It breaks my heart - YouLookFab Forum

...seeing all the stray cats in my new neighborhood.

I just walked down to the closest coffee place for something to eat, as I'm still between homes and haven't grocery shopped. On the way back, I came across yet another stray cat. This one was a big boned male, still young, and thin as a rail. Yet he ran right up to me to be petted and picked up. Figuring he had to have an owner since he was so friendly, I asked a lady nearby if she knew whether he belonged to anyone. She said, "No. But there's lots of cats around here. I'm sure he'll find something to eat."

I guess I was kind of shocked. This lady was across the street from our rather seedy neighborhood, in a bunch of brand new expensive town homes they just put up. She was spraying off over a thousand dollars worth of patio furniture, yet this cat was skin and bones and she didn't seem the slightest bit concerned that he was likely to starve to death by her doorstep. Obviously he isn't finding anything to eat. And especially sad was that this cat obviously had people in his life at one point, who just left him to fend for himself. Since I was walking, I had no way to take him with me, but I plan to stop by the store later for some cat food, and if I can get him in the car, he'll be off to the clinic for a neuter.

12 years ago

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Oh sigh. This is how I ended up with one of my cats years ago. Someone moved away and left her behind. She had taken residence on a porch of a lady who donated a bunch of art supplies to the school where I worked. I took the cat home that day, and she was with me for the rest of her many years. She was a sweetheart and I can't imagine how anyone could leave her behind.

I hope there is a special place in the fiery netherworld for people who abuse and abandon animals.

donnat

Florence, that poor cat! It makes me feel so sad. You have a big heart.

Lyn D.

I hope this poor Kitty finds a home with you or another kind person.

Sveta

It is very sad. I have 3 cats now which we adopted from the street and they give us so much joy in return! I cannot imagine how you can abandon your pet, so cruel!

Anonymous

It's so saddening. Every time I go on holiday to Greece I see so many poor stray cats and dogs. In August we saw a group of Brits and Aussies walking down the street collecting for the strays. They had a few dogs with them and I think that some of them ended up being taken home by holiday makers.
That little cat you mentioned is very lucky to have found you

Mander

I wish more people would get their pets spayed or neutered. It would help a lot with stuff like this.

The city my parents live has started an interesting program for feral cats. My Dad became a "feral cat colony manager" when a litter of kittens was born under his shed. The local humane society came to the house and trapped the cats, including the mother, and took them to the vet and spayed/neutered them, for free. In return my Dad has agreed to provide them with food and water for the rest of their lives. They are not very friendly with anyone except Dad, so they aren't much of a bother, although of course the down side of having four cats living in your backyard is that you don't have many birds.

catgirl

WAAAAAAAH! DS and I almost adopted another cat yesterday at the pet store (the local shelter leaves them there for adoption). We already have a pound dog and cat. I can't stand it.

Ingunn

Me too! Our cat adopted us while we were on vacation. He was the sweetest little thing, but had almost starved to death. Now he is slightly overweight and 12 years old. I completely agree, people who abuse animals deserve to get a payback somehow.

rae

Crying with you... my kitties are all pound babies. Luckily there are not too many strays around my area, or they might be dripping from our balcony by now. There is a spot in a park where an organization feeds, traps, fixes, and releases a colony of stray cats living in the riverbed. But I know every summer there are more kittens overflowing the shelters...

biscuitsmom

I think its very nice you would bring him in for a neuter (and that would help eventually) but the reality is, that cat WILL probably starve to death (he sounds close to it now) before he found a home, unless you are willing to give him one What's the old saying? 'You cant change the world for animals, but for one animal you can change their world forever'...Cats are SO easy... give them food, a place to finally feel secure, a little attention, and a litter box, you're done! Much less commitment than a dog, imo. If you aren't going to give him a home, for whatever reason, can you at least bring him to a no-kill shelter? There aren't many.. but hopefully you can find one in your area.

texstyle

When we moved out here to the country there were literally 30 feral cats living in the garage of the people closest to us. Then they just up and moved and left. them. ALL.

We actually hadn't officially moved in yet but we're getting the house ready so we kept coming out here. Another neighbor found a ranch owner who said she'd let him bring them ALL to her place and she would make sure that at least got food and fixed as she could manage. He trapped them a few at a time over a period of about two weeks and took them to her. So sad. The shelters out here won't keep them alive.

Our cat of 19 years was a stray left behind in the city. She just passed about a year and a half ago. We were so glad to chose to come to our house for help when she was a little kitten. Best cat I ever had.

Isabel

This type of thing is really upsetting to me. I don't even know what to say, except , thank you for having it neutered.

FlorenceFearne

Active Member

Thanks everyone. I can't find him again today, and I'm worried. I did see several other strays though, and the food I put out was eaten, so I hope it went to one of them that needed it. I'd like to be clear that I plan to pay out of pocket to have this cat neutered just because it's the right thing to do, with shelters already having to give so many free services to pets in need. That is regardless of where he lives afterward. After his surgery, he'll of course still need a place to live. I have no plans to neuter him and then just dump him back on the street.

I would definitely take him home, except that I JUST moved in, and my landlord wasn't thrilled about my 1 dog as it is. I think an immediate cat wouldn't fly, but I'm willing to ask. If he can't live with me, he would go to a local shelter.

JulieJohn

Your kindness is wonderful, FF! We have a stray feral kitty that was eating at our house, so we caught her and had her spayed at a low-cost vet. Even though she won't let me touch her she is such a dear girl and has a special place in my heart.

Sometimes when my heart is broken by this kind of thing I have to just say, "yep." Meaning: it sucks, and I pledge to do what I can, but I can't fix it all. So ... Yep. Remember, Atlas shrugged. You have a good heart.

Elly

I'm sorry to hear this. Flo, some people aren't sensitive to this sort of thing, but don't judge your neighbor yet. I'm not a cat person, and unless an animal is looking particularly raggedy, I have a hard time telling strays from the cats our neighbors let prowl our mutual yards. We have a huge cat problem in our neighborhood with neighbors letting their cats out when they are the type that don't necessarily stay close to home. Our area is rural enough that we often have coyotes, bears, and bobcats in town and the cats are at risk for getting eaten, contracting disease from the porcupines, skunks, ect. and often fight with each other. Plus, neighbors without cats but with gardens (like me) get very upset when neighbors cats are using my veggie beds as litter boxes and spraying my tomatos. We thought we had strays, but we trapped them using humane live traps and we caught neighbor cats again and again. When I lived across town I caught strays and took them to our vet who spays strays for free and then to the humane society, except for the few particularly wild ones which several people took as barn cats.

If I were you I would consider trapping the kitties and taking them to the vet or humane society, especially during spay/neuter drives. This keeps them from reproducing (especially the mamas) and any sweethearts are likely to get fed and rescued. Do you have a no-kill or cat specific shelter? I know we have 2.

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