Some, but definitely not all, of the ferals are back

[Siwsan]

This morning most were here, patiently waiting. I didn't see Spooky but as I was heading into the house, she came running from across the street. I have no idea where she stays but it's definitely a distance from the rest of the ferals.

The beautiful fluffy grey one is getting a little more comfortable around me.

So I'm relieved. I know it's to be expected they will come and go, and some will not return. Skittish, Scooter and Spooky have been coming by to eat for over 4 years, now. I still expect to see Mittens the Kitten come running up. I'm really miss her but I am sure her spirit is still here.

[wnylib]

1. Good to know that they are back.

[Walleye]

2. Excellent. Tiger was late coming for supper last night. But he finally showed up

I know how you feel I’ve been feeding him 12 years now. I dread the day he doesn’t show. I do think he has a warm place to stay out of his cold. So he will probably wait till he gets hungry enough to go out in the cold

[2naSalit]

3. As someone mentioned...

A day or two ago, there may have been some kind of predator about that they were avoiding.

Glad most are back. Has it been really cold this last week?

[Siwsan]

7. It's been seasonally cold

But temps will be in the high 30's and low 40's, with very little snow in the forecast

[2naSalit]

9. That's the way it's been here...

For a while though we've been seeing 50 the last few days. It's cooling down now, though and we're expecting snow around Thursday but still not really cold.

[ashredux]

4. Sad to say...life spans for feral cats is very short

[niyad]

5. Good to know. I have been sending vibes. Your outdoor babies are as much a

part of our family as your precious indoor babies.

[lark]

6. We feed ferals around the neighborhood, but Speedy was missing all last week.

We'd been feeding him since he was dumped as a kitten over 3 years ago, but he wasn't around all last week for the first time. We left food in the same place, just not as much, and every day it was gone. Today he walked right up, only a little skinny, definitely not like a cat who hadn't eaten in a week. We don't know if he was eating the food we left or was at someone's house, but just glad he was looking ok.

[housecat]

8. Our sweet tuxedo Spooky was here every day for ten years. I suspect the worst, because she and

two other black cats disappeared within a few days of each other. Spooky wouldn't consider coming inside, but she would sit outside on the window sill for hours in the coldest weather even after she ate a warm meal. I can still see her and get teary.

[Doremus]

10. Our 'feral' stray is gone this year, into her forever home

After working with her for 5 years, we finally were able to get her into a carrier and to the vet's for a checkup with an eye toward bringing her into our house and living with our senior kitty resident.

The vet knew her backstory and was as shocked as I when she discovered she was CHIPPED. All this time her family was less than a mile away from us. They really wanted her back. Better believe I grilled the hell out of them about how she ended up stray (in the midst of moving she dashed out the door) and was she now going to stay inside forever (emphatic yes). They paid the vet bill of $300 which comforted any remaining skepticism.