Love Rhombus, good for you for wanting to help a kitty out, but also good for you for being realistic about it. Our cats cost us next to nothing for the first 12 years - now they’re costing us more in vet bills as they age. Your new kitty will probably cost you some right away because it should go in for a spaying/neutering/check-up/shots/etc., but after that, it probably won’t cost you a lot for many years (note the operative word there - “probably”).
I wonder about kitty not being litter-trained, either - I thought momma cat taught the kittens to dig and bury their wastes very young. Maybe Cat just hasn’t figured out the litterbox inside your apartment yet.
Joining in the chorus that says you are as doomed as doomed can be. Call around for a cheap place to get her fixed and settle into fifteen years of happiness.
Have you sifted through the litter? Some cats are quite adept at burying their leavings. Don’t put the litter box too near its food, some don’t like that. IIRC there’s some sort of attractant you can buy to entice a cat to one.
Feral/outdoor/stray cats will automatically use a litter box, according to a crazy cat lady friend of mine who has something like 30 cats and kittens in her house at any given time. She fosters for two different rescues and the majority of the cats they get are strays and stray/outdoor kittens.
Cats can be expensive if they have some sort of chronic condition. Otherwise not; I’ve never had a cat run up any extreme vet bills, especially inside-only cats. As long as they’re fed decent food and hydrated properly and of generally sturdy stock they are fairly inexpensive pets. At least compared to dogs.
If not, cats that have adopted their owner in this way and who remember the hardship beforehand, make the absolute best pets. I’d advise you to keep her and start a lifelong friendship with Cat. Believe me, you will get as much out of it as she will. Even if you are not the most cattish of cat -persons now.
If I were you, I would post this post in an e-mail and send it to friends and relatives. And your landlord. Add a pic of wet kitty before and dry kitty after.
Add half jokingly in a PS that if someone wants to chime in for a birthday/X-mas gift for you and kitty, they can adopt one or two month’s worth of litter and kibble and landlord peace offerings.
I bet you will be set for the next two years. Or someone will take kitty of your hands.
Look to see if there are any local animal rescue groups that do fostering (vs. animals in shelters). They might have some suggestions on how to get the word out that you’ve got a found kitty, and help reunite her (him?) with her previous human servants.
Definitely find a place that can scan for microchips, as others have suggested.
A cat can be a very expensive proposition - we’ve been cat-less for 2 decades (damn allergies) but spent quite a bit on ours during the 3+ years they owned us. One had feline leukemia when we got him at the animal shelter; the other had bladder issues and a number of procedures as a result.
The secret to litterbox training is to follow the cat around. Tirelessly. For hours if necessary.
When the cat begins to paw around and sniff the floor as if looking for a place to go, pick up the cat and carry him or her to the litterbox and place cat inside, paws on the litter. Cat will think, “I’m not about to do what a human wants, but oh, hey, this looks like a good place to pee, and I independently discovered it without anyone else’s help.”
I’ve only had to litter-train a few cats, but that method worked every time. Lost of people won’t commit the time required, though – gotta watch the cat like a hawk for as long as it takes. A boring method, but your house will smell better.
No to rain on any parades, but I’d like to point out that some apartments have cats who consider themselves to own the whole building. My son once had a cat that figured he owned a six-building complex. At least five other apartments fed him and he’d go into any door that was open. He’d often turn up with a flea collar or regular collar that son had not bought. The place had mostly college students in it, so I doubt he was getting multiple vet checks and shots.
If you’ve lived in this apartment for years, and if Cat was that kind of cat, you’d probably have run into him before. If you’ve lived there less than a year, he may have just gotten around to you. In that case, check with your neighbors before either committing or moving the cat.
(My son’s cat also used to hang out in the tree over the mailboxes and drop down onto people getting their mail. No claws were ever used, but he wasn’t a small cat and it made an impression.)
Traumatized cats can temporarily “forget” how to use the litter box.
The rules of stray cats damn near killed me.
Oh and another thing: Cats who have lived in deprivation for any length of time often have no “off” switch when it comes to eating. They can become VERY porky.
Or someone will take kitty of your hands.