Author Topic: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well  (Read 6077 times)

Offline Liz

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #12 on: December 22, 2013, 12:14:27 PM »
Sadly no response but some folks treat their cats differently and whilst we may not like it they do have a home of sorts and that at this time of year is better than nothing as so many of us in rescue know that there is no room at the Inn for many more :(
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Offline sheilarose

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #11 on: December 21, 2013, 23:59:18 PM »
No response to this very honest and heart rending thread from the original poster.

I'd be very interested to know how this one turns out as it produced such diverse reactions from equally dedicated cat people.

Offline Liz

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #10 on: December 12, 2013, 09:45:19 AM »
It is a rock and hard place situation I have outside ferals who live in the garage at their choice who never come near the house but can be found all curled up in the rafters or on their 3 armchairs with heat pads in the winter where this slave provides food and clean weather and grit boxes when we have 4 foot of snow, they are all in good condition as they eat the same as my own only gets awkward when a newbie turns up and this human needs to trap them then they all relocate to the wendy house at the bottom of the garden, I am the mad woman who treks through 4 foot of snow when this is going on to put food, heat pads and water in their other residence

Sadly not everyone treats their cats as the pampered pets we have and they may love the cat but have different ideas on the slave rules
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Offline Kay and Penny

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #9 on: December 12, 2013, 09:42:05 AM »
and is he spraying? they don't sound the kind of owners who would provide an indoor litter tray, and with no cat flap, he may just be peeing indoors because he has no choice
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Offline Rosella moggy

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #8 on: December 12, 2013, 08:55:31 AM »
Tricky one this.  Pity owner doesn't have a cat flap.

I think maybe your best approach is to try and become friends with the "owner".    Hate the word "owner" as can't see how you can own a living creature but that's by the by. 

Christmas is coming so maybe an invite to yours for a few drinks?  You say owner is nice enough.  I do wonder if cat might benefit from neutering if spraying is a problem and you could drop little nuggets of info in like that when chatting.  Sometimes owners of pedigrees are reluctant to neuter in case they think they may want to breed later?

Offline Sue P (Paddysmum)

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #7 on: December 12, 2013, 07:39:52 AM »


Always a tricky balancing act I think in these situations, but I suspect Sheila was simply presenting another view of the situation, and one worth considering.  Some cats like to live like hobos.  ;)

However, the things that make me prick up my ears here are that he's said he doesnt let the cat in the house because it sprays (which suggests he may not be neutered) and that you believe him to have been left for more than 24 hours without food.   I know that cats can shift for themselves from time to time, but in an ideal world we wouldnt want them to have to (cos we're crazy cat ladies and that's allowed!)

I can empathise with the situation because as Gill has commented, that's how we ended up with Tinky (who we love dearly and wouldnt be without, now).

He was regularly shut out of the house overnight last winter in snow and ice, wind and rain, whilst he was still only 7 or 8 months old.

We would be wakened by our cat pawing at the flap (which we locked to keep Ross in overnight) and Tinks would be on the other side, trying to get in.   Or we would get up in the middle of then night because Ross was crying and looking out of the window, so we would get up and look out of the window and see Tinky sat on our garden bench staring intently at our window and crying to be in.

Sometimes he had ice crystals in his fur.

He would come in in a flash, curl up with Ross and wouldnt move at all before breakfast time.

We'd mentioned this to his owners, and frequently returned him back to them the following day, suggesting they got a flap, because they said he often wasnt around when they called him in and were ready for bed.

In the end we bought them a sureflap cat flap (which was a hefty hint in my view) but by then, Tinks had decided he preferred our house, and would spend all of his time with us when they let him out.  By that time he was bestest buddies with Ross, and knew he had a warm place to sleep.

After some months of this, we asked if we could take Tinks on.  Initially they agreed but then did a volte face and said no, they wanted to keep him, he was their cat etc.  :doh:  Understandable.

Eventually however, we stopped returning him, because it was heartbreaking to see his face when he knew he was going "home"

In our case, it wasnt that they didnt love or care for Tinks because they did - he was a present for their little girl, and they're kind people  It was just they didnt really think about what Tinks needed, and lefted to shift for himself he voted with his paws.

When we lost Ross, back in September, Tinks owners eventually agreed we could formally adopt him, for which we were immensely grateful, because by that point he was very much a part of our family.

I'd go along with putting a shelter in your garden, together with some food, and seeing whether he uses it.

It's great that you care about this cat, and in your shoes I'd also be upset to see him shut out all of the time. 

Am also reminded of a cat callled The General, who jackspratt helped to re-home.  He was an entire tom, chunky and battle scarred, who was extremely wary of humans, and wouldnt entertain contact.  By a gradual scheme of pateince and cunning, his new slave Donna managed to turn him from a Hobo cat living wild to a hearth cat.  The evidence is here in a thread of his own on Purrs.

However, if you did set about befriending this cat, and found that he did use the shelter and take the food, you'd have to consider what impact this would have on your own cats, and to think about how you could integrate them as a family unit.  But that's another subject altogether!  :evillaugh:  :hug: :hug:

Offline Gill (sneakiefeline)

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #6 on: December 11, 2013, 18:44:07 PM »
Afraidf on this occasion I dont agree with Sheila..........very unusual that.

It sounds to me that the cat is very unhappy and searching for a new home and to treat a cat like your neighbours are is not good and very much the same as  Sue Ps neighbours treated Tinky.

Tinky now has changed homes and lives with Sue.

I agree that in this case   RSPCA would be doing wrong if they took the cat but they really should have given some proper advice to these people about how to look after a cat and to get a bloomin cat flap..........then it may have come out they they have virtually banned him from the house.

Offline Mymblesdaughter

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #5 on: December 11, 2013, 16:46:18 PM »
The RSPCA are hardly great in these sort of situations. They are already being criticised for taking pets away from people unnecessarily. So they need to be very careful that an animal is definitely being neglected. As other say I would try to set up some kind of shelter so he can get out of the cold. Then you can see if he uses it if not you will know he is happy outside. I would be worried if a cat lived next door to me was living outside most of the time especially at this time of year.

I'd say sheliarose it contradicts my idea of what a well cared for cat is as well. Yes It could be choosing to sit outside in all weathers but you really don't know if that is the situation it could be shut out. It's not as if that's an unheard of situation, it happens all the time.  I feel you post is pretty rude to someone new to the forum who is just wanting to help a cat in need.   

Offline sheilarose

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #4 on: December 10, 2013, 21:28:27 PM »
I'm afraid I have to disagree. You are going against the RSPCA's advice. They have examined the cat and found it to be just fine. It isn't lost. It will have access to water from other sources than its water bowl - all outdoor cats know where the puddles, buckets and flower pots are that naturally fill with rain. I might suggest if you are really worried you offer to buy your neighbour a kennel or shelter for their cat, or put one in your garden for it to shelter in, but I bet it will still sit in the road, especially if "soft touch" neighbours feed it.

One of my semi feral rescue cats is like this, he hates being indoors and - despite having access to our cat flap and free feeding - he prefers to sleep in a garage across the road, beg at other peoples doors to be let in, but its just his way. He will also pick up leftover food from the street - to my horro, but this is not because he's malnourished or neglected, just his past catching up with him. Another neighbour has a female cat who just refuses to stay in the house, she is King of the Road, preferring not to be shut indoors with their two kids. Another neighbour works nights as a nurse, her cat sits and cries at the door, but when it realises she's out will sit patiently under a car until she comes home. All of these cats are better off where they are than in rescue - and if they were so very unhappy - they would simply leave.

I also have a neighbour who, despite the pleas of the rest of us, continues to feed our cats and romance them away from their owners. She has already kidnapped three cats using wiles of cream and butter, and because she's unemployed is in the house all day, using this as an excuse that she can offer them a "better" life, when there was nothing wrong with the lives they were living before - but all cats would be romanced away from a healthy diet by the offer of cream and butter if its on offer. Not a healthy diet for cats but she continues to do it.
I've had a huge row with her in the past so she's stopped feeding my cats now but I still see other neighbours' cats coming from her house having been hugely fed, smacking their lips and getting fat and unhealthy.

You've already told your neighbour that you feed her cat when she's away, so it may be the case that you've inadvertantly created this situation yourself - she knows the cat will be fed because you've told her (in writing no less) that you feed it. 

Sorry if this view contradicts your ideal of a well cared for cat, but unless there is genuine cruelty or the cat is starving (and the RSPCA say not) then there really is nothing you can, or should do.


Thank you for caring but please be wise about this, there are far more deserving cases for your pity.

Offline Sam (Fussy_Furball)

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #3 on: December 10, 2013, 20:46:28 PM »
I agree with Gill.  He clearly has a home and he wants to be in it.  If it was me I would provide him with somewhere safe and dry to shelter (this doesn't have to be anything special as long as it is dry and safe, I have an old rabbit huitch outside my back door that is used by several locals if it's a raining, or cold etc and they can't get in  their houses.
Offer him food and water and just keep an eye on him.  :hug:
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Offline Gill (sneakiefeline)

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Re: What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #2 on: December 10, 2013, 19:57:00 PM »
Sorry dont know what to advise but I agree with you this cat needs a proper home where he is loved and cared for properly.

It is hard to bring in a new cat, do you know if he is neutered and if not that could be why he sprays but it could also be stress cos he is unloved.

I think I would feed him and leave water out for him and try to create a warm place where he could shelter.




Offline catlady1

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What to do about neighbours cat - I think is not being treated well
« Reply #1 on: December 10, 2013, 13:18:03 PM »
Hi there

I have been reading these forum posts for a while and I am really hoping someone can offer me advise on a possible neglected cat.

I have a neighbour who moved into our road last year and has a fluffy cat (sorry I don't know the breed, but like a James Bond cat). He is very vocal and apparently, that is the charactistic of his breed. I am really concerned for the cats welfare as he is out of the house more times than he is indoors. The owner has said the cat sprays a lot and that's why he is outside during the day. He also works odd hours and this is why the cat might appear outside a lot.

Last year, when it snowed he was out all day and the owner was not at home. Some neighbours gave him water and food as we were concerned the owner might not have been able to get back home and stuck somewhere in the snow. I left a nice note in the door saying the cat had been fed as we really concerned about the noise he was making and if he was in pain or discomfort. (this is when she said it is the breed of cat).

My concern is that he is out all day and often all weekend (or at least 95% from Friday to Sunday). There is no food, water or shelter left for him. He sits under cars and once tried to get into my other neighbours house, the cat walked up to his door, crossed over a litter box and virtually went to head-to-head with his cat to get to the cats food bowl. The cat jumps in through any open windows of my other neighbours window and has also tried to get into my house. He sat on the garden wall, close to the house and meowed until he saw movement in my house and ran off.

Often the cat will be sat outside and the owner arrives home and just shuts the door and leaves him outside. They never seem to be affectionate towards him. I have checked there is no water left for him during the day at the back of the house and he has a bell and collar, making hunting impossible. I saw the cat scratching at a dustbin bag this week for food. (Please note, I can see my neighbours back garden from my house, I've not been breaking and entering). There is no cat flap either.

About 3 months ago, I called the RSPCA and they came out and said nothing was wrong, the cat looked in great condition and the owner explained the funny working hours which is why it might explain why the cat always appears to be out. She advised to keep an eye on things, but as the cat was not out for more than 24 hours there is nothing they can do as it hasn't been abandoned.
It might sound like I'm over-reacting, but this cat is out in all weathers and definitely more than 24 hours (last weekend's constant rain, he was out all weekend looking for shelter). Now when the owner is in, the cat is outside trying to find shelter, will come over to anyone who fusses him.

Do I call the RSPCA again? I know it might sound daft and I'm being silly as when I've typed this as I know cats can often want to be outside, but this cat is always out, he cannot hunt, has no water, food or shelter available and sits outside my house and my neighbours looking to come in. As I have called the RSPCA before and they said it was only abandoned if left for more than 24 hours and the cat was healthy (so not neglected) I don’t want to waste their time again.

The owner does appear and the cat hasn't been abandoned - but just seems to be shut out and lonely, venturing all around our road and even down the sides and back gardens of houses to keep dry and warm.

I have 2 cats otherwise I would love to look after him properly. I'm also aware that just because my cats are treated in a certain way and have the freedom of cat flaps doesn't mean another cat is mistreated just because he is treated differently.

The neighbour is nice enough, but I don't want to appear like I'm interfering, especially as I have called the authorities already.
Any advice would be welcome and I am really worried and feel sad for the cat.

The last 2 weeks the cat was outside all the time and the owner only returned once during the weekend. There was no food or water left for the cat as the bowl was outside and was completely dry (I’d expect the food to go in seconds, but not water). 
So far this week the owner is home every night, but the cat remains outside.

I did call the RSPCA in the end and although they were concerned, they said it’s hard to prove abandonment with a cat outdoors unless the cat looks visibly skinner or poor condition.  They have asked me to call back if it get worse, but with the cat always outside and the owner home it would be hard to prove he wasn’t being fed. Its more the lack of affection I am worried about and the lack of concern over feeding etc.

I don’t want to approach the neighbour directly as then any RSPCA phone calls, she will know have a good clue it’s a result of me.

Any ideas welcome – has anyone ever taken in another male cat and already has 2 cats? I am seriously wandering about trying this. But I think my cats will leave or become unsettled and they are my priority.

 


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