Thread: is it a bad idea to feed a stray?

Our best cats when I was a kid were the strays that came to our house and announced they were moving in. We usually had 3 cats at a time, with very low turnover. My first cat as an adult was a 3-year old stray in St. Louis who had been left behind when tenants moved out. It took a while to get him to trust me, but he'd come to my kitchen door every evening and let me clean up the fight wounds on his ears. I named him Nick, for Hemingway's Nick Adams.

He was a brawler, with a neck like a linebacker: shoulders attached directly to head. Testicles that would have fueled a midsized dog. He traded those in for a soft warm place and regular meals. We shared days for about 10 years, and he aged into a Jimmy Carter character--gracious, peaceable, a modest user of his authority. Nick had an unusually large vocabulary for a cat, and I miss our conversations.

Nick shared his life with Esme (named from Salinger), whom I also adopted in St. Louis, Alan Greenspan, whom I rescued from a bad home, Vip the crazy Vizsla puppy, and, after they moved in, my wife and her cats. One of her cats is a natural dominant, but he never fazed or ever really challenged Nick. Nick's authority was so natural that he felt no need to defend it.

I predict that your young cats will naturally bow to this big guy's status. If either of them is male, get him neutered before he gets any political ambitions and there won't be any challenges. Your big guy, with all he's experienced, will probably float above it all like Nick did.

Enjoy the family that is accreting around you. Best wishes to all.

Nice looking dessert in that other post, too!

Originally Posted by vthomlinson

he hasn't marked anything as far as i can see.. the patio smells just fine.. he has taken to one of our patio chairs and i've gone ahead and given it a good whiff.. he doesn't spray..
.....

....want to bet....
Hunt an inexpensive UV light. I have seen
some UV-LED lights that will do.

With a ultra violet light you will see it long before you can smell it.

Some of the enzyme based urine eliminators that can
be found in pet stores work very well. Check them out.

i have a bunch of that enzyme killing stuff.. i have yet to use it.. none of the cat's have sprayed anything.

Those enzyme solutions are great, and so are the UV lights. I've seen small fluorescent tube ones, or I've got an LED-based one. It's true, they're great help in locating troubled spots. My best wish for you is that you never need one, but yeah, that was a great suggestion Niftyshaving.

yeah.. well.. no one is spraying.. i don't feel the need for any uv lights.. the cats get along just fine through the screendoor.. there is no hissing and everything is very peaceful.. i'd go so far as to let him inside the house.. however.. i have yet to take him to the vet..

Feral cats number in the tens of millions and have become a blight. Feeding them doesn't stop them from decimating local bird populations, even endangered ones. The best thing you can do for him is find him an adoptive home. Maybe that's your own, maybe it's not. If that's not possible, catch him and have him neutered.

Everyone, spay and neuter your cats and keep them indoors. It's better for them and the environment.