Please contact Judy Ford, 512-656-5113 or email Judith.ford7@icloud.com for this kitty, he is not an ASR kitty but a courtesy listing.

Boris, as I’ve been calling him, has apparently been making the rounds of my neighborhood since 2017. I’ve seen multiple posts from different people he’s gone to for food asking if he belongs to anyone and no one has claimed him. He’s been by my house to eat a few times over the last six months but began coming by more regularly this last March. I was out walking and saw him checking porches for food and called him to follow me home, which he did. He began showing up to eat more frequently after that and then one evening, during a pretty heavy rainstorm, I saw him sitting, sopping wet and with a wounded leg, at my back window. I brought him into my garage and set him up with a space heater and a bed. My daughter works at a vet clinic and was able to get him in to be treated. He was quite ill. He had a fever of 104 and his leg was terribly infected. The vet got the wound cleaned out, gave him some antibiotics, and neutered him. She ordered a full panel on him and aside from testing positive for FIV, he seems to be relatively healthy.

He’s estimated to be 5 - 7 years old, so definitely getting up towards middle-age, but he’s very energetic now that he’s feeling better. I’ve heard him twice now having the “zoomies” up and down the stairs in my house. He’s used his litter box consistently except for one day when I was late cleaning it out and he urinated on the stack of towels I used to make a bed for him. I’ve not been remiss since and neither has he. He’s very vocal and loves full body strokes, head-to-tail. I’ve tested touching this stomach and he tolerates it up to point. I pushed it a little to see how he would react and he grabbed my hand with his mouth and kind of chewed at it but it was not painful and he didn’t break the skin. I’ve touched his paws and not gotten a reaction outside of him pulling them away. He’s grabbed my hand with his mouth a few times in an attempt to get my attention. I pulled my hand away with a stern “no” and ignored him until he switched to rubbing his head against me, which I rewarded with petting. He seems threatened by feet and has swatted at mine in a frustrated manner when I’m walking away from him and when I’ve put a foot up to block him from leaving as I’m shutting the door to the bathroom he’s been sleeping in. He didn’t hurt me but it did make me wonder if he’s been subjected to someone kicking him. We also introduced him to my daughter’s dog. He didn’t react until she got within about a foot of him and then he swatted at her as he backed away so I think he could learn to live with a dog as long as the dog was respectful of his personal space. He will tolerate being picked up football-style and over-the-shoulder and even though he doesn’t react with aggression, it’s clear he doesn’t like it. I’ve not witnessed any other undesirable behavior outside of those instances I mentioned.

I’ve searched and queried for the last month and haven’t found even the faintest lead for a missing cat matching his description and he’s not chipped so I think it’s safe to say, he’s officially in need of a home. The only thing that’s been clear is that he’s been relying on the kindness of strangers for the last four years or so. He’s done incredibly well since he’s been with me, all things considered. He has access to several rooms in my house during the day but I put him in a bathroom at night so my cats can have access to the rest of the house. He enjoys napping on the sofa, and sitting at the picture window and watching what’s going on outside. He’s very lovey and really enjoys being petted. He hides when someone comes to the door and is understandably wary of strangers. Obviously with his FIV status, he will need someone who will commit to keeping him indoors only and because of his habit of using his mouth to set a boundary or to seek attention, I think it would be best for him to be in a home that doesn’t have young children. I’m also not sure he would appreciate sharing his space with another cat. His reaction to hearing my cats on the other side of a door is curious but also a little aggressive, with a lot of strong tail switching and some unhappy, warning-type chirping. His new person or family will need to be patient and allow him time to decompress and learn to trust that he’s in a safe place with safe people. All-in-all, I think he’s a great cat. I feel very protective of him and if my situation was different, I would keep him.

He is currently eating 1/3 can wet food twice a day and allowed free feeding of 1 cup kibble. I’m starting to reduce the amount of food I’m giving him as he’s up to a more optimal weight. He is taking Purina ProPlan FortiFlora which I sprinkle on his kibble, 1 VetriScience Vitality Pro chew at breakfast and 1/2 Composure Pro chew at dinner, each of which I break into smaller pieces and mix with his wet food. He’s doing well with self- regulating his free feeding. I will update after I talk with his vet at his follow-up on Friday, April 16th and get her recommendations for how much he should be eating to maintain his weight.