Reasons to consider returning lost cat to family

Dear Cathy: I found a cat on the street with a collar but no tag. I fed her and took her to my vet’s office to check for a microchip. Since no microchip was found, I had her blood checked for HIV, etc., and her teeth cleaned people grew up thinking it was OK to do. It takes time to educate people about the safety of keeping cats indoors, but this practice, in general, doesn’t mean they are bad cat owners.

While ID tags and microchips are also the hallmarks of a responsible pet owner, not having them doesn’t mean the person doesn’t love their pet. What it often means is that they either don’t understand the importance of ID’ing their pets or don’t have the resources to pay for a microchip. With their cat now missing, it’s possible they may regret not providing proper ID.

As you are now seeing, some cats are very persistent about wanting to go outside. As a result, some cat owners give in to this pressure and let their cats outside at night. I am not saying this is right, but some people still think it’s OK to do.

So, my question to you is, what would you want someone to do if the situation was reversed and it was your kitty that didn’t come home one night? Would you hope and pray someone would call you about your cat? I know you already love this cat and have invested money into her welfare too, but if your answer is yes, you would want someone to call you, then I think you know what you have to do.

Dear Cathy: Here is another tip for the Christmas tree. I put the tree and gifts in a corner and surround them with an X-Pen. I can enjoy the lights and holiday colors, and the curious hounds can’t get into mischief. — Sharon, via email

Dear Sharon: Placing an X-Pen (which is like a playpen for dogs) around your Christmas tree is a great tip for keeping your dogs away. It won’t work at all for cats, but it’s a great tip for dogs. Thanks for sharing.

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