These are signs our cat might be cheating on us.
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We might be surprised at how often and easily an outdoor cat can create a network of people they visit for food, attention, and love.
A friend of mine did not realize her distinctively marked cat had claimed another family until picking up her pictures at the local drug store. Another women in line caught sight of them, exclaimed over how much that cat looked like hers, and it turned out my friend was only this cat’s evening family. While the house was empty all day, the cat was spending time with his “other” family, who had small children and a stay at home mother.
Over the years, I have heard so many similar stories I can only regard it as yet another way cats, despite their reputation for aloofness, really do have a bottomless well of affection for those who treat them properly.
We might be part of a cat’s network ourselves. Is there a neighborhood cat who is willing to be petted? Has they convinced us they are hungry so we leave some food out for them? Do they seem to appear at the same times every day? Do we decide the cat’s fed and cared for appearance means they do have a home somewhere?
Well, they might. Or, they might not.
Intrepid, friendly cats can find enough welcoming spaces in a neighborhood so that they can stay warm and fed and petted, putting up the successful appearance of “being owned” so well that everyone assumes they are.
Often, this cat situation is only exposed when the cat is involved in an accident, and it is discovered that no one really owns this cat. Hopefully, enough people care to get them back on their feet again, and they are allotted a real home. I know a few people who got their cats this way.
Unexpected events can happen another way, too. When we move, we take our outdoor cat. If our outdoor cat has another family, they can move away, and take “our” cat with them.
Then there’s the famous case of the British cat nicknamed Macavity, who uses public transportation as part of his daily round. His destination? A local fish and chip shop.
These examples illustrate how little control we have over what our cat gets up to when they are outside and unsupervised. Some of these adventures can be benign, even amusing, but some are not.
After all, it’s the friendly cat who is most easily acquired by those who don’t have good intentions, as well as those who do.
Just another aspect of the indoor/outdoor argument.
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There’s more ways to get our cat to be affectionate in The Way of Cats than the article you are reading now. See all of my CAT AFFECTION posts.
