Questions first…long MPS after
How much do you feed a cat? We have the small cans. He is a medium size guy.
Any idea on the breed so I can post a proper ‘found’ message? I put one on craigslist and petfinder…am I missing anything? Pic link below.
Why did every picture I take make him look devilish? Seriously, these were the best of the lot…plenty of tails, cat butts, general snapshots of aloofness.
Backstory
Yep. There is a cat that has taken up residence under the bay window of my house. Ironically, just a few inches of foundation and floor above reside 2 great big dogs who are not fond of the feline kind.
We spotted him Saturday when we were on our way out for the night. Well, he was screaming at us from the pitch black night. Scared me a bit being this close to the spookiest day of the year. We put him in the garage for the night and today went to see if he had a chip installed at the local rescue place.
Did you know that cats don’t really like having a nice Sunday drive? You’d think we were killing him. Alas, no chip. Poor thing. I’m so very allergic so my husband is tasked with loving the little visitor. He’s eating it up. Kitty is so nice and vocal and loving. Somebody *has * to be missing him. He may have been there for a while, living off the mice and vermin from the horse ranch across the road. He went out the garage window and back to his original spot under the house. Looked for kittens, just in case, but there were none. We locked him in the garage again tonight just to be sure a stray coyote doesn’t snatch him up.
There are no missing cat fliers out so hopefully my found ones do the trick. I may have more questions so look out for me…
He may be a friendly barn cat from that horse place. He looks to be tortoiseshell in color. I had me a tortie once; they are the prettiest cats. I don’t know if I should wish you luck in finding an owner, or not!
He does look like a tortoiseshell, which would make him a rather rare and scientifically valuable cat if it’s true. But not monetarilly valuable - he couldn’t breed. Only a geneticist can tell for sure. (True tortoiseshell is a female-only trait, so male tortoiseshells are mutants. See more here and here.) But it’s possible that he’s a tabby with ugly patterns instead.
The little cans are more or less single-servings, and he should get one or two a day. I’ve always found dry food to be better for general feeding, with canned as an occasional treat. With most cats, you can just leave a bowl of dry out for them and they won’t overeat. *Most *cats.
If you keep him, get him to a vet for more info, and he should still be neutered, although if he is a male torty, he’s sterile. But intact torties will still spray and be agressive and go through the motions of mating - they have testosterone and are all tomcat.
Seconding the dry cat food idea - you get more protein for your dollar with dry.
Sad to say, he may have been abandoned. Some sickos will throw out cats near farm with the idea that “he can live off the mice in the barn.” If no one replies to your “lost cat” ads and you can’t keep him because of your allergies and the dogs, you may be faced with finding him a home. He looks to be a beauty.
My cats hate car rides, too. Taking my Siamese to the vet one spring day with the doors off of the Wrangler, I was getting strange looks from nearby drivers because of the unearthly howls and moans coming from my vehicle!
Even if allergies permitted, the rabbit who lives under my kitchen table may not be so inclined to have another predator in the house…and the gerbil may just get up in arms about it. No comments from the lizard as of yet. Adding that critical piece to the food chain, probably not such a great idea.
She seems pretty resolved to live under the house so who knows how long she’s been there.
