There's a cat in my garden...
It's a young male with a collar that's missing its medal, no older than a year and a half. He's caramel orange with white stripes and has captivating golden eyes and a meowing voice that's got such a pleading tone it's impossible for me to leave it at the mercy of the elements... and my heartless neighbors. He's been operated on the front paws and seems also castrated, though I'm not sure for the last part.
He looks and behaves like a lost kitten, seeking protection and shelter by meowing at my doorstep and pawing at the door as if asking to be let in so he can take a breather from the wild and sleep in a safe place. It's obvious he's domesticated, for he does not shy from human contact - he actually tries to get some from us all, with mixed results ranging from a rare petting of the back to a cold dousing from the hose, courtesy of the owner of the apartment.
It's the second cat in less than a week that has pawed at my doorstep, looking for shelter. Although I wouldn't mind at all to let him in and take care of him until I find his rightful owner, circumstances at home leave me unable to provide him the shelter he seeks so desperately. Thus the poor kit ended up sleeping outside, with little to protect him from the storms that are currently hitting my country. Seeing him search for a dry place broke my heart, because we're in the middle of a city and there are no openings in the walls for him for him to shift into a potential hideout. The only thing I can give him is food and water so he can toughen out the heat of the summer. I tried building him a makeshift little shed, but gave up that action when the owner glared daggers at me.
I can only think that his owner either lost him, or abandoned him. If it's the former, the only thing I can do is knock from door to door on my street and ask the same question: "Does this cat belong to you?". I don't have high hopes it will work, though I can still try. Posting an ad on Internet as well as in the neighborhood on paper would be great, if only my camera wasn't broken.
If it's the latter case, I don't know what to do. I don't have the money to get the kit into an adoption center. Leaving him to fend for himself would be cruel since he lacks the knowledge of how to survive in the wilds, and adopting him myself is an impossibility at the moment. No one I know is interested in taking care of a cat, since they either already have one or don't want any. Time is ticking by, because the neighbors are getting tired of hearing him meow for shelter. I fear they will chase him out of the cemented garden or worse, kill him. The apartment's owner is getting restless, for his daughter is asthmatic and the kit is proving a danger to her health.
In a situation like this, what should I do?
He looks and behaves like a lost kitten, seeking protection and shelter by meowing at my doorstep and pawing at the door as if asking to be let in so he can take a breather from the wild and sleep in a safe place. It's obvious he's domesticated, for he does not shy from human contact - he actually tries to get some from us all, with mixed results ranging from a rare petting of the back to a cold dousing from the hose, courtesy of the owner of the apartment.
It's the second cat in less than a week that has pawed at my doorstep, looking for shelter. Although I wouldn't mind at all to let him in and take care of him until I find his rightful owner, circumstances at home leave me unable to provide him the shelter he seeks so desperately. Thus the poor kit ended up sleeping outside, with little to protect him from the storms that are currently hitting my country. Seeing him search for a dry place broke my heart, because we're in the middle of a city and there are no openings in the walls for him for him to shift into a potential hideout. The only thing I can give him is food and water so he can toughen out the heat of the summer. I tried building him a makeshift little shed, but gave up that action when the owner glared daggers at me.
I can only think that his owner either lost him, or abandoned him. If it's the former, the only thing I can do is knock from door to door on my street and ask the same question: "Does this cat belong to you?". I don't have high hopes it will work, though I can still try. Posting an ad on Internet as well as in the neighborhood on paper would be great, if only my camera wasn't broken.
If it's the latter case, I don't know what to do. I don't have the money to get the kit into an adoption center. Leaving him to fend for himself would be cruel since he lacks the knowledge of how to survive in the wilds, and adopting him myself is an impossibility at the moment. No one I know is interested in taking care of a cat, since they either already have one or don't want any. Time is ticking by, because the neighbors are getting tired of hearing him meow for shelter. I fear they will chase him out of the cemented garden or worse, kill him. The apartment's owner is getting restless, for his daughter is asthmatic and the kit is proving a danger to her health.
In a situation like this, what should I do?