Dear LPG,  

I would like to home in on something that some people do with the best of intentions but that can so easily cause a lot of anguish.  They say that having a pet can often go some way to make the home of a person who lives alone a more welcoming place for them.   

I have one and she does make a real difference to those winter nights at home if she condescends to share her company with me.  Nearly all cat owners know that, while they don’t require walks every day and pretty much do what they please, there is nothing quite like having your fingers buried in their fur while they purr to remind you that, while they love to get out and about, they are really good companions.   

I think that most cat owners will agree when I say that their feline friends are a law unto themselves though.  Unless you spend a bit of every morning cleaning out the litter tray, you most probably let them out when you get up, and get on with your day. You don’t see them for ages and then, when it is breakfast, dinner or supper time they turn up like a bad penny.  The truth is that  in most cases they are fair-weather friends.  I have a friend who often visits armed with one of her favourite cat treats and many is the time that she ends up on my lap and perfectly comfortable until she hears the crinkly sound that represents the opening of the packet that they come in. 

That sound will leave me instantly cat-less because of her allegiance to the taste of something nice. 

If nothing else most cat owners will agree that, for all their very unique qualities, there are two things that nearly all cats have in common.  They more or less look after themselves and  usually return home when it’s time for food.       

The one thing that always is a worry for any cat owner has to be the night that you call and they don’t come back.  In these days of cat-theft and foxes I know that I spend quite a few evenings at the back door calling her name and I really don’t like to go to sleep unless I know she is  safe and in at night. 

But cats have a habit of doing their own thing and it only takes a neighbours kindness to cause a cat owner a lot of grief.  We know that for all the love that we give them, cats are opportunists and if a neighbour feeds yours, that evening call is sometimes not answered leaving all too many concerned cat owners wondering and worrying about their pets. 

I don’t know if I am typical of most older cat owners but there were a couple of  nights recently when I had to give up and leave her out.    

It was only a couple of days in my case but a couple of very worrying nights followed, and not long after, I found myself having a chat with a neighbour who lives down the road.  For a cat owner,  I suppose that their pet comes pretty high on the ‘topics of conversation’  list once what the weather is doing is out of the way, and she mentioned  offering my moggy the odd plate of food.     

I don’t mind her giving my cat the odd treat and now that I know it happens I know where to look if she does not come back. 

I am happy that my cat has other friends (both feline and human), and all cat owners know that they will never know everything that their pet gets up to when it goes off for its many daily constitutionals, but offering them an extra meal is tantamount to enticing them away from their home and can cause quite a bit of unneeded anguish.  

I think what I am trying to say is; if you are in the habit of feeding a local cat (even if you think it looks undernourished),  please make sure that you know whose cat you are feeding and also make sure that they know you are doing it.  An evening telephone call  would not go a miss if you find yourself with a late-night feline house guest…  

IG, Bellingham  

 

 

IG finds some other internet advice…

 

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