- Joined
- Dec 5, 2014
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Hi Y'all,
We've had this cat hanging around our house since we moved in a few months ago but haven't interacted with him much until recently. I used to leave him a few pieces of turkey outside just when I had some spare so really not very often, maybe once every other week. I thought he was probably someones cat in the neighborhood but we realized recently that he is actually living under our house.
A few days ago I came home and while I was outside he approached me, and my roommate and I sat out there playing and hanging out with him for a few hours. We got some food and have been leaving a little bit outside for him everyday and put down a box with a blanket for him to lay in. He is truly the friendliest, sweetest cat I have ever interacted with and I would love to take him in. The major problem is that we're about to leave town for almost a month and I don't want him to get too dependent on us right before we leave. As soon as I am home I would LOVE to care for him as my own cat and will absolutely do so, but I am worried that he will feel abandoned if we continue to feed and play with him every day and then leave him for an extended period of time. He has clearly grown really fond of us and is laying right outside our back door as we speak. He seems healthy and happy and I have a feeling the neighbors and the church next door are feeding him, but I'm honestly not totally sure.
My question to you is what is the best thing for us to do in this situation? I really do want to keep him as my own outdoor cat once I am home and it seems like hes more than ready for us to do so, but I'm so worried that the poor thing is going to grow too dependent if we keep interacting like this and leaving him food all of the time and then leave him for over three weeks. Should we be leaving food out this often? And is it selfish of me to not call a humane shelter because I want him as my own?
Thanks for your help!
We've had this cat hanging around our house since we moved in a few months ago but haven't interacted with him much until recently. I used to leave him a few pieces of turkey outside just when I had some spare so really not very often, maybe once every other week. I thought he was probably someones cat in the neighborhood but we realized recently that he is actually living under our house.
A few days ago I came home and while I was outside he approached me, and my roommate and I sat out there playing and hanging out with him for a few hours. We got some food and have been leaving a little bit outside for him everyday and put down a box with a blanket for him to lay in. He is truly the friendliest, sweetest cat I have ever interacted with and I would love to take him in. The major problem is that we're about to leave town for almost a month and I don't want him to get too dependent on us right before we leave. As soon as I am home I would LOVE to care for him as my own cat and will absolutely do so, but I am worried that he will feel abandoned if we continue to feed and play with him every day and then leave him for an extended period of time. He has clearly grown really fond of us and is laying right outside our back door as we speak. He seems healthy and happy and I have a feeling the neighbors and the church next door are feeding him, but I'm honestly not totally sure.
My question to you is what is the best thing for us to do in this situation? I really do want to keep him as my own outdoor cat once I am home and it seems like hes more than ready for us to do so, but I'm so worried that the poor thing is going to grow too dependent if we keep interacting like this and leaving him food all of the time and then leave him for over three weeks. Should we be leaving food out this often? And is it selfish of me to not call a humane shelter because I want him as my own?
Thanks for your help!