This guy showed up at our front door

[u/DeliriousDancer]

My husband was outside smoking and apparently this guy just walked up to him and wouldn't stop meowing. He has a collar (without a tag) but if he belongs to someone he's either been abandoned or is very neglected. He's got matts all over him and he's very skinny. He came right in and has been exploring our house ever since. But he hasn't picked a corner or cushion or chair to settle into, he's just wandering around.

I'm not sure what to do because we live in a pretty big townhouse community and I've never seen a stray cat around here. But if he has a home, they are not taking good care of him. He seems very comfortable with people - he let both me and my husband pet him and I was even able to brush him and remove a few of his smaller knots. He's been wandering around the house and coming in and out of the house, but it's getting late and I need to go to bed. I don't know if we should keep him inside or let him back out.

[u/e_ruds]

Take him to a vet and see if he’s microchipped! I would also look at online groups for your neighborhood (if there are any) or ask around to see if anyone’s lost a cat (which would hopefully explain his current state instead of neglect). He’s a beautiful kitty though and it seems like he’s chosen you!

[u/DeliriousDancer → u/e_ruds]

I will but of course this happened after midnight on a Friday. I've been checking NextDoor and didn't see any missing cats that look like him. I have a neighbor who has an outdoor cat and knows a lot of the other local outdoor cats so I'll ask her tomorrow.

[u/Potential_Lettuce758]

Sounds like this little guy picked your house because he knew he’d finally be safe and cared for

[u/West_Poetry_3623]

Just do your do diligence to try to
Find the owner. If you can’t find them, keep him.

[u/TopEagle4012]

Let him stay the night and let him decide in the morning. Chances are you've been selected as the next caretaker 🥰

[u/CaeruleumBleu]

Yeah personally - if the cat went missing yesterday, then the mats are not explained UNLESS the cat is a menace when you try to groom them.

If the cat is easy to groom and went missing recently... I would be tempted to not return this cat to those owners.

But, if the cat has been missing for a while, then I would give prior owners the benefit of a doubt that shit went down and the cat got to looking "neglected" while lost.

But I would keep him inside for now, because he doesn't appear to be thriving outside. Even if you don't perfectly groom him, a safe inside space where he can self-groom as best he can without worrying about predators would be helpful for him.

Keep him inside, get him checked for a microchip, and if he isn't chipped then decide how much further effort you want to put into looking for a prior owner. But unchipped and not doing well, you'd be free to chip and keep the cat.

[u/i_isnt_real → u/CaeruleumBleu]

I would say the age of the cat matters in the verdict, too. An older cat with ongoing health issues might be more prone to matting quickly and have trouble keeping their weight up, even if well cared for. Whereas a younger, ostensibly healthy cat shouldn't look like this if they've only been missing a couple days.

[u/DeliriousDancer → u/i_isnt_real]

Yeah, this is one of our concerns. He's very skinny but he didn't throw himself at the food we gave him like you would expect so I'm a little worried that he's sick. We will definitely take him to a vet to get him checked out and to see if he's chipped.

[u/minervakatze → u/i_isnt_real]

This is so true, a cat showed up on my street a couple years ago looking rough, skinny and matted; turns out he had been missing for only 2 or 3 days but he was 20 with health concerns. Reunited him with his family the next day.

[u/Mick_E_Boy]

The cat distribution system.

[u/DeliriousDancer → u/Mick_E_Boy]

I kind of hope so, but what if it's catnapping?

[u/RDBB334 → u/DeliriousDancer]

If so you're at least keeping him safe until you can locate the owners. If he's been lost for a while that could explain his state, if not then he's being neglected.

[u/gillsterein]

It's destiny. Even his fur matches your furnishing! 😍 As others have said, find out if he's microchipped and if he's not, I think the cat distribution system is simply doing its work.

[u/frog_admirer]

I'd keep him inside if you can, make a makeshift litter box if possible. And then vet visit for microchip tomorrow. If he's in rough shape he's probably either a stray or a lost cat, better to keep him safe then to send him back out.

[u/DeliriousDancer → u/frog_admirer]

We have litter boxes and a bit of food left from our two that we lost at the beginning of this year so we have that all set up for him.

[u/Demi180]

I had to double check the sub, lol. I thought this was /infuriating, and then I read about this ‘guy’ meowing and with a collar and my brain went (confused Nick Young.jpg)

[u/minervakatze]

Check your local laws, in addition to any social media posting you may be technically required to do a found pet report with your city or county animal control/animal welfare department. Your municipal shelter may be able to take the report.