Steal a stray?

Person_one

I'm sure they'll scan him for free.

Pollycat

skintchick wrote: »

I never expected to get a flaming! The poor cat has had no home for three years but I'm a villain because I'm not rushing to check if he has been chipped? Is this Mumsnet all of a sudden?

When I take him to the vet I will ask about a chip check but I have to say when I phoned them and explained all about him they never mentioned it.

I think that if he had a loving owner they would have come and looked for him by now and surely the existence of this thread is proof that I wanted to do the right thing?

You first posted 6 months ago and on 6th May 2013 you posted this:

skintchick wrote: »

And I am thinking it's worth getting him scanned because he is SO friendly he is clearly not really a street cat.

So don't have a go at me (and other posters) for saying that you should get him scanned for a chip when 6 months ago you were thinking you should do it.

Lots of posters said right at the start of your thread you should get him checked for a chip.

I've no idea what you mean by mumsnet.
I post on here with my own opinions.
And my opinion is that you should have whipped him up to the vet months ago.
But you had no intention of doing that because you had every intention of keeping the cat - and sticking your head in the sand regarding any information about his previous owners helped you to do that with a 'clear' conscience.

Has it never occurred to you that he might have hopped in a car and jumped out some miles from where he lived and not been able to find his way home? And that's why he's been living as a stray - not because he's unwanted?

moggymutt wrote: »

So very many people would ignore a stray and let it starve that although I would be upset if somebody hadn't checked for a chip, my main thought would be that the cat was happy and alive.

Of course I would be relieved that my cat was happy and alive - but if I've gone to the trouble of micro-chipping him and he goes missing, he should be happy and alive with me, not somebody who's taken a shine to him, wants to keep him and won't take him to a vet to be checked for a microchip in case they find out he may well have a loving, caring owner who is frantic about the loss of her cat!

ERICS_MUM

blimey OP, you've had loads of good advice and shared experiences from other posters yet you bite their heads off for daring to point out the obvious to you.

GwylimT

OP, if you cannot afford to take a cat to the vet then you cannot afford a cat, it really is as simple as that. You obviously haven't bothered having him vaccinated otherwise you would have had him at the vets months ago, are you even worming him?

My last cat spent most of his days sun bathing in other peoples gardens, it didn't make him a stray, he would also happily wander into houses and cars, especially if food was offered. However, someone did decide to steal him from us, two years later he was eventually found when the 'owner' who clearly didn't bother vaccinating him took him to the vets.

loobylou2

Like other posters I think you have done a fantastic thing in taking him in and giving him a home. However vets don't charge for scanning cats to see if they have a chip ( I know this because I took a local stray in our area to the vets to be scanned for a chip myself this summer, I ended up with a badly bitten hand and a course of antibiotics for my trouble lol but that's another story and Salem as we have named the cat wasn't chipped !!!!) Also if you are worried about cost organisations like PDSA and RSPCA do offer veterinary care for animals whose owners are on low incomes or benefits. Please get him checked to see if he has a chip for your own peace of mind!!!!

building_with_lego

My Cosmo has been missing for 2 years and 5 months now. I believe he's still alive as I know that dead cats are scanned if picked up by the road, so can only assume that someone has rehomed him.

I live in hope that one day they take him to a vet who scans for his chip. In the mean time I hope they let him sleep on the bed, as he was never allowed to in our house.

Person_one

I have a horrible feeling this cat will never be scanned.

Pollycat

building with lego
That must be awful for you.

If nothing else makes the OP hot-foot it to the vets with this 'stray' she's rehomed, then your post should do it.

One of my cats went missing, she was gone for 18 months.
She just appeared on the back garden much fatter than when she went missing, stayed for a week and then disappeared again.

I believe someone had taken her in, kept her in, she'd escaped and come back to see me and then was taken in again by the same person.

I tend to agree with Person_One.
There's nothing like inaction to help you justify your actions.
How many times does the OP need to be told that the fair thing to do is take the cat to the vets to be checked for a micro-chip?:wall:

Slinky

There was a cat found locally last month it turned out had gone missing 50 miles away. The power of Facebook reunited the owner with their missing pet (it wasn't chipped), so it's perfectly possible for a loved pet to go missing without it being the owner's fault they can't find it.

his_missus

Hi OP,

Have you tried leaving a box/pet carrier open in one of the rooms the cat is familiar with for a few days? Maybe put in a fleece, towel, something similar or a few treats to encourage Cobweb to investigate it. Then once s/he gets used to it, you can make a vets appt. Worked with my Tikka. Fortunately I've only had to take her for the annual booster trip, think she might catch on if I had to take her often!

The lads, I just usually nudge in backwards