Should I Rescue This Cat?

[Placebo]

So a few months ago we started seeing this cat hanging around our building, and we started to leave food out for her, and even made her a little warm bed-type thing, because it was still really cold outside. And when we first noticed her, the second anyone started walking in her direction she would run away terrified...

Fast-forward to today, and she's officially the sweetest little cat ever. I'm guessing she's not fully grown, but I could be wrong. She hangs out right in front of our building all day, and we feed her in the morning and at night just like we do our own cat. She's become extremely affectionate, following us to our car and to our door whenever we leave, and she loves when you pet her; you can even pick her up!

I really want to take her to the vet to get checked up, get her shots, "fixed", etc...

And now, the pictures...



There she is pacing around in the front of our building when I came home from school...



Rubbing up against my leg, aww...



Looking up as if to say, "Please Placebo...take me inside...I love you..."



Eating...



More eating...

GAH! I want her so much! It would take some serious convincing as far as my parents go...and how do you train a stray kitty to use the litterbox? I got nothin'! :)

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. First, convince parents to take her to the vet for a checkup

[MissB]

2. Training a cat to use a litterbox isn't too bad

She is gorgeous. I'd rescue her in a heartbeat.

[Zuni]

3. Emphatic Yes

if you have any cats, make sure to check for feline leukemia or FIV (feline aids) before you let her come in contact with your cats. Both diseases are much more contagious than the human forms and can be spread through saliva and bites

[notadmblnd]

4. fill it up and sho her where it is

that ought to do it. I've found that once a cat chooses you.. you cant get away.

[Zuni]

7. true that

this kitty has already found a home, it is only a matter of time. That is how I got my cat

[Placebo]

10. It's that easy?

Damn...cats really are great. :D

My current 13 year old cat came litterbox trained so I never had to figure it out.

[CatWoman]

5. AWWWWWW

PLEASE TAKE HER!!!

PLEASE!!!!!!

She's beautiful. And looks so sweet.

[CatWoman]

6. AWWWWWW

PLEASE TAKE HER!!!

PLEASE!!!!!!

She's beautiful. And looks so sweet.

[Zuni]

8. I'll join in with the begging

PLEASE TAKE THE CAT

[smbolisnch]

9. Yes, you should!!

Tak to your parents and explain that you are willing to be responsible for her!
She is so pretty!

[RevolutionaryActs]

11. Take her! Take her, please?

She looks so sweet.

[KittyWampus]

12. Maybe If You Tell Your Parents You've Fallen In Love...........

and then explain it's with the kitty downstairs :)

[Placebo]

47. They're pretty liberal...

but I don't know if they're that liberal. :P

[slackmaster]

13. YES! take her in

If I didn't already have three I wouldn't hesitate.

I really want to take her to the vet to get checked up, get her shots, "fixed", etc...

Please act quickly - females can get pregnant when they're very young. IMO It's worth the money to get her tested for all known communicable cat diseases.

[WildClarySage]

14. definitely! Puddys that cute don't grow on trees!

but please take the earlier poster's advice about the feline leukemia test in case she has been exposed, since you have a puddy already in situ. My best friend lost her best friend taking in a cutie stray that she didn't get checked first. Oh, and if your folks say no, and you can't talk them into it, ask them if they'll foot a vet visit and a spay so she stays safer out on the street.

So, what have you named her?

[Placebo]

16. No name yet...

she responds well to "Kitty" though... :P

I agree, even if the parental units don't agree to take her in, I still think we should get her fixed and tested for all the evil feline diseases.

I think the whole kit-n-kaboodle, shots, check up, fixed, etc... would run us around $200, which isn't bad really! :)

[Jack Rabbit]

15. It sounds like you have already rescued that cat

Now do your duty as the cat's staff and take her to the vet to get checked up, get her shots, "fixed", etc...

[sakabatou]

17. I want her too!

I miss my cats! :sob:

[Placebo]

18. What happened???

:cry:

[sakabatou]

20. Well...

My first cat got old and was very sick, had to euthenize him. Our second cat was plagues with health problems and after we went to Hawaii for a week, he was gone.

[Placebo]

22. Oy...

I certainly hope you are planning to or already have secured some new furry companions.

[sakabatou]

32. As soon as i et my own place... BAM! I'm gonna get a cat.

[nytemare]

19. Someone here posts with cats that look just like that

It is going to drive me nuts until I remember who. The cats look bearded, I can't remember what breed they are either.

I am getting alzheimers.

[intheozone]

21. Looks like she already owns you, so

you have to take her home! She looks like she will be a very good and loving owner.

[Lorien]

23. She's adorable!

litterbox use is generally instinctive-just don't let her get into any really large potted plants. You can get a litter called "cat attract" that will help.

I hope you get to keep her!

:hi:

[amerikat]

24. That's a beautiful cat. Name her/him "Galloway"

Seems the cat has already adopted you.

[deadparrot]

25. Aw, do it!

She's a beauty!

[kenny blankenship]

26. Tell your parents this cat will teach you the meaning of Responsibility!

kitties are generally litter box self-training because they're naturally fastidious. They'll go in the box because it has the only source of stuff they can scratch over their kitty business. Don't quote me on that, but generally it's true. Instinct is 90% of why they'll go in boxes, not training by humans, so it's not as hard it sounds to get them trained (unlike dogs who must be housebroken all by training). Just commit yourself to regularly cleaning/dumping the litter box out. Get plastic leaf/yard rubbish bags to line the box instead of letting the litter soak down to the bottom.

Take her in soon or find a home for her--before she gets old enough to have kittens of her own.

[Placebo]

28. This is so great news!

I had no idea cats were so easily trained...

Hmm, do you think it would be too traumatic for her to be yanked from the outside and immediately taken to the vet to be poked and prodded and sliced open by a stranger? Gah, this would be so much easier if I didn't already have a cat.

[kenny blankenship]

45. oops didn't realize you already had one.

Parents love to hear that you're learning responsibility. After the second or third pet though, they may become less susceptible to that pitch--much less susceptible in fact.

If you can take her in she should get her shots immediately. The shots will be valuable to her even if you can't take her in, as many of the bad kitty illnesses are communicable ones and outdoor kitties are at more risk. It's also possible that the vet will tell you she's already been spayed. But if she hasn't you can still soften the blow for her and your wallet by waiting a while after her first round of shots for the spaying surgery. People often say spaying is better done after the cat has gone into heat once (reached sexual maturation). I'm not exactly sure why they sometimes say that, or whether it's even sound advice. Maybe they mean that once your cat has gone into heat the first time, you will stop procrastinating and getting the cat spayed will shoot straight to the top of your must-do list. My two cats (both girls) were mature strays and had already both been spayed by the time I met them, so I never had to have that talk with the vet. There may be no reason to wait and it may be better to do shots and spaying in one visit for billing reasons. The vet can tell you about all that.

You should be aware going in that the chances are pretty high that your two cats will never love each other even though they love you very much. They may tolerate each other's presence for your sake within boundaries that grow narrower over time, but those heartwarming scenes of two kitties curled up together in feline sisterhood are rather unlikely unless the cats grew up together or one was young while the other was a kitten. I guess it's possible that kitty love can sometimes happen between two grown cats (I mean cats who were never youthful playmates or littermates), but kitty coexistence is the best you can reasonably hope for when putting two grown strange cats together. They may share space when you are there to hang out with them, but if you are busy or unavailable they may tend to spend most of their time in different zones by an unspoken & mutual kitty agreement. I can have both my cats in my lap at the same time, one on my lap and the other my legs, but there is always tension, and in a few minutes one will leave, always the same one. If I am not alone, the cats become more tolerant of each other's proximity and will doze off guardedly, using me and my friend as pillows. However even then, they do not like to be touching each other while reclining. Occasionally the daggers are drawn, particularly when one is feeling bored or pissed off that I won't let her out. Nothing serious ever happens between them, but they don't stop being territorial animals just because they're forced to live together and do not have to compete for food.
And on the other hand, cats are individual personalities, and you might luck into two that are unusually tolerant of other cats.

But even if they are mutually tolerant, one cat is sure to assert rank over the other in any dispute that arises over for example who gets to choose a plate of food first, or who must yield if the two cats cannot share the same space. They will establish the rank between them right off the bat, and there's nothing you can do about it except to treat them separately and equally--2 separate food bowls, served more or less simultaneously and so forth--so that occasions for disputes and rank-pulling are minimized.

You can find information on introducing a second cat to your home by searching on the internet. I would definitely advise looking into it.

[Placebo]

46. Thanks for all the info!

:)

[ogradda]

27. How can you not take her??

She loves you! Look at her!

[cally]

29. That cat looks exactly like my cat!

Adopt her! Mines the sweetest cat and very affectionate. I have to go make sure you didn't steal my cat. ;-)

[Placebo]

30. I'm no cat thief...

:P

[cally]

31. You can never be sure with a sweetie like that

kidding

[WindRavenX]

33. AWWW I WANT

I REALLY want a cat =(

[Placebo]

34. You can get them for free!

:P

[WindRavenX]

37. they're not allowed in dorms

Only Smirny, the mascot of Roncalli 408.
He lives in a vodka bottle =)

[Placebo]

39. Damn it to blazes!

LOL@the vodka bottle though

:D

[El Fuego]

35. Please please take the cat!

Cats instinctively know how to use a litter box, that's not a problem!

PLEASE!!!!!

[prole_for_peace]

36. she looks A LOT like two neighborhood cats that have adopted me.

they outside my house now. they are the sweetest things and really tiny. i thought they were kittens till i noticed they hadn't grown in two years. i call them fluffy 1 and fluffy 2. they are way sweeter than the rotten two i have inside.

[Placebo]

38. Isn't it weird how that happens?

Now I look at my 13 year old black and white cat with total contempt. lol

She's so spoiled and moody and whining for food 24/7 and pukes and all that stuff, meanwhile, the poor cat outside is the sweetest thing ever.

Funny how these things happen lol, hope you can help your kitties too. :)

[sparky_in_ma]

40. She's adopted YOU!

Yes, take her for all her shots and an exam. Most importantly ...NEUTER.:loveya:

[Hissyspit]

41. She needs her shots ASAP. (So, yes.) n/t

[LisaL]

42. She is extremely cute.

I would say RESCUE HER, please! As for the litter box, it's possible she will figure it out on her own.

[NeoTraitors]

44. If she had a white streak a little off

center on her nose, she would be a dead ringer for our pride and joy Daisy. If she is anything like our Daisy, you will never regret giving her a home!

[Robeson]

43. Yes. Please, please do. You will be saving a life....

[48pan]

48. You've got no choice.

She's your cat. Take her to the vet and have her checked for feline leukemia. If she's clean, she'll make a good cat.