Nine lives

[auntiemeesh]

I was sitting here minding my own business when an awful, mournful yowling started up right outside my apartment. I did a quick headcount to make sure neither of my guys had somehow escaped into the cold, but they were both accounted for. The yowling continued. After ducking out to see where the sound came from and not seeing anything, I grabbed a flashlight and tried again.

Yep, there it was, a large black cat in the snow right beside the porch. Or, to be more exact, lying on his side in the snow with his head disappearing under the porch. Oh, that can't be good. A closer look showed that he had his head through a hole in the lattice that made up the wall under the porch. I'm guessing he was looking for a warm spot to spend the night - it's relatively cold here, temps in the low teens fahrenheit. Somehow he managed to get his head through the lattice but his shoulders were too big, and then he couldn't get his head back out again. Poor thing was terrified and freezing.

It took a bit of doing just to reach him, as he chose a protected corner of the yard - wall of the house on one side, lattice on the next, and then bushes on the other two sides so that I was pretty much sitting on one of the bushes as I tried to pull the little guy's head out of the hole, terrified that I was going to kill him in my attempt to help him. One of the neighbors across the street came over and held my flashlight for me, but took off as soon as the cat was free, trying rather successfully, I'm sure, to avoid any further responsibility for the cat.

After a bit of tugging I did get him free (I put on gloves before touching him, and made sure my sleeves were long, in case he decided to fight me, but he didn't fight at all) and he sat all huddled up beside the house, continuing to yowl dismally. I couldn't tell if he was hurt or just cold and scared. So it was back into the house to get a bowl of food and water to take out onto the porch, and then once more into the bushes to gather the little guy up. Once on the porch he quickly ate up most of the food and then planted himself in front of my door, still crying piteously.

Oi, I'm such a soft touch. I called ani_no_mouse for advice and after talking with her I took one of my cat carriers out, with a towel inside it, hoping he could at least shelter in there for the night so he wouldn't freeze to death. But one of the neighbors came out and voiced her concern that it wouldn't be enough on such a cold night. She made a few calls to different animal shelters and such, but at nine o'clock on a Sunday night, no one is open. So for the moment, he's in my carrier, in my bathroom, carefully sequestered away from the other cats. In the morning, my neighbor and I are going to take him to Animal Friends or somewhere (she wants me to come along because she's afraid of cats but I don't have a car so I can't do it myself). I still have no idea if he's hurt or sick (I really hope he's just cold and scared because the last thing I want to find in the morning is a dead cat in my bathroom). He looks pretty healthy for the most part, glossy fur with no obvious scars or signs of being a wild cat, fairly large and looks well-fed. No collar or tags, though, and no way to know who he might belong to. And, really, no way of knowing if he's a he or a she. I'm not asking and he's not telling.

So, I know bringing him inside may not have been the smartest thing to do, for me and my own two cats, but I couldn't stand the thought of letting him sit outside my door all night, crying. And I really couldn't stand the thought of waking up in the morning and having a kitty popsicle on my porch. I've made sure my two don't have any contact with him and I'm not letting him out of the carrier. Plus, I've put all the clothes he came into contact with in the laundry so if he's got any fur-bourne pests or illnesses, my two shouldn't come into contact with that, either. Hopefully.

Anyway, if anyone has any other suggestions for what I should do, or how I could do things differently next time (although I hope there isn't a next time, this is a little stressful) I'd really appreciate your wisdom.

ETA: Mal just gave me a scare. I was checking on him and Tookie, making sure they were okay after all the fuss, and I couldn't find Mal anywhere. I double checked to make sure he hadn't ended up in the bathroom, then even looked outside. Finally, I checked under the sofa, his retreat when he's really freaked out. Yep. That's where he is, and he ain't budging. He didn't even twitch when I called to him and tried to entice him to come out.

Tookie, on the other hand, is taking advantage of his disappearance to eat all the food I put out for them.

Comments

[stargazercmc.livejournal.com]

You're asking the wrong person, here. Both of the kitties we have as pets were strays we took in.

It's because D is such a softie. Yeah, that's it.

[auntiemeesh.livejournal.com]

I'd be happy to take this guy in, if he doesn't have a home, except I already have two cats and a small apartment. When I had three cats, it was a little overwhelming.

[stargazercmc.livejournal.com]

No, I totally understand. We'd be in the same predicament you are if another were to stumble along because with two 60-lb. dogs and two cats? We just aren't taking in more pets.

I will say that I think you're doing the right thing in both rescuing the poor baby and letting it spend the night indoors. Your actions are probably saving its life and leading it to a better one, and that's to be admired.

[eve11]

Aw, poor kitty :( I'm sure he's grateful for the rescue :) I think that he would probably be okay finding a warm spot outdoors in this weather, but taking him in isn't a bad idea either, at least to get him checked out from his ordeal.

There's an orange outside cat who's been frequenting our place for the past few weeks. we set food out for him on the side porch. Otherwise he sits himself under the birdfeeder-- i dunno, hoping one of them falls or something ;). He was pretty thin when we first found him but extremely friendly. He's fatter now, dunno if it's just because we're feeding him or what. I don't know if he belongs to anyone around here or not.

I was really worried about him when we went away those few days last week; it was -5 degrees out when we left. But he must've found a good warm spot because he's still around, sitting around under the birdfeeder or sneaking off through the woods. I don't know if I should gather him up and take him in to the humane society or not. He might belong to one of the neighbors, or he might be lost. I sent an email to them asking if anyone had reported an orange cat missing in the area, but never heard anything back.

[auntiemeesh.livejournal.com]

I was going to just let him have the carrier outside, with a towel in it for him to snuggle up with, but the neighbor lady was clearly not going to settle for that. And the poor little guy was shivering and huddled up on the porch, not moving anywhere - I guess he would have pulled himself together eventually and moved on to somewhere warmer, but who knows. Possibly he'd have pulled another stupid stunt like trying to crawl through a lattice two sizes too small.

On a side note, Mal has finally (after nearly forty minutes) crawled out from under the sofa. Poor kitten boy is not happy about having a stranger in the house.

[eve11]

And the poor little guy was shivering and huddled up on the porch, not moving anywhere

Oh, poor guy! He probably was still freaked out from getting stuck, too :( I hope he's okay. Let me know if you need car services tomorrow to get him somewhere. I'll be around.

[auntiemeesh.livejournal.com]

I'll let you know if I need anything. :)

[dreamflower]

You probably did the right thing, dear! If his fur is clean and glossy, it sounds like he's someone's pet--perhaps accidentally escaped outside and lost. If he was an indoor cat, he might not fare so well outside. Hopefully he will either find a new home or be re-united with his owners.

[auntiemeesh.livejournal.com]

He doesn't have a collar or tags, but I'm hoping he's been chipped, so they can id him at the clinic tomorrow.

[dreamflower]

That would be good. Sadly, some people who don't allow their animals outside most of the time forget to leave their collars on them all the time, or he could have slipped his collar at some point. I hope he is chipped.

[apple-pi.livejournal.com]

I would have done the same thing - I just couldn't stand the idea of NOT helping. Maybe they will find a microchip tomorrow at the animal clinic? Hopefully so - I'll keep my fingers crossed.

[auntiemeesh.livejournal.com]

That's what I'm hoping, too. It also reminds me that I never had Mal microchipped. I should probably do that. Even though he's strictly an indoor kitty, if he should get out, he doesn't have a collar either.

[apple-pi.livejournal.com]

Both our kitties are chipped, and surprised me, how not-traumatic it was for them - it reminded me of getting my ears pierced. Our cats go out sometimes during the day (while we're home), and they do have collars and tags, but still - just in case.

[lily-the-hobbit.livejournal.com]

I think you did the right thing - especially when you keep him seperated from your kitties. I hope he will be all right.

[auntiemeesh.livejournal.com]

Thanks. His owner showed up bright and early this morning, so he's now home and safe. :)

[dreamflower]

Oh, that's just wonderful! *grin*

[whtmtnwmn.livejournal.com]

Good for you--you're a very nice person...even if Mal didn't think that your actions last night were all that nice. ;)

Good luck at the shelter!
=D

[auntiemeesh.livejournal.com]

Poor Mal. He's not very flexible when it comes to anyone other than the three of us in his home.

Luckily, the owner showed up this morning. Stranger-Cat turns out to be Pepper, who lives next door and is, like my cats, a complete indoor cat who somehow managed to find his way outside yesterday, which explains why he was too dumb to take care of himself outside, but not why he was too dumb to just go home.

[shirebound]

You have a big heart, and I would have done the same thing (if we were allowed to have pets here). I don't think you would have slept at all last night if you were worried about that poor cold kitty.

[auntiemeesh.livejournal.com]

I definitely would have worried about him all night. He's an indoor kitty and lacks outdoor survival skills. I'm not sure what he would have done if I hadn't taken the decision out of his hands. Since he lives right next door and couldn't even find his home, I have little faith in his ability to survive the night.

[ani-no-mouse.livejournal.com]

He was obviously a house pet, so you did the kind thing to take him inside. Although a cat who was acclimated to being outside might have done okay with a cat carrier with towels in it and extra food, he probably would have really suffered. I hope that when his owner arrived this morning you were able to let her know how much danger her cat was in last night and impress on her the importance of either keeping him inside or being aware of when he isn't.

[auntiemeesh.livejournal.com]

I think they got that message. They say they don't really know how he got out. But he's a cat. And when they decide to get out, they can do it pretty easily. A door doesn't have to be open for very long at all for a little critter to slip through.

[ani-no-mouse.livejournal.com]

That is definitely true. I already have to watch my doors very carefully to keep Greta and Katya in while the dogs and I are entering and exiting - and I don't have a 7 month old human critter to distract me. I think when I wrote that message yesterday I was just reacting to all the anxiety and stress they (inadvertently) put you through.