People Who Should Not Own a Cat

This month I have wondered why people adopt cats because some people are not responsible pet owners. Three weeks ago my husband found a cat in our yard in the middle of the night that was attacked by another cat. The cat my husband rescued was an adult Maine Coon that was defenseless because it had no claws.

Read my first post about this cat here

We gave this cat shelter in our garage and treated its wounds. For the next three weeks, we tried to locate the cat's people. A neighbor showed us a house that they thought was where this cat resided but after several attempts to contact the pet owner, we never heard from the people who resided in this house.

Then my friend who lives a block away called to say that she found the cat owner and they said to release the cat because it was an outdoor cat. My friend mentioned to the pet owner that the cat in question had been wounded and they said their cat was nice and did not fight and if it got into a fight then it was nature.

A cat that has no claws should not be an outdoor cat. They cannot defend themselves and it is not natural for a cat with no claws to get into a fight with another animal. No claws this is not a fair fight and cat with no claws will take a beating, is no match against other cat or dog.

My husband said we must release the cat as that is what the owner has requested. We did release the cat but the cat did not leave our yard and at the end of the day, the cat went back into our garage to sleep in safety.

When my friend called to see if the cat was released we were honest and said that we did let the cat loose. She told me the cat did not go home, after four weeks the pet owner said they would not come get their cat because it was an outdoor cat and they did not mind it wandering the neighborhood.

As requested we release the declawed cat daily and he goes where he goes and returns to sleep in our garage at night. We have never met the pet owners. In my opinion, they should not own a cat, especially not a declawed cat.

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.

Declawed Gray and White Tabby

For the last seven days I have watched a white and black tabby cat go into my greenhouse to eat from the feral cat food bowl.  I assumed the cat was visiting my feeding station to get a snack and then going back to his home because the cat wore a leather collar (not a breakaway) with no tag.

My neighbor informed me that the cat was crying and that it was coming from the woods.  She said that something was wrong with the cat and it looked like its paws were hurt.

We  watched for the cat, hoping it would come to the feeding station so we could learn more about its ailment. No sign of the cat throughout the day, but in the evening we did see the cat and it was being chased by another cat.  

The lost cat tried to climb a tree but fell and with that the other cat was on top of him.  Se then realized that the lost cat had no claws so my husband went out to break up the cat fight.  When there was an opening the lost cat ran in my direction and leaped into my arms. 

The cat suffered a bite wound to the tail and on his leg.  The cat was shaking like leaf and meowing loudly  We checked his paws and realized the cat was declawed. 

Ear tip torn - side face and collar

I examined the cat and found it was declawed all four paws.  No way to defend itself, no way to hunt and no way to be safe in a forest full of coyote and other wild animals. 

 I took the cat to our cat shelter.  Gave it a bed, litter box, food and water and turned on the light.  The cat is obviously lost and does not know how to go home.

Side view of lost cat

My veterinarian told me that 93% of the house cats that go outdoors get lost and do not know how to find their home.  I think this is true especially if they are not accustomed to going outdoors.  I am glad that I was at the right place at the right time and able to rescue this cat from harm.