Abandoned cat question

Given that GRM tends to know everything (and no, I don't want recipe suggestions).

We have a cat in the house already, and a few days ago two cats showed up in the yard. One of them - a male kitten, probably 6-8 months old - clamped himself to my wife. Especially this kitten doesn't seem to have any other place to go to (he wandered off but was back like a day later), but is litter trained and seems to be attached to humans.

We (OK, the wife ) tried to take him in until we could get him to a vet to get him checked for a chip (he doesn't seem to have one though), but he's not getting along with our cat (basically bullies our cat, hogs food/water/litterboxes and is generally not aware of where the line between fighting and playing is). Basically, your typical one-cat household cat.

I'm not seeing any Wanted posters out for him, plus we live in an area with lots of foreclosures and short sales so I'm suspecting that he got abandoned. That's how he seems to act, anyway.

So, we can't take him in. He lives under our porch and we get coyotes in the yard and there's a snow storm coming. I guess I don't have to spell this out...

The only idea I have is to talk to the local shelter to get him out of the cold and either into a foster home or up for adoption. They also should have the equipment to scan for a chip or at least get the vet to do it.

Anybody got any other ideas?

Call these guys
http://www.animalshelter.org/shelters/Cat_haven_rId6972_rS_pC.html

1) I know that vegas is too far for them to help you, but ask those people if they know a reputable rescue person in the Carson City area who is willing to foster the kitten until it can be adopted.

2) Tell DollRaves that she wants a cat.

Thanks, that's a really good idea (on both counts I guess).

One organization I've dealt with was Forgotten Cats. They're a non-for-profit that fosters out the cats with occasional stops in pet stores to try and get them adopted. Strictly no kill.

I adopted one from them and brought a couple to them in circumstances similar to your's.

TACOS!

Nothing to contribute other than, adopting cats is the way to fly. We found this guy shaven, scared, and not real friendly. He put others off because he was kinda dirty and ugly, and not declawed (he's polydactyl, so you really can't without major issues)...

He didn't come out of the closet for like a week. Poor dude. I think he had been a semi-outdoor/garage cat, because I learned how to degrease a cat when I brought him home.

A year later, we have this lug-

Happiest guy on earth. I think every day how lucky I am to have found him cowering in the HS, not as likely to get adopted as the cute ball of kittens in the next cage. He's probably made me happier than any single animal I've had.

A year later

carguy123 wrote: TACOS!

cat says, "Yes, I'll eat your taco"

[Probably not what you meant, but I like my version better]

I wondered where Garfield went.

< A year later, we have this lug- Happiest guy on earth. I think every day how lucky I am to have found him cowering in the HS, not as likely to get adopted as the cute ball of kittens in the next cage. He's probably made me happier than any single animal I've had. A year later

Yeah, our cat is also a rescue cat. Still somewhat shy around strangers (which makes him easy to bully for another cat) and easily stressed. Poor cat practically lived in his litterbox when he was at the local shelter, just hiding from everything and everybody.

Turned into a really friendly cat though, and it's been really good for us to see we can provide him with a good home. He seems to like it, too . But he's still easily startled and that kitten is very good at startling him.

The cat might adjust, but keep in mind that unless you get it into a no-kill shelter, it is better off living under your porch.

We have coyotes in my area, and the outdoor cats do just fine... until they get to be about 15 or so, anyhow.

Both of ours are rescue from the pound. The youngest (2 years old?) is my 6 year old daughters. My daughter will pick her up and tote her around, put clothes on her, push her around in her doll carriage. The cat NEVER has complained or even threatened to scratch. Sleeps between my wife and I at night. The other (8 years old?) has attached herself to me. Follows me from room to room. greets me when I come home at night. As soon as I sit down she hops in my lap. *+ kds over for a birthday party? No prob, shes right in the middle of them. When I go to bed at night she hops on the bed and sleeps next to me. I will wake up cradling her like a teddy bear. Did I mention she is big? Like 22 pounds worth. Long, tall and wide.

Shelter cats are the best. Too get the new guy and old guy aclimated try two seperate food bowls in two separate areas. Two litter pans too. Make sure you give them both equal loving. Lock thgem in separate rooms and let them "disscuss" it thru the door.

My next fur friend will be a shelter Basset Hound. A guy I work with has a, ahem, boy friend that runs a no kill shelter. They have a dissproportinate number of Bassets and wiener dogs. No the irony isnt lost on me.

Training baby, training. Maybe get a squirt bottle and give him a misting when he's beating on the other cat. At night, or when you're not around, I'd separate them. He'll get older and settle in if you guys decide to keep him. If not, I'd contact a no kill shelter and see if they have room.

We had a cat we pulled off the roof of an old place we rented. Stupid little fuzzball got stuck at age six weeks and became the official house cat. He wasn't cuddly, he was a street fighter. He'd come in, skinnier and cut up each time. We couldn't keep him indoors.

Our current fuzzball is jet black, and I believe agoraphobic. Wouldn't go outside if he had to.

porksboy wrote: Shelter cats are the best. Too get the new guy and old guy aclimated try two seperate food bowls in two separate areas. Two litter pans too. Make sure you give them both equal loving. Lock thgem in separate rooms and let them "disscuss" it thru the door.

I know that what we should have done but we live in a very small house and can't cordon off a room for the new cat. That's the big part of the problem - we basically figured out that if we wanted another cat, we'd need to get a bigger house first.

The other one is that the usual tactics (squirt bottles) etc don't seem to be producing any results - the kitten will try to eat anything that looks like food. Heck, I didn't even get to put the can down after dumping chicken noodle soup into a pan before it stuck its head into the pan and started eating the soup.

carguy123 wrote: I wondered where Garfield went.

He answer to Charlie, Charlie Bukkit (I had been watching Willie Wonka shortly after he came home. He was named Charlie when we got him) and Cat Butt. Garfield probably isn't far off.

Brett_Murphy wrote: The cat might adjust, but keep in mind that unless you get it into a no-kill shelter, it is better off living under your porch.

If it didn't meow up a storm for hours on end that it wanted to get inside, that wouldn't be an issue. But his constant attempts at drawing attention to him and getting into the house are both stressing out me and more importantly, our cat...

Not a cat person, but in my life I have had 2 adopt me. Unlike dogs, you don't adopt cats, they adopt you.

The bullying thing is not that far off of dogs though. Sometimes they just have to work out the rules for themselves. Doesn't help with the stress much.

Litterboxes are cheap. Smelly, but cheap, get a 2nd. You can feed them on a schedule. x amount at breakfast, x a dinner They will both eat when it is given to them seperate.

Bt if you can't go this way, maybe a small free doghouse from craigslist with some old blankets. Animals, especially cats, are a lot tougher that we give them credit for.

The other option is a shelter.

The cat may have worms, which will make them extremely hungry. Also, you don't know the vaccination history of this cat, so I would keep him separate from your cat with a crate or a room until you can get him to a vet/shelter. The last thing you want is for your healthy cat to be exposed to something that could make her sick. He may make a fuss, but give him a quiet space and lots of food and I bet he will settle down for the night.

Oh, and good luck

I say adopt the little one and watch as the two get acquainted with each other. Odds are good that the older one will adapt and appreciate having a pal, even a young punk kitten. Make sure they're both neutered.

The younger of my two is a double rescue. He's a shelter kitten (picked up at 8-9 months old) adopted by my neighbor and adopted by me the day my neighbor passed away- nearly five years ago. There are occasional bouts of aggression but they get along famously far more often than not.

For example:

I know everybody says "adopt him" but that's really not an option - we already have multiple litterboxes (that the kitten filled up with amazing speed) and he just uses everything in the house. I really can't deal with that sort of stress at the moment, the house really is too small for that (think 1.5x of a double garage, just big enough for two people).

He seems to be under the porch at the moment, but I've built him a little shelter from the wind on the porch with a cardboard box, a coffee table and some paper towels I use in the garage for bedding. He's also got a little food and water in there. He probably is better off under the porch though as a coyote won't get at him there. I guess we can figure that out tomorrow.

We had a cat that would take you down for Taco Bell beans.

Having an inside and outside cat is OK too. We have both inside and outside cats. Actually, 2 outside cats came with the house 11 years ago and we still have 1 of them. And don't worry about the snow storm. They can survive that just fine. Make him a permanent cat house if you want, but under the porch should be just fine. They generally can figure out how to stay away from things that will kill them.

+1 to only getting rescue cats with few exceptions. (i WILL have a Savannah and a Scottish Fold)

Both of mine are rescues right now, and i somehow ended up with a legitimate Egyptian Mau out of the shelter.

My favorite is Mr. Peach, who is a lot like mndsm's Charlie up there, but with less toes, and a decent amount BIGGER. (Yep, it's possible.) He's every bit of 32lbs, all muscle and fur. Luckily, he's the sweetest cat i've ever seen, otherwise he could probably do a LOT of damage to any human that he was pissed off.

On the other hand, i can understand a lack of space. I want another cat pretty badly, but in a 1 bedroom apartment, it's not happening.

Do some research and look for a no-kill shelter, or keep him as an outside cat with a little house of sorts.

In reply to BoxheadTim:

I've heard they don't make good eatin'.

JoeyM wrote: 2) Tell DollRaves that she wants a cat.

haven't heard from her in a while... what's up with that ?

where you been DollRaves ?

All of our pets are rescues except one. We have a 4 year old junkyard cat and an abandoned kitten right now.

Some cats won't socialize. The feral cat is used to absolute dominance in a survival setting and will probably feel very threatened. If you don't want to separate them (which could cause the kitten to have some permanent behavioral issues) try socializing them first. Get a pet crate, preferably a wire cage that allows full vision so he doesn't feel too trapped. That way the cats can all socialize while still feeling protected. Put a litter box in the cage and once a day swap the cats (and clean the litter) for one hour or so. This way the feral cat learns that it is subordinate to the existing cat... especially because your cat will be leaving pee and poop in his litterbox. Take special note of which cats cover their droppings and which one leaves them out for all the world to see. The subordinate cat will cover, the dominant will leave it exposed.

Above all, test the two outdoor cats (and yours) for FIV and FeLuke. They are both incurable viral infections that sometimes cause renal and liver failure. They are both transfered by saliva, so if one cat has it, they all have it.

Two new cats will often hate each other violently for a couple weeks. If after two weeks they are still fighting, adopt out the daddy. At least you will have socialized the kitten in his new surroundings with a familiar pal and therefore eliminate some separation-based behavior issues. If they learn to deal with each other after two weeks they'll eventually be fine. If they start sleeping beside each other, then a relationship has been struck regardless of which one emerged as the dominant one. Cats of the same Pride sleep together. Cats that aren't integrated into the Pride are banished.