2

There's a neighborhood cat and whenever I open the door she sneaks in. I've moved in the area recently, and I wonder if it has been abandoned before or it visits a few friendly houses and they let it in to feed it and pet it. Currently it sleeps very close to the apartment in which I live in. I am well aware of the fact that sleeping outside is risky and dangerous for cats.

It's ultra polite and basically since day 1 lets me pet it, pick it up, has never bitten me, never hissed just an all around polite cat.

I want to adopt it but there's a very real possibility that I may move in a few months. Worst case scenario 1 hour flight. I am learning that they are very territorial and they bond to places and not people. This scares me a bit, on one hand the option is to let it be a neighborhood cat as I feed it and pet it and then leave it as I move. The other is to adopt it and move with it.

Any ideas?

Improve this question
4
  • 3
    Cats not bonding to people is a myth that couldn't be further from the truth. However, you should probably make sure the cat does not actually have an owner, as otherwise taking it with you might be considered theft in your jurisdiction.
    – bgse
    Commented Oct 30, 2022 at 17:55
  • @bgse I checked she's a stray. The last thing I'd want is to steal someone else's companion and friend!
    – CupOfGreenTea
    Commented Oct 30, 2022 at 18:16
  • 1
    Agree with above to check she isn't someone's indoor/outdoor pet. However if no neighbors claim her it is exceedingly likely that she was abandoned. Cats who have lived outside all their lives with little human contact would not tolerate petting/picking up.
    – Lizbee
    Commented Oct 31, 2022 at 13:12
  • 1
    FYI: How to avoid cat-napping: pets.stackexchange.com/questions/28029/…
    – Allerleirauh
    Commented Oct 31, 2022 at 22:03

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
4

Cats bond very well with people too. I cannot say if the bond is stronger with people or with places, but bonding should not be the deterrent in your case.

If you can arrange for the transportation of the cat and you really want to be together, then do not hesitate and consider it family.

I wish you both a long happy healthy life.

Improve this answer
1

Having moved multiple times with multiple different cats, I can assure you, cats do in fact bond with people, and will bond with a person far more strongly than with a place. The misconception of the reverse is likely what leads to so many cats being sadly abandoned by their families, who think the cat can take care of itself if turned loose and will be happier "staying where it is." That cat would have been much happier staying with its family.

They do experience some discomfort with the initial moving process; it's overwhelming to them, as they're being taken from a territory they know very well to one that's strange and new, filled with stimuli that you and I can't detect which can be upsetting to them. Their routine has been fully disrupted, and they typically need a little time to settle into the new space; keeping a cat confined to a smaller area of the house (similarly to what is recommended by rescues when a cat is initially adopted) can help them become comfortable faster, as well as help prevent them from getting trapped in an area previously unknown to you in an effort to hide and limit the new stimuli that are overwhelming them.

Go ahead and adopt the cat, and when you relocate, please take her with you. Don't do to her what her previous family clearly did to her; she, like all cats, deserves better than that.

Improve this answer
4
  • So it likely has been abandoned? My landlord told me tourists come and they feed them, he said it was a neighborhood cat but she seems comfortable going in and tries to come in everytime i open the door.
    – CupOfGreenTea
    Commented Oct 31, 2022 at 15:23
  • What's its gender btw. imgur.com/a/HNKeg4m
    – CupOfGreenTea
    Commented Oct 31, 2022 at 15:40
  • If none of your neighbors claim her, then yes, it's very likely she no longer has a family. Her comfort at entering your house suggests she sees you as a safe person to be around, and that she has at some previous point been cared for; a cat who had been stray from birth would be fearful and avoid entering your home.
    – Allison C
    Commented Oct 31, 2022 at 19:33
  • @CupOfGreenTea She's a female as far as I can tell.
    – bgse
    Commented Nov 2, 2022 at 13:58

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.