Pets
Related: About this forumThis is my sofa
This is not my cat.
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I'm pretty sure he belongs to someone in the neighborhood, but he comes into my house through the cat door several times a day. For some reason, my own cats don't seem to mind.
KT2000
(20,544 posts)and I would let him have the sofa.
Rorey
(8,445 posts)When I first met him he wasn't neutered, but now he appears to be. He's a funny guy. He's way smaller than my other cats, but maybe he's not done growing.
Irish_Dem
(45,631 posts)Rorey
(8,445 posts)I've got a gray pet cover on my gray sofa, but it looks blue in this pic.
He usually comes in and begs for food, and then does a tour of the house. When I got home this afternoon he was lounging on the sofa.
blm
(112,920 posts)Rorey
(8,445 posts)He hasn't let me pet him.
pazzyanne
(6,518 posts)And that. is. enough!!! You are so lucky to be his choosen one.
Irish_Dem
(45,631 posts)Obviously he likes your food and accommodations for his little getaway.
Cats are such odd creatures, no offense intended.
I just cannot figure them out or what they will be up to next.
My little dog is entirely predictable, rarely deviates from her norm.
Sticks to me like glue, and rarely gets up to any trouble.
Rorey
(8,445 posts)The cats just sort of happened. They've grown on me.
Irish_Dem
(45,631 posts)They're very spoiled.
I just don't even know how I went from "I'm not having any more pets" to having my legal limit of cats.
Irish_Dem
(45,631 posts)My little dog is smarter than I am.
And she ends up getting what she wants and being totally spoiled.
PoindexterOglethorpe
(25,746 posts)A long time ago we bought a house in Boulder, CO, that came with a cat. Said cat spent a lot of time outdoors and was sometimes away for a couple of days. Once I went for a walk in our neighborhood and saw that cat leaving the yard of a home a couple of blocks away. The home was for sale, and a few days later the owners moved out. The cat never strayed again.
We moved her with us to Kansas a year later.
Rorey
(8,445 posts)I know I can never move until these cats have lived their lives. I just hope I outlive them.
I'm glad you took him with you.
PoindexterOglethorpe
(25,746 posts)More recently, last year I decided that with the pandemic and not travelling anywhere, I could risk adopting a cat. So I went to the local shelter and looked at a 17 year old cat who'd been surrendered by her owner who couldn't care for her any longer. When I said, Yes! I'll take this cat home, a vet came to me to explain in detail about this cat's health issues. She'd need to be on a special (expensive) diet. She might live two years, she might live two months. I'd had old cats in the past who needed a special diet, so I was okay with that. Well, in the end this cat was with me three and a half weeks. I'm very sorry it wasn't longer, but I'm even more glad that she got to spend that short time with me. She was an affectionate and loving cat who settled in with me immediately. Someone asked me if I didn't feel cheated in some way that she was with me for such a short time. Absolutely not. The money spent on her adoption was very well spent. Most importantly, she didn't spend that last short time in the shelter. As good as that shelter is, it's not the same as being in a home. This cat spent many hours on my lap, slept with me at night, and I'm so glad for that.
About a month after that cat left me I went back to the shelter and came home with Tatiana, who is still with me. Alas, she's not a lap cat, which is what I totally prefer. But she's sweet and affectionate in her own way, and we've adjusted quite well to each other.
All I can say to anyone who reads this, is that if you can, please adopt an animal (cat, dog, rabbit, whatever) in this time. They need us.
Rorey
(8,445 posts)What a wonderful thing you did for that cat! That story touched my heart!
I always said that if I adopted an animal, it would be an older one. So far they've always adopted me.
PoindexterOglethorpe
(25,746 posts)My current cat, adopted about a month after the 17 year old left me, was only four years old by the shelter estimate. She came to them as a pregnant stray. They named her Tatiana. Two different people had looked at her and turned her down. Two others were supposed to look at her but never showed up. Then I had my chance. She was nervous and anxious, willing to take treats but didn't stop moving. Because I'd had cats before I could see that she was going to need extra time to adjust to a new home.
And so I took her home that day. I quickly realized that her first human home had males, and I'm a female. And that there were also large dogs in that home, because she had various large dog behaviors. She also was a bit of a biter, which wasn't fun. At first I thought I'd made a huge mistake and should return her to the shelter, but that seemed cruel. So I kept her. And after a while I realized that what she needed most was love. So I gave it to her. What a difference that made.
She still likes to bite sometimes. But she NEVER draws blood, never did. I think her first family just encouraged that kind of play.
Sometimes she sleeps with me. Mostly not. I've recently started letting her out into my back yard, and she just loves doing that. She sometimes climbs the fence, and then shows up at my front door a bit later. She clearly knows who feeds her.
She's the most beautiful cat I've ever seen. Part Siamese, part tabby. An excellent combination. And even though I really wish she'd become a lap cat, she's wonderful as she is.
Random Boomer
(4,159 posts)I rescued a young kitten that was hanging out on the steps of a vacant property in my neighborhood. She was obviously lethargic and starving, and had mostly likely lost her mother because I never saw an adult cat around her. Her littermates were feral and would run from me, but she seemed too weak to worry about running away.
She only lived about a month, but during that time she was spoiled rotten, and one of our cats played with her and groomed her, so she was well loved. Unfortunately, she was a stumpy (no tail) and the vet suspected that there were internal deformities because despite all our care she just failed to thrive physically. All the other kittens died, too, so it was a doomed litter, but at least this little one enjoyed life while she was here. That counts for a lot.
brer cat
(24,401 posts)My cat does that in my bed, only then he is warm and comfy and doesn't want to move. It is a struggle every night to find room to sleep.
Deuxcents
(15,777 posts)Stretches out n just takes over. Cats. I love em🐾
Rorey
(8,445 posts)Several of her cats and her little dog have to sleep with her. She needs a bigger bed.
TreasonousBastard
(43,049 posts)They were all healthy and just liked visiting. Stay for dinner and maybe over night and move on.
Mysterious, but kind of fun
Polly Hennessey
(6,746 posts)Rorey
(8,445 posts)They're not kittens anymore, so they don't create chaos very often.
Right after I took that pic, my only tame cat - the mom - decided it would be a good idea to climb underneath that pet cover, and go from one end of the sofa to the other. She's sort of a pain in the butt, but I love her.
Response to Polly Hennessey (Reply #17)
Chin music This message was self-deleted by its author.
Chellee
(2,086 posts)Response to Chellee (Reply #25)
Chin music This message was self-deleted by its author.
Rorey
(8,445 posts)Entirely possible. He does know how to use a cat door, so I think he belongs to someone.
Irish_Dem
(45,631 posts)Last edited Sat Sep 18, 2021, 08:53 AM - Edit history (1)
As I said upthread I am clueless about cats and owner behavior.
Do you attempt to find the owner of your visiter?
Would you follow the cat home to find out?
Or put out a neighborhood alert?
That is what dog people would do.
But from all the cat videos and stories, maybe cat folks don't do that?
They just let the cat do its thing?
As I said upthread, cats are fascinating but foreign, I am a dog owner.
Rorey
(8,445 posts)The first time I saw this guy he was dancing along beside another cat that I don't own that, for some reason, I feed. I haven't been able to figure out where that cat comes from either. I suspect that they're both someone's outside cats. They're not feral, but they won't allow me to touch them. The other one is large, and used to be sort of a neighborhood bully, but I suspect he's old now. One of my cats just hates him, but she doesn't mind his "brother". I get the sense that he gets chased away a lot, but I just can't do that.
The way my neighborhood is laid out, it's pretty much impossible to find out where a cat comes from unless it's someone on my own street. I'm pretty sure that someone around here has a colony, but it could be blocks away.
I think everyone knows which cats are technically mine. When we got a new neighbor on the street I went down and introduced myself and told him about my cats so he'd know who they belonged to if they caused any trouble. It was sort of funny because they followed me down the hill to his house as if they knew what I was doing. Only one of my four is tame. She showed up 3 1/2 years ago and had three kittens on my back porch and then hid them. I've never been able to tame the "kittens". I had to trap them to get them fixed. They're well-fed and can come and go through my cat doors. They seem to hang around pretty close.
Yes, I definitely try to find where a dog belongs when one shows up. Years ago I noticed a cute little dog on my deck eating cat food. I opened the door and he came right in. He was just adorable. No collar. I dug out a harness - way too big because I had large dogs in the past - and we went walking around the neighborhood to see if he'd lead us to his home. We were a few blocks away when our neighbor from across the cul-de-sac came driving up and asked where we'd found him. She had been frantic. I had never seen the little guy before because we can't see into each other's back yards, and I've never seen them take him out for a walk. We all have big back yards, so I'm sure her dogs get lots of exercise, but I think it's a good idea to walk dogs anyway. It teaches them their neighborhood so they can find their way home in case they somehow get out.
(Sorry for the long post. I tend to get carried away. )
Editing to add: It sounds like I'm truly a "crazy cat lady" with a house overrun with them. They mostly stay outside unless the weather is bad, except for the mom. They've got litter boxes in the garage, but prefer to go outside to "go", so they're pretty easy to take care of. I'm not much of a fan of fur, so I keep pet covers on my sofa and loveseat. All-in-all, we co-exist well.
Irish_Dem
(45,631 posts)My goodness.
I don't mind the length of your post at all. As I said I am fascinated by how different dogs and cats are.
And their owners!!
Sounds like there is communal ownership of cats in a neighborhood to some extent.
I have noticed that people with cats often seem to have more than one.
Right, I agree that dogs need to be walked even if they have a big backyard.
The walking is good exercise, and they like to look around the neighborhood.
Rorey
(8,445 posts)The last dog we had was a big challenge. He had been a guard dog, and was at least seven when we took him into our home. Murphy had some huge issues with aggression, and I was actually afraid of him at first. One day I decided I couldn't live like that, so I got out a harness from a previous dog, suited him up, and we went to the park. The first couple of days we didn't do much walking. We pretty much had a stand-off with him wanted to go his own way and me insisting he go my way. I kept him on a pretty short leash at the beginning. Within days he was the best walking dog I ever had. He listened to everything I told him to do.
My then-husband, on the other hand, wouldn't get on board with that lifestyle. He wanted to be his friend instead of his alpha. He'd take him out to an open space every day in the early evening and let him do whatever he wanted to do. It was good for letting Murphy run off his energy, but I think he should have held off until he taught him his position in our little pack. Murphy got aggressive with the was-band several times, and it was not pretty. He went so far as to kick him once to defend himself. It was just stupid, and I was not pleased.
I never, ever once had to get physical with Murphy. We had some "discussions" in the beginning, but if he started to act like he might be challenging his position with me I'd put his harness on him and he'd calm right down.
I have to say, though, I never let my guard down with Murphy whenever someone visited us. We had him until he was at least 15, so it was quite an experience. A few years after he was gone someone asked me if I'd take their dog because he wasn't good around other dogs and kids, and I had to apologize and decline. I honestly just didn't want to do that again.