Stray Cat - What would you do?

[Stenograsaurus]

A few weeks ago a cat had made himself a little home in our garage. I named him D.O. (I have photos of him in my photo album.) He's such a friendly cat. He is constantly trying to get into my house. I cannot let him in the house though because I have a husky with a high prey drive. Dakota would probably fatally injure D.O. I do have a cat, Fawn, who was here when we first got Dakota so Fawn is accepted as a member of the pack. Dakota has fatally injured a stray cat before. So I have to find a home for D.O. While doing so, I have two options. I can either continue to keep him as an outside cat at my house (He has a box with a whole cut out in it and a blanket inside it) or I can take him to our local shelter. Unfortunately, this shelter is a kill shelter. I had looked at their statistics one month and for that month they had acquired 15 cats and adopted one out. Guess what happened to the other 14. The other option would be a no kill shelter but I am not aware of any locally. If anyone knows of any near the Altoona, Pa., area, please let me know. Also, if anyone knows of any other options, please let me know.
Thanks,
Beth

[Denyce]

There is a no-kill shelter here in State College. However, they only take cats from Centre Co. I have had the little cat from the tragic night storyline on their "list" for almost 2 months now. She is suppose to get in soon but they are about to close for the holiday's and won't reopen till the beginning of Jan. I don't know anyone in Blair Co that is doing cat rescue. There is a woman here in Centre but I know she has about 30 cats right now. The shelter in Blair is a good one at least but yes....too many get put to sleep. I wish I could be of more help. Talk to your vet....perhaps they would have some suggestions?

Denyce

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

I know others may not agree with this, but if the kitty is fine with living out of the box, I don't see any reason to put him in a kill shelter when he has a perfectly good temporary home right there. It seems you live in a somewhat rural area where high traffic areas aren't too much of a problem so I say keep him right there until you find a home for him.

He's adorable, sure does look like a friendly sort. Have you checked with neighbors to make sure no one is looking for him?

Good luck and let us know what you decide to do.

[Randi]

D.O. looks like a wonderful and friendly cat! I agree with Debbie, until you find a home for him, keep him in the garage, he seems happy there, and he has a "house" to sleep in. All you have to do is feed him twice a day.

I bet if you put up photos around the area, someone will want him, but be sure it's a loving family! He deserves the best!!

[moosmom]

I agree with Tubby & Peanut's Mom. If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

[jazzcat]

Here's another vote for keep him in the garage. He's such a pretty boy, I'd hate to see him go to a high kill shelter.

[smokey the elder]

He seems fine right where he is.

[jenluckenbach]

A kill shelter is NOT better than his current situation. You could possibly find him a foster home in the mean time.

[jenluckenbach]

Is this close?
http://www.petfinder.org/shelters/PA60.html
edit:
or this?
http://www.petfinder.org/shelters/PA114.html

[mountain maniac]

This is Steno under hubby's name. Thank you for making me feel better. I feel so guilty when I look out the door and see him looking in. I wish I could let him in. I have him posted at work. I have a report of a found cat filed at the humane society and on petfinder. I hate to see him out in the cold. Plus we have about 12 inches of snow out there now.

Jen, the places you posted are a few hours away. Are they no kill? I didn't read them, I just scanned down for the address.

D.O. (short for drop off) has gained quite a bit of weight since I've started feeding him. About two weeks ago he was very bony. Now I can really feel the weight on him when I pick him up. And his belly is big. At first I thought that I had the sex wrong and I was really dealing with a pregnant female. But after looking again I could tell that he was definitely a male.

T & P's Mom, yes I did check with neighbors. The guy over the bridge has a summer home up here and he was apparently feeding him for a while. When the neighbor left to go back to Kentucky, he left D.O. here. I also have an ad up at the local store here. He is so friendly. He was obviously a member of a family at one time. I feel that he picked up the scent of a female in heat and wondered off and got lost. Another reason to always spay and neuter your pets!!!!!!

[jenluckenbach]

The first one said no-kill. I could not find that posted on the 2nd one. There may even be others. The way I found them was going to www.petfinder.org and then doing a search for cat in Altoona PA. I did not go to the end of the list. (usually they get further away as you go down.) There were several SPCA's listed as well, but I figured they might all be Kill type shelters (but I could be wrong)

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

When I took Eddie in, I emailed every shelter listed on Petfinder.org in the Chicago area to see if they could help. At least 2 of them responded saying they would put his pic on Petfinder for me and I would just foster him until they had some interest in him. So even if the places Jen found aren't that close, maybe they'll put his pic up for you. The only thing with that is that you might have to transport him to an interested party, or at least maybe meet 1/2 way between.

Also, one of the shelters sent me the following which might be of some help to you too.

TIPS FOR PLACING A STRAY ANIMAL OR UNWANTED PET

• Have the animal examined by a veterinarian, tested, spayed or neutered (if this has not already been done), and given any necessary vaccinations.

• Take a nice color photo of the animal.

• Write up a short “bio” on him or her – include age, sex, breed (if applicable), personality, likes and dislikes, etc. as well as the reason you cannot keep him or her.

• Make a flyer by putting the photo and bio together on one page, along with your contact information (name phone # etc.)

• Make copies (in color, if possible) of the flyer and post everywhere – veterinarian’s offices, pet grooming businesses, Petco, Petsmart, and other pet supply stores, grocery stores – Jewel, Dominick’s, Whole Foods, etc.

• Place adoption ads in your local newspapers, describing the animal (use the bio you created for your flyers, or an abbreviated version of it). ***Indicate in your ad that you will be charging an adoption fee. This is very important for two reasons -- not only should you at least get back some of the expenses you’ve incurred in making the animal ready for adoption, but more importantly, because there are many wicked and evil individuals who regularly scan the newspapers for “free to a good home” ads, searching for animals that they can obtain for free, then sell to testing laboratories, dogfight promoters (who, in addition to wanting dogs, also use kittens and other small creatures on which to train the dogs) puppy and kitten mills, etc. These people are quite devious and very good at what they do – they know all the tricks to appearing as though they have only the animal’s best interests in mind. Charging an adoption fee will screen out most (but not all—so be careful!) of these individuals, as they are typically not interested in animals they have to pay for…it takes away from their profit margin to do so.

Once people start calling in response to your flyer and advertisements, use the attached application, contract, and interview guidelines to screen them – be sure to establish with them that if they are chosen to be the animal’s new owner, you’ll be checking in with them for follow up to see how the pet is doing. Letting potential owners know you intend to follow up and stay involved will help to (but will not automatically) eliminate prospective owners who are inappropriate.

Remember – you owe it to this animal to find him or her a safe, stable and responsible new home, one he or she will have for life. It goes without saying that there is no point in rescuing an animal only to place it with an owner who is unsuitable or irresponsible, and of course you will want to find the best home possible if it is your own animal you are attempting to place.

Don’t forget to enlist the assistance of family members, neighbors, and co-workers. Sometimes all it takes is a little networking. Please don’t give up. A shelter is a bad option, even if you find a “no-kill” (limited intake) location versus a “kill” (unlimited intake) facility. With a “no kill” organization the animal could get adopted, but is more likely to live the rest of its life out at that facility, and unlimited intake locations are free to euthanize your pet, literally within moments of your leaving their premises. Placing an animal on your own takes time and effort, but it can be done, and it’s very, very worth the exertion that it takes. Not only are you ensuring a safe, stable and responsible home for your particular animal, but you’re taking an active role in helping to reduce the unbearable burden faced by all shelters as they try to keep up with the hundreds of stray animals and unwanted pets left daily at their doorsteps.

Good Luck, and thank you for your efforts!

[stacwase]

I agree with keeping D.O. in the garage until you can find him a home. I know it might seem cruel to you, but you're giving him a much more comfortable life than he would have otherwise. Keep us posted!

[rg_girlca]

I think it is great that you are trying everything you can to help this adorable tabby you named D.O. Bless you.
I agree with the others, if it isn't a problem for you, to keep him in the garage. At least he has some shelter there from the cold. I would like to make a suggestion if you could, to put some straw in the box for him as this will provide more warmth for him. Also outside cats will beef up when the cold weather hits whether they eat well or not. It's amazing, as we have a few strays around our area also and in the summer they are so thin, but come the cold weather, they almost double in size.
Good luck in trying to find a foster home or no-kill shelter for him as he is a keeper.