Question
Can cats (almost an year old) find food and survive for themselves?
TL;DR
During my eight months of staying alone in lockdown, I had come across a stray cat in my building (may be ~4-6 months old at that time) and I have been giving it food/water and it is a really familiar being to me now. I am leaving to my home for about 2 months and I can't take this cat with me (strict family reasons) and I want to leave it here. My home is over 1500kms away. The thing is I am very worried whether it can find sufficient food and water during my absence.
Note
- I have seen it hunt birds, squirrels and rats during these 5 months.
- Sometimes it goes away for a day or so and returns later. This might be normal cat behaviour, I don't know much, frankly.
- I have planned to give cat food to the building caretakers to keep it in the plate I had kept outside my flat. I have been placing the food in the same place so that it knows where to look when it needs to.
Edit 1
- Cat almost always stays in my room these days. It goes onto other buildings from my balcony but returns back in a few hours.
I am very unfamiliar with pets. A little help/suggestions in this area would be helpful to make things better.
Answer
If it’s possible, ask a neighbor to keep an eye on the cat. If you say that he goes outside then it’s possible someone else might be feeding him as well.
Cats are usually very resilient. We were feeding a cat for more than two years, but then due to an issue with the other residents we had to stop feeding it. He naturally adapted. We didn’t see any decline in his health which meant he was getting food. Also, from time to time he would see us and come over but not ask for food.
Also, as my vet says, cats have an amazing talent for finding people who can feed them.
Answered By - electrophile