What to do with a Stray? (not a girl thread)

oldsak

So there's this cute little kitty that hangs out in our neighborhood. We're pretty sure she's a stray (though my girlfriend says she's heard the neighbor kids calling her "Lucy"). My girlfriend is a softy and feeds her from time to time. For a while we were asking around to see if any of our friends was interested in adopting a kitty.

Well, now my girlfriend is pretty sure the cat is pregnant. Which, if true, would be . She mentioned it to the vet who said she could get a "muffin certificate" for $50 and then the vet would spay the cat and abort the kittens for "free".

Of course, then there's the issue of where she will stay while she recuperates. We can't really take her in. We have two cats already, one of which had to have a very expensive surgery. We can't afford to take care of her if she has health issues or risk them being spread to our cats.

My girlfriend says she's called around to shelters and they're all full.

So... what do we do? :?

bowen

Call animal control. As sad as it is she'll probably have to be put down as you've exhausted all other options.

THEPAIN73

Bowen is right.

Best thing to do is call Animal Control and let them handle it.

GothicLargo

Agreement. Can't save every abandoned pet. People who try just wind up going to jail.

joshofalltrades

I concur with all of the prior posts

I know it won't seem like it when you call animal control, but you'll be doing local cats a favor by not letting them breed in explosive numbers to roam the streets starving until they're either picked up and put down or run over

Chases Street Demons

Talk to your local shelter - quite a few will be willing to donate medical services to a stray that you adopt. I know this because wifey used to work at a shelter. If you don't want a third cat that's fine but saying that you can't take it because it would be a financial burden is really just a way of letting yourself off the hook emotionally. Your car might break down tomorrow, too.

The fiscal responsibility between raising two cats and raising three is negligible. If you take this third and something comes up at that point you can surrender it to a shelter and hope for the best.

Either way, if you get it fixed that's a great step for the population. That needs to be done one way or the other.

CelestialBadger

Maybe the neighbours whose kids call her Lucy might take her in.

Orogogus

Chases Street Demons wrote: »

Talk to your local shelter - quite a few will be willing to donate medical services to a stray that you adopt. I know this because wifey used to work at a shelter. If you don't want a third cat that's fine but saying that you can't take it because it would be a financial burden is really just a way of letting yourself off the hook emotionally. Your car might break down tomorrow, too.

The fiscal responsibility between raising two cats and raising three is negligible. If you take this third and something comes up at that point you can surrender it to a shelter and hope for the best.

Either way, if you get it fixed that's a great step for the population. That needs to be done one way or the other.

The OP's concern about transmissible diseases is valid, I feel, especially if his cats are indoor cats without the outdoor cat shots.

LadyM

OP, do you have a cat-less friend who can keep the cat a few days while the vet runs the test for FIV, etc? It really doesn't take that long to get the results back. Then if the cat has a clean bill of health, you could keep her--at least long enough for her spay stiches to heal and perhaps for good. 8-)