h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

My own cats are still bad boys. I woke to find a dead bird in the living room this morning. This afternoon I found a live frog in the kitchen. I had to return it to my neighbour again, with many apoligies

I think strays have an instinct for nice people and other strays in your hours might communicate with other stays.

Just found this thread, excellent

I'd go along totaly with the comment about strays knowing the best places to go, cats are very discerning in my book.

My current feline friend is 17 next month and looks about 3, I dont know what her secret is and she wont tell me, how weird is that?

Strays instinctivly know where they will be welcome, usually in a house that has cats of it's own, we've had a stray that sleeps in our garage for a few years mum gives him some food and water, he's even made friends with our cats, he dissappeared this winter and we'd though he finally passed on but no he strolled in a few weeks ago as bold as brass

Cats are not weird they just have a quirky intelligence beyond our dismal comprehension - although eating turkey curry, I suppose that's a bit weird for an 18 year old cat...

Eating turkey curry is a bit weird for anyone not just a cat

Really lovely stray cat stories, mad meg. I also think it's a shame you feel you have to shoo the other one away - do you really have to? Can't he live wherever he chooses?

I now have a rooftop stray that I feed (which I have to do very sneakily as the landlord doesn't want him hanging around). But this cat found me! I'm on the top floor of my building, had the kitchen window open one day last September while I was cooking and suddenly heard this guy meowing down at me like crazy from the upper rooftop. So of course I fed him, and also gave him some de-worming medicine (didn't fancy feeding the parasites) but he is a bit of an 'ingrate' in that he is quite unfriendly, hisses and spits at me when I bring him his dinner.

I can still bring him sneaky meals as he polishes off everything I leave for him on the floor, but unfortunately I can no longer leave a bowl of water out for him as this would be 'evidence' to the landlord that I'm still looking after this cat.

I'm still not sure if he belongs to anyone, or if he did at some point and was abandoned, or what. I also don't know if he can get down to street level or just lives on the various rooftops (all the buildings on my street have adjoining rooftops). Anyhow, will keep feeding him until I'm caught (so far the landlord has only told me not to leave water out for him).


az

Az can get round that bowl of water by leaving a well watered plant in a deep bowl on the roof.

Henry bless his little soul caught his first rat (well baby rat ) and came into the front room proudly with it tossed it about for a while then exspected to eat it on the carpet, took him and the lifless corpse out side and had to stand by the door to stop him bringing it back in again ,so he sat down and ate it ,all of it i might add ears first then head legs insides finishing off with the tail.Not a bit was left.

Suppose better worm him again ,being indoor cat he has avoided having it done with reguler frequencie now he goes out will have to grin n bear having pills shoved own throat.

Azahar,
it breaks my heart to shoo him away but don't want him upsetting my other two(both resued cats). One finds it hard to get around due to a previously fractured pelvis and the other is a real mess. Kipper's frightened of his own shadow. Took him to the vets today about his flea allergy and was told the only way to help him was to treat all cats in the house. This means treating the stray as well as I'm sure his owner won't. It's a costly business loving just two cats.

Emma has a flea allergy too the only way I can keep it under control is by doing all cats and spraying the house with flea killer. Our vet recommended Frontline Combo, cos it kills the eggs too and it seems to have done the trick

Mum has 2 cats.

Tammy...who quacks at pigeons. It's the truth!!! She sits there staring out of the patio doors making this strange quacking noise. She also does as she's told. When dad lets them out into the back garden, Tammy comes back in when she's called, although she does occasionally do a runner into next doors garden and torments the dogs who are inside. You can't pick Tammy up. She lets you, but then she does this really strange thing. She goes all saggy and baggy. It's like trying to hold a bag of water...very difficult!!!!

Ali...aka Prup, Aliprup, baby, Alicat, Alison, and a few other choice ones which I can't quite repeat on here. Now Ali doesn't like being picked up. She will roll over and show her tummy...she will sit on your knee for hours on end being fussed and stroked and pampered, but the second you try to pick her up, she's off. She also falls asleep on mums bed every night too...cuddling in.

<> (mad meg)

Yes, especially when they have problems. I can relate to it being heartbreaking to shoo away the other one, but at least now you know that he does have a home to go to, and of course, the other two have to take priority.

One of mine (Azar) is a rescue cat - brought him home ten years ago after someone tried to kill him and ended up breaking his front leg so badly it's not really usable. I just couldn't leave him out in the streets to fend for himself. Even after all this time he is still afraid of strangers, though half the time now I suspect he puts on his 'scaredy cat act' because he gets more attention that way.

The other one (Sunny) was born practically into my hands (his mother Lua passed away last year) and so he is the most secure, most laid-back cat ever. In fact, he is almost a dog. Loves people, makes a big fuss over anyone who comes over (well of course, so that then *they* will make a big fuss over him!).

Since they are both apartment cats and don't go out (except for on the balconies) I've been lucky so far - touch wood - that I've never had a flea problem. Though last summer some bats made a nest in the wall above one of the balconies and took to flying into the living room on a regular basis, so I had to get them vaccinated against rabies, just in case.

Just a thought, perhaps you could buy a flea collar for the stray, in case he strays in too close to your other cats when you aren't looking?

az

Hi logicus - long time no see!

Can't you disguise the de-worming medicine in Henry's food, or is he fussy like Lua was with any medication, sniffing it out and then refusing to eat it? Perhaps you could stick some in his next rat?

I'm lucky that Nimbus (rooftop cat) is usually so hungry that he'll wolf down anything I put up there for him, so I can just crush up the pill in some wet food or a tin of sardines. Normally I feed him dry stuff, which also makes it more important that he has a water supply. I'm afraid the plant idea wouldn't work as it would immediately arouse suspicion from my landlord. Well, they are soon going off on vacation for the summer, so perhaps I'll find a sneaky way of leaving out water for Nimbus.

Have I ever mentioned that Azar is crazy about fresh steamed asparagus? I think that is pretty weird.


az

does asparagus taste / smell a bit like fish?

Not at all, pheloxi, though it does have a very unique smell. I've tried Azar out on broccoli and other veg, but it seems he only likes (likes? totally adores!!!) asparagus.

Though I *have* wondered, since eating asparagus makes one's pee smell, um, very distinctly different, if it doesn't have some sort of natural 'cleansing' property to it. Since Azar once had problems with crystals he might naturally be attracted to asparagus because of this?


az

Well this time i did hide one in the poor little rats mouth so need covered for about three months, suspect have no trouble wrapping in cheese.


Henry also likes potatoes ,chips or mash ,never tried him on asparagus .i rarely have it so hes got no chance.

My siamese used to be more experimental with what they ate, but have become more stodgy about only eating cat-food as they are getting older. Kentucky Fried Chicken (which is a fast-food here in the USA made from chicken that is first pressure-boiled and then fried in a batter) still gets them. They are not much interested in actual tuna but love the juice from the can.

I thought their meow-boxes got turned from 'intermittent' to 'constant' inexplicably a couple of weeks ago. I can't smell all that well, and I found later that they were warning me of a natural gas leak, whose dopant they could smell perfectly well. After the utility company told me I wasn't imagining the hiss I praised them lavishly, which means they are now still talking up a storm about anything and everything.

We can always tell when a change in weather is due because Masky runs around the house like a mad thing, your cats may be more interested in the salt in the brine of the tuna, my cats always go for that first then come back for the fish

Just what IS it about Tuna? Cats seem to be born longing for the stuff. I have twice had first day in the house kittens (strays, feral both of them) who went NUTS when they got a whiff -- and this is after they had stuffed their little bellies ROUND with their first meal. (I eat a fair amount of tuna, and what I opened was not for them!)

Theories, please.

SC

I have no idea but I have to fight my cats off when I make a tuna sarnie, I give them what's left in the bowl and the scoff it down mayonnaise and all