A Cat's Journey: From Regina to California and Beyond

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In summary, an adorable cat was sitting near a busy road and a kind-hearted person took it home. However, the cat did not like the cat at home and the cat was eventually euthanized because it was not claimed.
  • #1
scorpa
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So I was coming home from school today and what do I see? I see an adorable cat sitting outside by a very busy road! So I go over to it and it is very friendly and seems so happy to have someone pay some attention to it. I look at its tags and they say the cat is from regina saskatchewan...not even the right province! I phone the number anyway and they said the owner was tagged as moving to california...wrong country! So having no idea what to do with this sweet adorable cat I take it home with me. Turns out my cat liked it but it didnt like my cat. It was mayhem. So I had to take it to the pound and hope someone claims it. I told them where I found it so I hope they can track the owner down. I went and put posters up near the buildings I found it at in hopes its owner would see them and know the cat was at the pound.

But I feel like a monster for taking it to the pound! After 20 days they euthanize the poor things if they go unclaimed, and this cat was so adorable and sweet! It was obviously very well cared for, it was wearing a cute harley davidson collar and everything. I feel like a horrible person for abandoning it at the pound but I couldn't keep it and it would have surely gotten run over if I had left it were it was. Oh I am awful. I could cry :cry:
 
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  • #2
You could redeem yourself by telling more of your local friends about the cat. Maybe you can find someone willing to adopt it. That's sad. I wonder if they gave the cat to someone else who never changed the tags, or if the cat got lost before they moved and they had to move without it?
 
  • #3
You're not a monster, scorpa. You are a sweetie with limited resources and a good heart. My wife and I rescued a number of ferrets over the years from bad situations, and it hurts every time there's one that you cannot rescue. At one time, we had a special room for two female ferrets because our others would not accept them and would beat them up. Eventually, we found an adoptive home for both of those girls, which was great because they really loved each other. One was emaciated when we got her, and we bought her from a really sleazy crappy pet store, and the other was well-fed, but neglected and poorly socialized. They both loved us, but our other 6 ferrets would not accept them.
 
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  • #4
scorpa said:
So I was coming home from school today and what do I see? I see an adorable cat sitting outside by a very busy road! So I go over to it and it is very friendly and seems so happy to have someone pay some attention to it. I look at its tags and they say the cat is from regina saskatchewan...not even the right province! I phone the number anyway and they said the owner was tagged as moving to california...wrong country! So having no idea what to do with this sweet adorable cat I take it home with me. Turns out my cat liked it but it didnt like my cat. It was mayhem. So I had to take it to the pound and hope someone claims it. I told them where I found it so I hope they can track the owner down. I went and put posters up near the buildings I found it at in hopes its owner would see them and know the cat was at the pound.

But I feel like a monster for taking it to the pound! After 20 days they euthanize the poor things if they go unclaimed, and this cat was so adorable and sweet! It was obviously very well cared for, it was wearing a cute harley davidson collar and everything. I feel like a horrible person for abandoning it at the pound but I couldn't keep it and it would have surely gotten run over if I had left it were it was. Oh I am awful. I could cry :cry:
Do you have pictures of it? You could drop some flyers off at some vet offices. I had taken three stray kittens to my vet to get wormed and the next day the vet called me saying she'd mentioned the kittens to a couple that had just lost their cat to leukemia and they wanted to take all three of the kittens. Some vets even house strays for awhile trying to get them adopted. That's how my mother ended up with twin ocicats.

You did the right thing Scorpa, the cat could've gotten hit by a car and suffered terribly or picked up by someone sadistic.
 
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  • #5
Umm...yeah, I should've said that in my first reply. You're not a monster. You saved it from getting hit by a car (if you didn't save it from a busy road, it very likely would have been dead today instead of having 20 days to find a new home), and you tried to take it in and give it a home. You can't help that it didn't want to get along with your cat. So, you've done the best you can. My suggestion is just a way to alleviate your worry about it being euthanized for not finding a home by helping find it a home. If it's a friendly cat, there's a good chance it'll find a home. It's the feral ones that really have no chance.
 
  • #6
Why would you think the pound is the wrong place for an abandoned animal? It's the best possible choice. Leave it alone and it will get killed by a coyote or a bus, or worse freeze or starve to death. The pound is heated, the cat will be fed, visitors drop by regularly to adopt, it's the ideal place. I would also take the 20-day threat with a grain of salt: healthy and friendly animals are typically given more leeway. Don't beat yourself up, you did the right thing.
 
  • #7
If you're really worried about it, you could go back in 19 days, and if it's still there, you could spring it yourself knowing you just have to keep it completely separate from your "other" cat.
 
  • #8
Thanks guys I feel a bit better. I think I will put in a call to the closest vet tomorrow and tell them about it, maybe they have gotten a call from the owner or know someone who would like it. I am going to tell everyone I know about it in hopes of finding it a home. I told the pound to call me if no one wanted it and hopefully I can find a way to get it a home. There is just no way I can keep it, my apartment is to small for two cats that don't like each other. I know there is an someone out there who loves that cat and wants it back it is just a matter of finding them.
 
  • #9
scorpa said:
Thanks guys I feel a bit better. I think I will put in a call to the closest vet tomorrow and tell them about it, maybe they have gotten a call from the owner or know someone who would like it. I am going to tell everyone I know about it in hopes of finding it a home. I told the pound to call me if no one wanted it and hopefully I can find a way to get it a home. There is just no way I can keep it, my apartment is to small for two cats that don't like each other. I know there is an someone out there who loves that cat and wants it back it is just a matter of finding them.
I'm glad you feel better. And I agree with Moonbear and Evo. You did the right thing!

It's not fair to your first cat to have a stranger imposed in him/her.

I've had to deliver a feral cat to an animal control agent. They kept it less than a week before they destroyed it - partly because it had bitten me - but since I was the only one who had any interest in it, and I couldn't take it because it was too wild and we already had three cats and a dog, they just euthanized it.

I felt terrible, but there was no way that cat was going to live in an apartment - with me or anyone else. It was just wild at that point.

Cats in the wild do not live long compared to domestic cats with loving homes. It's just a harsh reality of life.
 
  • #10
scorpa said:
Thanks guys I feel a bit better. I think I will put in a call to the closest vet tomorrow and tell them about it, maybe they have gotten a call from the owner or know someone who would like it. I am going to tell everyone I know about it in hopes of finding it a home. I told the pound to call me if no one wanted it and hopefully I can find a way to get it a home. There is just no way I can keep it, my apartment is to small for two cats that don't like each other. I know there is an someone out there who loves that cat and wants it back it is just a matter of finding them.

You might want to look up vets near the road where you found the cat and call them. That the cat still had a collar might mean it wasn't too far from home yet, and most people use a vet local to them (assuming it had even semi-responsible owners).

Reminds me of a funny story. My stepdad once found a dog roaming out on the street. It was super-friendly...opened the car door and he hopped right in. So, we took him home, checked his tags, which gave a name and address from the next town over (we were thinking this dog had gotten a long way from home), and called...nope, the number we called was outdated and no longer belonged to those people. So, we called the animal warden to help track the owner while we held the dog (since it had tags, and was friendly, we figured the animal warden could track the proper owner, and if they couldn't, the dog was sweet enough we'd keep it, so no need for them to take it to a shelter; we already had one dog so had food and everything for it). Well, they finally tracked the owners on the license...they had given away the dog a few months before, and gave the address of the people they gave it away to...it was the house behind the one where we found the dog. :rolleyes: Well, I imagine those people got a ticket for not licensing the dog at the new address, though not sure...at least the old license wasn't out of date yet, but they at least learned that if you don't change the tags on your dog, it takes a few days to get it back instead of the 5 min it would have taken if we had the right address and realized it had only roamed one yard away from home.

A friend of mine recently found a dog and took it to the local vet. It was microchipped, but unfortunately, a similar situation...the owner hadn't updated the microchip info when they moved, so having the microchip didn't help at all. Worse, the vet said the name sounded familiar, like they'd seen that same dog come in before, so whoever had adopted it was repeatedly letting it roam.
 
  • #11
You are NOT a monster. You did what you could. Hopefully the owners are looking for their cat and will check the pound.
 
  • #12
Moonbear said:
You might want to look up vets near the road where you found the cat and call them. That the cat still had a collar might mean it wasn't too far from home yet, and most people use a vet local to them (assuming it had even semi-responsible owners).

Yeah I am going to phone tomorrow, there is a vet really close to where I found it so I am hoping that will help. I just feel bad for this cat...it is just to cute and sweet! Very friendly and obviously well cared for...it was wearing a harley davidson leather collar with pretty studs on it which wouldn't have been cheap so they obviously loved the cat. I wish I could have kept the poor thing but it just clearly wasnt going to work. Failing that maybe I can beg my parents to come up and get it.
 
  • #14
Thanks hypatia, I have never heard of that site before! I think I will list it on the website that is similar to that but specific to my city.
 
  • #15
scorpa said:
Yeah I am going to phone tomorrow, there is a vet really close to where I found it so I am hoping that will help. I just feel bad for this cat...it is just to cute and sweet! Very friendly and obviously well cared for...it was wearing a harley davidson leather collar with pretty studs on it which wouldn't have been cheap so they obviously loved the cat. I wish I could have kept the poor thing but it just clearly wasnt going to work. Failing that maybe I can beg my parents to come up and get it.

It was very compassionate of you to stop and help. You are certainly not a monster.

How long did you have the cats together? Cat introductions can take time. A veterinarian I know recommended separate rooms for 2-3 days, just letting the cats get to know each other by smelling each other under the door before a face to face meeting. Of course, in a small apartment, this might be very difficult.
 
  • #16
Hey MIH, I only had them together for a very short time. I know it can take awhile for them to get used to each other but in my apartment there was just no way I could keep them separate. I only had one litterbox...ect and the place is just to small.
 
  • #17
YAY THE CAT's OWNERS CAME TO GET IT! I am so happy it got to go home :D :D
 
  • #18
Good news, scorpa! You probably saved its life.:approve:
 
  • #19
Yey! The kitty was saved by Scorpa!
 
  • #20
Nice job, Scorpa!
 
  • #21
scorpa said:
YAY THE CAT's OWNERS CAME TO GET IT! I am so happy it got to go home :D :D
Whew! Great news!
 
  • #22
scorpa said:
YAY THE CAT's OWNERS CAME TO GET IT! I am so happy it got to go home :D :D

That's great news! See, and you were all worried for nothing...everything turned out exactly right...you took the cat to the place the owners would know to look for it.

One of my neighbors has flyers posted around about a missing cat now. :frown: And, while I have seen a cat wandering around here recently (well, Ember was very insistent about pointing out the intruder through the window), it's not the same one, so that means there are two wandering around. I fear for the worst for their cat though...the road in front of us is just too busy for a cat to be safe outside here, and I know we have coyotes in the area (I didn't realize how close until recently...the farm where the sheep were attacked last year was only a couple miles away), not to mention the neighbors who always have their badly trained dogs off leash. :grumpy:
 
  • #23
Moonbear said:
I fear for the worst for their cat though...the road in front of us is just too busy for a cat to be safe outside here, and I know we have coyotes in the area (I didn't realize how close until recently...the farm where the sheep were attacked last year was only a couple miles away), not to mention the neighbors who always have their badly trained dogs off leash. :grumpy:
I have been warning my neighbors who moved up here from Mass to keep their cat inside at night. As I roam around here deer-hunting, I see lots of fisher tracks in muddy/sandy places. Fishers are the only animals around here that are fast enough and tough enough to kill and eat porcupines (their preferred food), and they will gladly revert to eating house-cats...weak, easy kills.
 
  • #24
That's to bad. Outside definitely isn't the place for a cat to be. In the city here there isn't much problem with coyotes of course, but of course there is the traffic...and there was been a problem over the last 2 years or so with creeps who seem to get joy out of torturing cats and leaving them hanging on peoples vehicles. It is just disgusting. There was definitely no way I was leaving that poor cat where it was.
 
  • #25
Great news Scorpa!

Now that I have moved closer to the city, my cat has to remain indoors for his safety. He is so depressed since he's always been able to run free. He's used to running across empty fields and laying out in the sun. He's getting fat without the excersize. I'm going to have to get him used to a harness and get him outside.
 
  • #26
Evo said:
Great news Scorpa!

Now that I have moved closer to the city, my cat has to remain indoors for his safety. He is so depressed since he's always been able to run free. He's used to running across empty fields and laying out in the sun. He's getting fat without the excersize. I'm going to have to get him used to a harness and get him outside.

Aww...poor Dr. Foofer. Yeah, sounds like you moved into a pretty small place compared to even the house he was used to. I have toys everywhere for Ember so she doesn't get bored (I make her run up and down the stairs to catch her fuzzy mice, balls and feather lures, so she gets lots of exercise...though she got her booster shots yesterday and is just moping around today acting grouchy :frown:). I got her used to a harness too, though the neighbors' dogs must all have fleas, because every time I took her outside, she'd come in with a stowaway flea. It took a little time to get her used to it, but with some patience, it can be done. I started out with just putting it on, giving her a treat, and taking it back off about a minute later, and then gradually started to put it on and let her play with the end of the lead (that was more fun than a treat). When I first put it on her, she crouch down and roll around and definitely was focused on getting it off. When she stopped rolling around so much, and just crouched down, I would use the lead or a feather lure to distract her and get her walking with the harness on. It's not like walking a dog where you are in the lead and they follow. I had to just let her do the leading while I followed to get her used to the idea of this thing around her and me following.

I haven't gone so far as to try walking her around the block or anything...I think I'd laugh to hard at myself for that. But, she can go out on the deck with me on nice days and chase falling leaves or crickets. I used to let her go out and play in the grass too, but that's where she was picking up the fleas, so she only gets to go as far as I do on the deck now (I've sprayed the lawn for fleas, but of course I'm also not letting her walk through insecticide-sprayed lawn either). Then again, I have her fooled into thinking the garage is someplace she's not supposed to be, so it's a really big treat if she "sneaks" past me into the garage.

Or, you could just put up your Christmas tree early. :biggrin: I started to assemble mine this weekend (so I can do the rest of the decorating over the Thanksgiving weekend), and Ember is once again enjoying climbing it. Which reminds me that I need to get some string to secure it to the wall so she doesn't topple it...she's not as light as she was last year, but now wants to climb all the way to the top...I've been half hoping she will knock it over before I start putting on ornaments so she'll be scared away from it, but also worried that she'll crash it into something that I don't want broken (like me or her!)
 
  • #27
Moonbear said:
Aww...poor Dr. Foofer. Yeah, sounds like you moved into a pretty small place compared to even the house he was used to. I have toys everywhere for Ember so she doesn't get bored (I make her run up and down the stairs to catch her fuzzy mice, balls and feather lures, so she gets lots of exercise...though she got her booster shots yesterday and is just moping around today acting grouchy :frown:). I got her used to a harness too, though the neighbors' dogs must all have fleas, because every time I took her outside, she'd come in with a stowaway flea. It took a little time to get her used to it, but with some patience, it can be done. I started out with just putting it on, giving her a treat, and taking it back off about a minute later, and then gradually started to put it on and let her play with the end of the lead (that was more fun than a treat). When I first put it on her, she crouch down and roll around and definitely was focused on getting it off. When she stopped rolling around so much, and just crouched down, I would use the lead or a feather lure to distract her and get her walking with the harness on. It's not like walking a dog where you are in the lead and they follow. I had to just let her do the leading while I followed to get her used to the idea of this thing around her and me following.

I haven't gone so far as to try walking her around the block or anything...I think I'd laugh to hard at myself for that. But, she can go out on the deck with me on nice days and chase falling leaves or crickets. I used to let her go out and play in the grass too, but that's where she was picking up the fleas, so she only gets to go as far as I do on the deck now (I've sprayed the lawn for fleas, but of course I'm also not letting her walk through insecticide-sprayed lawn either). Then again, I have her fooled into thinking the garage is someplace she's not supposed to be, so it's a really big treat if she "sneaks" past me into the garage.

Or, you could just put up your Christmas tree early. :biggrin: I started to assemble mine this weekend (so I can do the rest of the decorating over the Thanksgiving weekend), and Ember is once again enjoying climbing it. Which reminds me that I need to get some string to secure it to the wall so she doesn't topple it...she's not as light as she was last year, but now wants to climb all the way to the top...I've been half hoping she will knock it over before I start putting on ornaments so she'll be scared away from it, but also worried that she'll crash it into something that I don't want broken (like me or her!)
Great advice, thanks! Since he's almost 10 years old, even though he's very laid back, I know he's going to think I've lost my mind, but maybe the sights and smells outside will be enough of a diversion for him.

Right now I have a box in front of a window with the blinds raised where he sits and watches the squirrels. We didn't have squirrels before since there were no big trees and he didn't dare mess with the possums, well, he did get bitten that one time. He's just not a fighter. He's also not a hunter and he won't play with cat toys. I dangle them in front of him and he just walks off. :frown:

Both Foof and Ricco are so bored that every time I sit in front of the computer, they jump into my lap. I've started wearing satin pajama pants and they jump up, skid off my lap and back onto the floor. :biggrin:
 
  • #28
Evo said:
Right now I have a box in front of a window with the blinds raised where he sits and watches the squirrels. We didn't have squirrels before since there were no big trees and he didn't dare mess with the possums, well, he did get bitten that one time. He's just not a fighter. He's also not a hunter and he won't play with cat toys. I dangle them in front of him and he just walks off. :frown:

Hmm...that's tougher if he isn't interested in cat toys. Ember thinks EVERYTHING is a cat toy, so I haven't had that problem. :rolleyes: She steals anything small enough for her to carry.

I have her scratching post in front of the picture window at the front of the house, so she can sit on it (has a platform on top) and watch what's going on outside. She's usually more interested in looking out the back door though, which has windows down at her level so she can just sit on the floor...that's where the bird feeder is, so she watches and chatters at birds. From watching what the farm cats are doing, I'm not sure they do a whole lot during the day other than lounge around anyway. But, maybe you could get him one of those things I call cat gymnasiums...the scratching-post-like things that have extra seats and are tall and give them something interesting to climb, or different levels of "perches" to sit on and watch what's going on around.

If he's not really a hunter, I'm not sure how helpful this would be, but instead of cat toys, you could put little bits of food or treats in things he has to spend a little time working to get open. That's what they do with the "big cats" at zoos to keep them from getting bored too, it's like puzzles for them to work at getting food and then they get the food as a treat when they figure it out. But, he might just decide the food dish is easier...at least he'd have the option.

I'm laughing at the mental picture of the animals skidding of your lap with silk pajamas. :rofl: How about getting him some tunnels to run through? Ember really likes those too. She thinks she's being clever hiding in them before she ambushes my ankles in the morning...you'd think after a year of playing the same game, she'd be tired of it, but this morning when she wasn't being playful, that's when I noticed she wasn't feeling well after her shots...I walked past the tunnel and didn't get tackled!

Or, if skidding off silk pajamas seems to be fun for them, maybe find something to suit that interest. What about finding one of those little plastic slides for toddlers? You know, the ones that are about 2 ft high? You could try putting some carpet on the rungs as a scratching post type thing, and a little at the very top of the platform, and then they could slide on the slide part of that for some reason intrigued them.
 
  • #29
Those are great ideas. I'm going to have to invest in some sort of cat castle/gymnasium. Especially since Foofer has taken to the armchair as a scratching post. :grumpy:
 
  • #30
Evo, maybe you and your cat could find an "exercise" game to play together that needn't involve toys, since he doesn't seem interested in them.

My late ferret Turbo got plenty of exercise because he absolutely loved "ferret bowling". I'd slap my hands of the floor and he would run over and play a game of "keep away" until he wanted to be caught, then I'd flip him onto his back, tickle him and rough him up (getting play-bites in return), then I'd scale him across the slippery Pergo floor on his back until he could right himself and get his little legs churning to stop the sliding and run back for another round. Usually, after 15 minutes or so, he'd be all tuckered out and he would come back to me and put his front legs on my leg, wanting to be picked up and held so he could take a snooze.
 
  • #31
turbo-1 said:
Evo, maybe you and your cat could find an "exercise" game to play together that needn't involve toys, since he doesn't seem interested in them.

My late ferret Turbo got plenty of exercise because he absolutely loved "ferret bowling". I'd slap my hands of the floor and he would run over and play a game of "keep away" until he wanted to be caught, then I'd flip him onto his back, tickle him and rough him up (getting play-bites in return), then I'd scale him across the slippery Pergo floor on his back until he could right himself and get his little legs churning to stop the sliding and run back for another round. Usually, after 15 minutes or so, he'd be all tuckered out and he would come back to me and put his front legs on my leg, wanting to be picked up and held so he could take a snooze.
Aww, that's so sweet! I guess I can keep him going for awhile with the satin pants, except he's starting to learn to jump with his claws out now. :grumpy:
 
  • #32
turbo-1 said:
Evo, maybe you and your cat could find an "exercise" game to play together that needn't involve toys, since he doesn't seem interested in them.

My late ferret Turbo got plenty of exercise because he absolutely loved "ferret bowling". I'd slap my hands of the floor and he would run over and play a game of "keep away" until he wanted to be caught, then I'd flip him onto his back, tickle him and rough him up (getting play-bites in return), then I'd scale him across the slippery Pergo floor on his back until he could right himself and get his little legs churning to stop the sliding and run back for another round. Usually, after 15 minutes or so, he'd be all tuckered out and he would come back to me and put his front legs on my leg, wanting to be picked up and held so he could take a snooze.

That could work too. Ember and I do things like that too...I don't bowl her :uhh: but we do wrestle and play "fight." (Can you tell she's an active cat?) Sometimes she'll sit up and I'll just bat at her paws like we're sparring, or I'll tickle her belly while she bunny kicks me, etc., and then she'll have enough, run off, and 30 sec later come back for more. :biggrin: We play "tag" too. The scratching post is "base." She'll run up, bat me in the leg, I'll give chase around the sofas, give her a tumble and scratch behind the ears, she'll take her turn again, and when she's had enough, she runs to the scratching post and practically hugs the thing, which signals the game is over.

Of course, right now, she's still too grouchy to play anything. :frown: She had no reaction whatsoever to her shots last year, but this year, the rabies shot seems to have gotten to her (that's the one that left a tender lump...since she got that shot over her hip, I can't really pick her up at all and support her weight without bumping it, and she's definitely not feeling her usual self...I was holding her in my lap and she was just growling, but not trying to bite or run or any of the things we usually play at when I hold her...I hate that...I know she doesn't feel well and there's nothing I can do to comfort her or make her feel better other than let her run off and hide...the only comfort I have is that I know it's just from the shots and will get better quickly).
 

1. How did the cat travel from Regina to California?

The cat in the book, "A Cat's Journey: From Regina to California and Beyond," traveled by plane. The owner of the cat had to make special arrangements with the airline to ensure the cat's safety during the flight. The cat was placed in a carrier and stored in the cargo area of the plane.

2. What inspired the author to write this book?

The author of "A Cat's Journey: From Regina to California and Beyond" was inspired to write this book by their own cat's journey from Regina to California. They wanted to share their experience and show how resilient and adaptable cats can be when faced with a big move.

3. Is this book suitable for all ages?

Yes, "A Cat's Journey: From Regina to California and Beyond" is suitable for all ages. It is a heartwarming story that can be enjoyed by both children and adults. However, younger children may require some assistance with reading certain parts of the book.

4. Does the cat encounter any challenges during its journey?

Yes, the cat in "A Cat's Journey: From Regina to California and Beyond" does encounter some challenges during its journey. From adjusting to a new environment to dealing with the stress of traveling, the cat faces some obstacles. However, it also shows resilience and determination throughout the journey.

5. Is this book based on a true story?

Yes, "A Cat's Journey: From Regina to California and Beyond" is based on a true story. The author's cat did make the journey from Regina to California, and the book is a fictionalized account of their experience. However, some parts of the story may be embellished for storytelling purposes.

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