Declawed Cats Cannot Protect Themselves

 Cats from the neighborhood frequent my yard because I am in the woods, have a fresh water pond and I grow catnip.  So a new cat visiting is not a big deal, but a declawed cat should not be in my yard because it cannot defend itself or climb a tree when predator; aggressive feral cat, coyote, hawk or stray dog approaches.

For the last month a large Maine Coon cat has been hanging out in my yard, this cat is very friendly but has no claws.  It does not hiss and is not aggressive.  Very laid back but should be in its yard and not be hanging at my house in the woods.

My friend lives a block away and I asked her about this cat.  She told me that the cat's owners were down the street about five houses and that the cat lived outdoors. She did not realize that it had no claws.  She went on to say that this cat spent a lot of time in her yard and she suspected that it slept on her patio chair because she would see it there in the early morning.

Pet owners are funny, and I suppose they just assume that no harm will come to their cat because he is so laid back, he gets along with other cats, but getting along with dog or coyote?  This cat would be in danger.

Early this morning my husband heard loud meow's coming from our side door.  He went out to investigate and found the Maine Coon cat.  The night was cold and rainy, and cats fur was wet so my husband picked him up and put him in our shed.

I went outside to the shed with a cat bed, litter box, and food and water bowls and when I got there I saw that my husband was examining the cat.  There were bite wounds under each ear, with fresh blood.  At three in the morning, we were cleaning this cat's wounds and closing the door to the shed so he would be safe for the rest of the night.

This morning my husband went to see about locating the cat's owners, he found the house and they were not home, so he left a note on their door to call him about their cat.  Know that if the cat owners were responsible their declawed cat would have lived indoors and not permitted to go outdoors unsupervised.  This cat seems to live outdoors and has no claws to protect itself and this is why he has two bite wounds.

Sewers are Not a Safe Shelter for Cats

Outdoor cats will go into the sewers when the weather is rainy, cold or hot. The sewer provides cats with a comfortable temperature and they feel safe under the ground. However, the sewers are not a safe shelter for cats.

This week the weather forecast is calling for a dip in the temperature which means the mild weather will cease. The weather forecast is calling for a light freeze and heavy rainfall. The temperature dip will come first so the cats will go to the sewers, then the hard rain. There is one wide opening sewer that has a ledge where the cats go to lie, then there is a wide mouth drain. We worry about the cats if the rain water from gutter rushes the sewer, these cats could get swept into the drain.

Neighbors have petitioned the city to put a grate over the opening of this sewer but they city said they would prefer to have animal control come out with traps to remove all stray cats. Well, that is not the solution because even neighborhood cats, small dogs or a child that is curious about the opening could fall into this sewer. Since the city will not install a grate covering my neighbors and I are watching the sewers and will do our best to rescue any cats.

One of my friends lives across from the large opening street sewer and he recommended that we all open our garages to welcome the outdoor cats to a warm and dry shelter. The thought is that the cats would go into our garages instead of the sewer. That if we all install a kitty door that the cats will know that our garages or storage sheds are their safe place.  

We have also opened up the shed. Both the garage and shed have cat beds with self-heated pads if the weather is cold. We are hoping the outdoor cats have the good sense to come out of the sewers and go into the neighbor's garages. 

What to Do When Cat Opens Carrier / Crate

In the photo, you view a sweet 7-week old kitten that we rescued with his four siblings when they had been put in cardboard box and taken to our woods. All kittens are developing their personalities, however, this little orange and white cat is like Houdini, he can escape all crates, cages, carriers, and slides under the safe room door. Keeping this cat confined has been a challenge but we did find ways to keep in his crate, cage, and carrier.

We keep the kittens is a safe room away from the other pets in the house. This room we have all that they need including toys, beds, litter boxes, cat tree with a scratching post, pet crates and kitten food and water bowl. The room is 9 x 14 so the kittens have plenty of room to play. All of the kittens are adjusting to their new surroundings except the orange and white one, he does not play with other kittens because he is too busy trying to get out of the room.

At night we put all of the kittens in a large cat cage that has a bed, water, kibble food, hammock, and litter box. The latch to secure the cage works properly, but we discovered that no latch was going to keep the orange and white kitten inside the cage. He broke out of that cage in no time and all the kittens followed him. Now we must tie the cage shut with rope.

When I say nothing keeps this cat in one place I mean it. We put the orange and white tabby cat in the carrier to go to the veterinarian's office, then put the carrier in the car, covered it with a pet blanket (to keep kitten calmer while riding in car) and I have no idea how he got out, but he was out of the carrier and running all over the car.

Thank goodness the Amazon.com sells soft-sided carriers that zip open and close as he has not figured out how to get out of them. As for the cat cage at night, we keep the kittens in with the latch and we used twine to tie it closed with a double-knot.

This kitten will be a good match for a family with kids because he will have them laughing constantly. We will be putting the rescue kittens up for adoption in 2 to 3 weeks.