Yard cats!

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oldie48

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Emaciated and very poorly un-neutered cat showed up a couple of days ago. No identification/micro chip but clearly not feral as very happy to be handled etc. Checked out by my vet and I posted some pics on FB. He's been claimed. Apparently he was their yard cat, is only about 5 but has been on the roam for the past 4 years just visiting from time to time. They are a nice family and I'm quite shocked that they don't think it's necessary to neuter/spay , vaccinate and have some means of identification on a "yard cat". What are your thoughts on the matter? I wanted to keep him (he's currently not well enough to neuter)but they insisted on taking him and they had children with them. They have promised to have him seen by their vet and said they will keep him safe but I guess he'll just wander off again!
 
Highly irresponsible and selfish to let an unnurtured cat 'roam'. isn't there enough unwanted animals in the world without? Maybe suggest this to the owners or seek vet help?
 
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Cats wander - there isn't much you can do about that. But if he is unwell and needs to be seen by a vet you could speak to the RSPCA and ask them to check.
 
Maybe suggest to them that if they neuter then he would be less likely to wonder.
We don't have any identification on our yard card, collars would get caught whilst there hunting and a tag would only jungle and alert it's prey which kind of defeats the whole object.
Was the cat actually under weight or just slim line? Working cats as with any other working animal are often more athletic in build that many people would confuse with being skinny when they are only used to seeing fat pets
 
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rowan666 said:
Maybe suggest to them that if they neuter then he would be less likely to wonder.
We don't have any identification on our yard card, collars would get caught whilst there hunting and a tag would only jungle and alert it's prey which kind of defeats the whole object.
Was the cat actually under weight or just slim line? Working cats as with any other working animal are often more athletic in build that many people would confuse with being skinny when they are only used to seeing fat pets
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Our yard cat[s ] had access to kibble, just to keep them in the loop, thinness might be related to age, sometimes a Tom will adopt a yard, but he will not be a pet, will not be caught and lives in the country. I would not expect him to turn up at another yard tbh, If you were concerned, best to take him to your vet and get him sorted for immediate health check, then decide what to do.
 
Skin and bone and jaundiced. Probably not long for this world, on my vet's advice I was going to try to get the RSPCA to contribute towards cost of blood tests to see if we could find out what's wrong with him, failing that I was going to keep him until he started to show signs that he needed to be PTS, which I was willing to pay for. Vet's prognosis was not optimistic. Really it's the issue of care of yard cats that I was raising, I guess they are not the only people who think this sort of behaviour is acceptable!
rowan666 said:
Maybe suggest to them that if they neuter then he would be less likely to wonder.
We don't have any identification on our yard card, collars would get caught whilst there hunting and a tag would only jungle and alert it's prey which kind of defeats the whole object.
Was the cat actually under weight or just slim line? Working cats as with any other working animal are often more athletic in build that many people would confuse with being skinny when they are only used to seeing fat pets
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He's not a feral cat, has been well handled and was introduced to the yard by his "owner" Should have been neutered and vaccinated IMHO I took him to my vet for a check and to see if he was microchipped.
Bonkers2 said:
Our yard cat[s ] had access to kibble, just to keep them in the loop, thinness might be related to age, sometimes a Tom will adopt a yard, but he will not be a pet, will not be caught and lives in the country. I would not expect him to turn up at another yard tbh, If you were concerned, best to take him to your vet and get him sorted for immediate health check, then decide what to do.
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Yard cats should be as well looked after as pet cats IMO. It is irresponsible of anyone to let an unneutered cat roam and they will be less likely to do so if neutered. They should also be microchipped, especially if likely to roam. We have always found that yard cats catch more if fed as well as being expected to hunt. Ours were always fed biscuits once a day and caught loads of mice, rats, voles, rabbits and even pheasants. They do also tend to be more streamlined, although my cat at home is as well as I don't like to see really fat cats.

Well done for stepping up and offering to help this poor cat. If you are concerned then perhaps mention to he RSPCA or keep an eye out as it sounds like they think that fact he is a yard cat means he does not need to be looked after at all.
 
CPL will neuter FOC, so long as they can return the cat to its original location. Maybe it was the cost putting them off, you could suggest that to them. Mine came from a charity so were neutered, but they have a daily pouch of food (to keep them retuning to the yard) and ad lib kibble and water. An ill undernourished cat isn't going to be a good hunter
 
My 'yard ' cats are neutered and vaccinated I look after them like any cat .
However ATM one is flat out on the dining table the other is sleep in a plant pot in the court yard so 'yard ' is a loose decription .
 
oldie48 said:
Skin and bone and jaundiced. !
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I'm afraid that if tame animals turn up here in that state especially unchipped, I don't make too much effort to find their previous owner. I reckon if they have been allowed to get into that state there is little need for them to be returned for more. I work more on the basis that the previous owner can come and claim them and explain why they are in such a poor state. My yard cats would be fed twice daily. It needs big strong well fed cats to catch the big rats. Mine have always been neutered.
 
Our yard cat is neutered, vaccinated, wormed and flea treated, fed kibble and pouches of meat. He's also very partial to dreamies :) he never goes far and loves fuss, he also likes to go poo picking in the evening to.
 
Spoiled cob said:
Our yard cat is neutered, vaccinated, wormed and flea treated, fed kibble and pouches of meat. He's also very partial to dreamies :) he never goes far and loves fuss, he also likes to go poo picking in the evening to.
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Your yard cat does the poo picking !!! where's your yard ? As she heads off to find the cat box and the dreamiest .
 
mine is neutered, chipped, treated for fleas and wormed monthly in hunting months and jagged. he doesn't wear a collar but he's also the only cat this side of the hill and everyone knows he's mine.
 
Good to know there are responsible people out there! Cat was claimed because I'd put a pic on FB with a rant about not neutering, he actually belongs to people who are about half a mile away cross country and one of their children saw my post which had been shared otherwise I doubt I'd have heard from them! They are in no doubt about what I think and I posted about this, not for advice but to raise the issue as I'm sure these people are not the only ones to treat yard cats in this way. I am hoping that as the children know how poorly the cat is that they will do the decent thing and if he can't be made well again will PTS when needed.
 
Goldenstar said:
My 'yard ' cats are neutered and vaccinated I look after them like any cat .
However ATM one is flat out on the dining table the other is sleep in a plant pot in the court yard so 'yard ' is a loose decription .
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A bit like my yard cat.
I got two from the CPL but they were so wild we never saw them after release until one was killed on the road. When I went to collect him from the vet even though he was truly feral he was a good weight.
The next two I got as kittens from a house and they lived outside as kittens, excellent ratters but eat out and then top up with kibble. You know when the weather is bad they spend longer on the couch. All my cats are vaccinated and chipped, wormed and fed.
The house cats are happy to catch the odd mouse but are definitely not as smart as the outdoor cats.
Daughters expensive part Siamese has now decided after a very sheltered upbringing that outdoors is best.
The trouble with farm cats is if they catch and eat rats they tend to get liver disease, which makes them thin and liable to get sick. Unless they get a high carb low protein diet they will stay thin.
I have had many cats over the years and sometimes no matter how much you think you have made them at home they wander off, one moved next door so he could become top cat, we obviously did not spoil him enough, like his new pet humans. Fair dos .
 
I also feed mine twice daily-never found that hungry cats hunt better, my old cat was at his most prolific straight after tea and he ate his kills. In the winter they live in the utility room welded to their radiator beds-so possibly not purely yard cats ;)
 
Our yard cats all look healthy. One might be leaving though as he is getting into fights with another cat somewhere else who may be unneutered. His owner may take him away as they are loaned to the yard pretty much but she doesn't want him getting hurt and sick again. My friend thought they were too thin but i did reassure her that is the normal size of cats. My own cats are too fat thanks to my mum over feeding them but they still manage to catch mice rabbits and bats on occasion.
 
I had a cat turn up a few years ago in a poor state, took him to my vet who gave him some antibiotics as he had a pretty bad infection on one of his ears which vet thought might have been the reason for his very poor condition. Unfortunately he didn't improve and it turned out he had feline leukemia and we had to PTS. To be honest I never looked for his owner. Unfortunately now you have handed him back there is little you can do.
 
MotherOfChickens said:
I also feed mine twice daily-never found that hungry cats hunt better, my old cat was at his most prolific straight after tea and he ate his kills. In the winter they live in the utility room welded to their radiator beds-so possibly not purely yard cats ;)
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My 'yard cat' has decided at the age of 17 that it's about time he bacame a house cat. Having lived, slept and been fed in the stables he now sleeps on my bed every night, curls up on 'his' chair in the lounge for most of the day, only going out for about an hour in every 24. As he is old I have let him move in but he has always and still does look great. He is very slim, not skinny but a very fit looking cat. He too always hunted straight after a meal and ate whatever he caught. He doesn't catch any more as his eye sight and hearing are failing. Will have to get another stable cat I think.
 
We used to have yard cats. They were almost better cared for than the horses. If you want an animal you quite simply have a duty of care to look after it. Simples.

My own cat is very well fed, and still hunts politically.
 
With a bit of luck if you fed him and were nice to him he may come back..

A friend on Facebook was posting pictures of her kittens and guessing that the Tom was from a neibouring farm due to its markings. When people mentioned neutering them she responded that they were farm cats and needed to breed to catch more mice. I dispair!
 
Yes, the owner seemed quite pleased that he'd been servicing the local cats, I also despair.
Honey08 said:
With a bit of luck if you fed him and were nice to him he may come back..

A friend on Facebook was posting pictures of her kittens and guessing that the Tom was from a neibouring farm due to its markings. When people mentioned neutering them she responded that they were farm cats and needed to breed to catch more mice. I dispair!
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Crugeran Celt said:
My 'yard cat' has decided at the age of 17 that it's about time he bacame a house cat. Having lived, slept and been fed in the stables he now sleeps on my bed every night, curls up on 'his' chair in the lounge for most of the day, only going out for about an hour in every 24. As he is old I have let him move in but he has always and still does look great. He is very slim, not skinny but a very fit looking cat. He too always hunted straight after a meal and ate whatever he caught. He doesn't catch any more as his eye sight and hearing are failing. Will have to get another stable cat I think.
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I would have them in the house more but OH is pretty allergic (he loves them as much as me). They do come into the living room and I have them in there a lot when he's away-I then clean madly and tell him to take antihistamines before he comes home lol.
The tom I lost before xmas was well over 6kg-he would eat anything, and I mean anything including raiding the wheelie bin (which he would open). He was pure muscle though and would bring home hares and rabbits. Current tom is only wee and from a long line of farm cats-he's pretty lean but only just a year old. Doesn't eat his kills quite as much and leaves them for us. I love a big tom cat!
 
Why do you have tom cats, surely there are enough unwanted kittens around and Toms will always stray? You sound a bit like the owner of the cat I rescued and I just don't understand your motives, sorry! Please explain!
MotherOfChickens said:
I would have them in the house more but OH is pretty allergic (he loves them as much as me). They do come into the living room and I have them in there a lot when he's away-I then clean madly and tell him to take antihistamines before he comes home lol.
The tom I lost before xmas was well over 6kg-he would eat anything, and I mean anything including raiding the wheelie bin (which he would open). He was pure muscle though and would bring home hares and rabbits. Current tom is only wee and from a long line of farm cats-he's pretty lean but only just a year old. Doesn't eat his kills quite as much and leaves them for us. I love a big tom cat!
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Nice to know you cared enough to have him checked.
We ended up having a feral/ dumped female have a litter of 6 kittens behind my stable block last summer. CPL were fantastic. We caught then once weaned. They neutered mum and returned her, who now happily visiting most of the houses in the village on a daily basis for goodies!
The wonderful CPL lady kept the kittens for 6 weeks until big enough to neuter and got them use to being handled. 3 went to close friends to have very pampered lives. One ended up living with me and my 2 cats (husband came home from work one day to find kitten asleep on the bed...oops). And the 2 most nervous kittens are back on the farm, causing all sorts of mischief. They cuddle up to the horses and insist on helping when doing the droppings and are right fuss pots. Wouldn't be without them but they are fleaed and wormed just as regularly as my home cats.
 
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