I am soooo upset!!!!

[rg_girlca]

I just had an arguement with a neighbour of mine about her cat.
Let me give you a brief story about this.
He has been outside since he was about 4 months old and now he is about 10 months old. A male tabby/with white under belly and he is soooo affectionate and adorable. She said she lets him outside cause he keeps crying at the door to go out. He is not fixed or had his shots. She lets him in if she happens to be around when he wants back in.
Now I live in Montreal and the weather here has been bitter cold, and this poor little thing has been left outside late at night allll night long.
He got into a fight with another cat and had a abcess (spelling?)
on the tip of his nose. I have a big porch so I"ve made a bedding for him, put one of those throw away litter boxes, food and water out for him. i took care of his abcess and it has healed up nicely. Now the poor thing has a big abcess under his chin going out too the side of his face. Fortunately it broke and has been draining. I've been taking care of it again.
I saw the woman who owns the cat and told her about it. Welllll she told me to mind my own business and to leave her cat alone that I have my own cats to care of. Well needless to say I blew up at her and told her that if she can't take care of her cat by getting him fixed or getting his shots, then she shouldn't have any animals at all.
Don't get me wrong people. I'm not against people letting their animals outside. But please do it under supervision and don't let them out when it is bitter cold.
I also told her that you can train a cat to stay inside.
I'm sorry, this isn't as brief as I thought it would be, but i just had to vent my frustrations out. Was I wrong to confront this woman and should I continue to take care of her cat. (Stupid question Lorraine, of course you're going to continue).
Thanks for listening, or I should say reading.

[neko1]

I completely agree with you!!! Bless you for taking care of that poor kitty. That poor kitten should not have owners like that. My cats are all up to date on shots, all fixed and all strictly indoors which is the way I feel all cats should be.

[jenluckenbach]

Originally posted by neko1
I completely agree with you!!! Bless you for taking care of that poor kitty. That poor kitten should not have owners like that. My cats are all up to date on shots, all fixed and all strictly indoors which is the way I feel all cats should be.

Ditto

[rg_girlca]

Thank you Neko.
All my Kitties have been fixed and had their shots and also stay inside. Too many nasties outside that can harm them. Other cats, cars and mean people.
If I couldn't afford to do this for them, they I never would have gotten any animals until I could.
I also agree that there are people who love animals and can't afford to get them fixed or get their shots. But please take care of them when they need it.

[slick]

Is there a local SPCA or some Humane Society you can report her to?? I know that if the cat has been tattooed then nothing can be done but if kitty has no ID then I would think that some rescue organization could intervene. I don't know what legalities are involved there.

Bless you for looking after him. What goes around, comes around. Good luck!

[rosethecopycat]

Take him to a no kill rescue, and give him a chance at a real life. Never mind what the neighbor says, just don't let her see you. She's not a Mommy to him.

[rg_girlca]

Thank you all for your kind words and advice. Right now my first priority is to get his abcess healed up, and I've been trying to convince my son to take him in as a playmate to his own 10 month own kitty. But so far no luck, (rotten kid) (just joking on that one). But I'm still trying.
The SPCA in our area is a kill shelter, so that is definitly out of the question. That is where My Katie girl came from. The foster home ( which unfortunately is closed now)that I got her from, got her from the SPCA the day before she was to be put to sleep or i should say gased.
Your right rosethecopycat, she is not a good mommy at all, in fact she doesn't seem like a very nice person.
Slick, he does have an I.D.
Right now I'm trying to get him use to my dog, which i might add is going pretty well. When I walk Buddy at night, and the cat is outside, (which is 4 to 5 times out of the week) he is starting to walk with us. .
Wish me luck people on finding him a good loving home, cause after the confrontation I had with his so call owner, that is exactly what my goal will be.
And don't be surprised if in the near future I tell you he is still here.......................................permana tely.

[krazyaboutkatz]

I also agree that your neighbor shouldn't have any animals at all since she doesn't know how to properly care for them. These kind of people make me so mad. It's like they don't even realise that the cat or dog they adopted is a living thing that relies on it's owner for food, water, medical attention, and proper care. You are doing the right thing by caring for this sweet cat and hopefully you can improve his quality of life and either give or find him a loving and caring home. Good luck and please keep us updated about your progress.

[rg_girlca]

Thank you krazyaboutkatz, it also makes me angry how some people can be, and I will keep you posted. Right now he is sleeping comfortably in his bed. Oh and I would like everyone to know that his abcess is getting better.

[marysmerrycats]

heres what I think you should do, if you want to keep the kitty that is.
take the cat to a vet, see if there is any tattoo or microchip. if there is, and it shows the neighbor as the cats owner, then ask the vet what you should do. if there is not, then register the cat in your last name, and name kitty. you don't have to tell them it is your neighbors, tell them you found a stray! and then keep kitty inside. if and when the witch ever comes looking for her kitty, say you have no idea where he is, maybe he moved to warmer climate!

[marysmerrycats]

and then you can have the cat microchipped in your name, and have him neautered, if the lady ever does anything about it,(doubtful since it would cost her money) then you will be shown as the more caring and responsible person.

[rg_girlca]

Thank you for your advice marysmerrycats (love your name by the way) but this woman couldn't be bothered to have him fixed or get his shots, so I know he has no tattoo or microchip. He does have a collar with his address and phone number on it. He wanted to go out earlier so I let him out as he doesn't seem to use the litter box too often, and when I went to walk the dog tonight he isn't anywhere in sight. Sooooooo maybe she finally kept him in the house as today here in Montreal it is very cold.
Plus I might have a new home for him, a friend of mine spoke with a friend of hers and she might take him. She has to discuss it with her hubby first and she will let me know tomorrow.
So keep your fingers crossed, cause if the answer is yes, (Ihope, I hope)when I see the kitty again, which I'm sure will be in the next day or two, he will be picked up and on his way to a new home. Believe me tomorrow night can't come soon enough for me.

[Pat]

You are doing the right thing by caring for the little kitty. There should be an organisation where you can report such people and they take the animal away from them once they see the animal is not looked after properly. We have such an organisation in Switzerland and have their number with me at all times in case I should ever need it.
The one thing I do not total agree with (and don’t get mad at me ) is that I believe that cats should be able to go outside. If they want to of course! Simon & Kelly have a cat-door which is always open for them and they can go outside when it suites them. Of course now in winter they stay inside all day but every now and then I ‘chase’ them outside and play with them in the snow (they love running after snow-balls). I am lucky because where I stay we don’t have any roads close by and most of the neighbours have either cats or dogs. We all look after each other’s animals, which is really great!
Please keep us updated. Wish you good luck!

[lynnestankard]

Lorraine I think you're doing a wonderful job caring for that little furboy. She obviously doesn't care for him and if it wasn't for your care and loving he'd probably be dead by now - abscesses are awful things (Dan's had three or four) and can make kitties very sick. As long as it's draining thats good. Dan always has to go to the 'white coats' and have anti-biotics to clear the infection.

Good luck and I hope you can manage to get him - he deserves you so much

Lynne

[Songlover]

Dear Lorraine, You are quite right to be concerned about the neglet inflicted on the poor little kitty by its horrible owner. I would not worry too much about what she thinks as she does not deserve to have this or any other pet, in my opinion.

I, too, live in Montreal. After I read your post, I was so upset that I went on the Internet to see what I could find. I found two no kill cat shelters in Montreal and I will post the websites here for your infomation.

they are: www.petnetcanada.com/quebec.htm
search Quebec under "animal rescue" and this will come up:
chatocat2000.

the second one I found is:www.animalrescuenetwork.org

I cannot believe that she would leave him outside in - 40 weather. That is cruelty and she should be charged with that, at the very least. Are you able to take him inside until you can find a place that will accept him? I am so worried about this cat, it makes me so sad to read about him. Can you let me know (Private message) what you decide to do and if you are able to get him to one of these shelters in the Montreal area? We need to act quickly so that he does not die from exposure, infection, or both....regards from Deborah (downtown Montreal)