagles like to run and play, and no one could ever get close enough to him to find out.
That Sunday, we went out to feed our Lab/Collie/Shepherd Mix, and here was this beagle, smelling like fresh hay. We figured he slept with Blackfoot, and this time he let us bring him into our house. BTW, he had to cross this busy highway to get to our house!
He was great in the house and with the cats (but is not housebroken yet). Monday we called the local vet to report we had him, just in case anyone called about a missing beagle. The vet called us Wednesday to say someone had called, and gave me their number. (This was a week after eh had first been spotted running around!) I called and they said yeah, he had been missing. So, we reluctantly took him back, having become attached to him. His name then was Lou and he ran right into the house and we thought that was it.
Sunday came around, we were lazing about, and heard a distinct howl...we all ran outside to see Lou! We brought him in, and I called up there to the owners. The woman/girl answered and I asked if her dog was missing again. She said no. I said to check again because I could swear he was sitting on my living room couch! She put the phone down, called around, and came back and said, "oh yeah, I guess he is gone."
We took him back and told her that if they could not properly keep him in the yard or house, and he kept running, he was going to get hit by a truck, and we would gladly take him and find him e good home. She just grabbed him and went inside. We felt bad.
Wednesday, I came home from doing a Home & Garden Party show and he greeted me at the living room door! My son had seen him in a different yard on his way home from school, and asked the people. They said they did not know where he came from, but they did not want him to get hit because he was playing along the highway, so they put him in their yard for now. He brought him home. We decided to wait a few days to see if they called us, figuring they knew where the dog would end up at this point in time. They never called.
However, we were going to be gone for the weekend, and the people do have 2 little boys, and we felt bad about keeping a dog from boys, so we took him up there. The boarder who lives in the basement said he would be happy if he never saw the dog again! He said they abuse him (we knew that from how he would cower if we raised out hand to toss a toy) and chewed things up in the house (he never did that at our house) and he said when he had moved in there in October, he asked them about the dog out back...both "adults" in the house got wide eyed and said, "Oh, we forgot about him, we have not fed him for 4 or 5 days!" The boarder made them bring him inside as he was cold and half dead, and he fed him and got him back to health. However, since the dog was comfprtable inside at that point, I did not take him, but said if we saw him again, he does not come back. The boarder said he knew nothing of where the dog might be if he does disappear.
A few days later, we had a HUGE MArch snowstorm...no school...my son went to his friends house on the other side of town...and there was the beagle, with a new fabric collar, too big for him, frozen around his neck, with frost and snow and ice all over him, shivering under the porch. They brought him in, warmed and dried him up, and we have had him ever since...no calls from the other "owners"...nothing...but they now have a golden retriever...I wonder when that dog will begin to run?
Do not feel guilty about taking an animal from an unfit situation...I feel we gave the previous owners plenty of warnings and time to take proper care of him...they chose not to, so we chose to...
You all are right. I will have a chat with my boyfriend tonight about this. Even if we only keep him for a bit until someone that we know will treat him right will adopt him. First things first, I will have to go get some Advantage. My cats had a flea problem a few months back and the last thing I want it for them to get it again. Hopefully he'll go for it. I will post some pics of this adorable little guy next chance I get.
. He is probably about 4 months old and he has a nice coat, and doesn't look emaciated. Later on tonight, we brought him out some treats while our cats came out with us and he ate like 7-8 treats. I don't know, but I think that could be a sign that he is hungry.
