This is another brilliant example of the benefits of micro-chipping cats. Is also a little tale which highlights the mentality of the domestic cat because sometimes even in the best homes domestic cats who are allowed outside go wandering and don’t come back. This puzzles people. It is often not because of the cat’s caretakers but because of the cat’s mentality. That independence and that inherent wild cat nature comes to the fore sometimes and some domestic cats almost revert to the wild or they prefer to share their presence with more than one family which is a halfway stage between domestication and wild living.
Miko and Elena: Photograph: Bernd von Jutrczenka / AFP / Getty Images
The cat in question this time is Miko. He lived with a family in Berlin until 2008. He then went missing and despite the usual strenuous efforts to find him it was to no avail.
The family learned on this Christmas Day just past that their cat Miko had been found and taken to a local refuge centre. He was found only a few kilometres from his home area. This once again also tells us that when outdoor domestic cats go missing they often won’t be far away. There are simply roaming around in what they consider to be there home range – the territory outside of the family household in which they consider their home. For the domestic cat the home range is rarely more than a several acres but could extend further.
Elena Hanke was 11 years old when she lost her beloved black-and-white cat. She is now 18 and delighted to be reunited with him. As mentioned in the title, it was thanks to micro-chipping that Miko was reunited with his human caretakers.
Miko was healthy albeit a little thin when found which to me indicates that he was behaving as a community type cat rather than a feral cat. This means he was probably sharing his home with other people but living outside some of the time.
Elena was reunited with her long lost cat companion at the shelter when she went to pick him up with her father and sister Jennifer.
The power of the microchip cannot be underestimated sometimes. It brought this family their best Christmas present in a long while. The big question that remains now is whether Miko will remain in their household and not repeat his escapades. He is probably of the type who likes to wonder. You can’t get that out of a cat’s system except for the passage of time bringing on old age.
There is one last philosophical point: does Miko want to be rescued and reunited? Perhaps he enjoyed his roaming, semi-wild life.
Source: Guardian and my thanks to Elisa Black-Taylor.
This question is “do we allow our pet cat to follow their wild nature, even though they are domesticated?” And if they don’t return due to choice, or the many risks present to free roaming cats, we can feel pleased that we afforded them their natural traits?
I think that cats and dogs rely on us for basics such as food, shelter, and life saving care. Cats are better at finding food, although some of it may be poisoned by a cat hating neighbor. But isn’t that part of the risk of being wild? We know that feral and outdoor cats don’t live as long as indoor only cats.
Cats and dogs are like children, and don’t have the capacity or awareness to avoid subtle or hidden dangers, like moving vehicles, anti-freeze, poisonous plants, aggressive animals or people who would coax them in, then abuse in horrific ways.
I remember talking to the director of a rescue organization while trying to capture two feral kittens. She said “They’re just like any other wild animal, and will survive or not.” I tried to see them as she described, but somehow I couldn’t wrap my mind around it.
I’ve had indoor outdoor cats most of my life, and have never lost one. But these days, I feel more protective of my cat, Mitzy, even though she lived on the street as a feral from birth, for over a year.
She’s micro-chipped, but doesn’t wear a collar. I keep her indoors though her preference would be outdoors. I do take her out with a cat jacket and leash. She has broken free twice, chasing another cat, out into the street. I watched as cars moved in both directions passing each other, and hoped she wouldn’t be hit. She escaped unharmed, although my stress level went up a few notches.
Most times I actually let go of the leash, and let her roam freely, but I’m very close by and watchful. We stay out for 15-20 minutes, then I carry her back in. She doesn’t walk in willingly.
I met a woman recently, and noticed that her cat was indoor outdoor, and she lived on a large property that was very close to a busy road. She admitted that her previous cats had died from being hit by a car, or killed by a predator. But she believes that it’s important to let cats be free.
Maybe I’m too protective, but I don’t feel comfortable letting my cat be free. If I’d felt that way, I wouldn’t have rescued her from a life on the streets.
I want to recommend a couple of books I just finished. On is “The House Ca~How to Keep Your Indoor Cat Sane and Sound.” I don’t agree with everything she says, like “dry food cleans their teeth”, but most of it makes good sense. The other book is “The Nine Emotional LIves of Cats~ A Journey into the Feline Heart.”