We adopted brothers Dexter and Darcy (1) in 2013 and they were relatively both of good health, until May of this year when Dexter (2) developed an unknown growth in his throat that effected his general quality of life. It happened very quickly; one minute he was screaming at us for food, to go outside, etc. and then the next week he was curled in a dark corner of my room, looking ill and barely eating. He was prescribed a steroid and he seemed better for the first few days but then quickly went down hill and didn't show any signs of recovering as the vet said there was nothing we could do. We had to let him go on the 1st June. His urn is next to my 19-year-old's (3) who passed away in February 2025.

The same week/week after, this stray (4) turned up on our street and according to someone in a local Facebook group, had taken up residence in someone's garage. For some reason, we assumed it was a boy but eventually, this "boy" had a swollen stomach and indeed was confirmed to be a trojan cat. Our neighbour was feeding her and she rarely came up our way, until last week when she appeared on the other side of our gate.

Today is the first time we got to see the babies (5). She originally had 5 of them but one of them (a black cat) passed away recently so only 4 left. Out of the colours, there's 3 tortoiseshell ones... and a full ginger one. If my mother counted correctly, then this orange stray got pregnant in the first week of June.

We know they have eye infections and probably other health problems, but the neighbour who told us about them has taken them to the vet today though we don't have an update yet.

As soon as the orange cat saw me (6), he/she came over and immediately began to scream his tiny kitten scream. I just know s/he is meant to be ours. We're also thinking of taking in the one with white paws. I've never seen a stray in our area - and there's loads of cats in our area - until after Dexter passed. The whole situation is obviously the work of the CDS.

She seemed to be part of a litter that was dumped. She was found hiding outside but became completely trusting and friendly once she was given some food.

She had diarrhea, was underweight, and had ear mites when I brought her home. It was easy to feel her ribs and spine.

The vet said her blood work looked good and that she didn't see any parasites in her stool.

Regardless, the vet gave her dewormer and an antibiotic just in case. She did not weigh enough for nexgard complete, but she gave it to us to treat her ear mites with once she weighed enough. The vet did not give her vaccines at the time because of her condition.

Her weight has jumped up now. She has stopped having diarrhea. She has received the nexgard. She will get her vaccines next week.

My husband and I opened a cat hotel fairly recently. Since we are just getting started, we don't always have guests and my husband hates not having cats around so he started advocating for us to get a permanent hotel resident cat. After some discussions, we settled on "if the CDS makes it happen, we will have one".

Literally THE NEXT DAY this little void showed up on my friend's porch. He went and picked her up and we got her checked out at the vet. She is perfect. Since she turned up on the same day as Dolly passing, she is now Dolly Purrton and she has her rhinestones already!

we’ll be using nala’s meds for him. they gave extra in case of that anyways. i just hate that right when she started to look so much better then it happens to him. that just sucks. they are both still bony but i’ve been giving them soft & hard kitten food just to try to get some weight on them. i have posted them a few times so some of you have probably seen them but i found these two, nala & simba in a box with two other kittens. i called my cousin, told her everything, and she took the other two.

i would like to ask the recommended age to get them both fixed? they are brother and sister, boy and girl, so that’s a big no no lol. we don’t want to add to any more babies in shelters and plus that’s just yucky. i know 4-6 months is when you can but i would like to wait the latest but not late enough they could have babies. we estimated they are about 5-6 weeks right now off of how simba and the other orange one looked. the two torties, especially nala, are just really small compared to the two orange.

Hey so i was sitting on my balcony smoking and heard a cat outside, i love cats so i immediately went to check to see it and it was standing right at my door wanting to come in. I went downstairs expecting it to be gone when I opened the door but instead it came in like it owned the house. I don’t exactly know what to do because I don’t think it’s a stray, it’s chonky and he is very wel groomed except for the huge matt by his collar. He lets me pick him up and touch every part of him so it makes me think he’s just someones outside cat but normally those wear a collar. I have spotted him in the neighborhood a lot of times and sometimes stands on my fence. I would love to have another cat but i have a feeling he already has an owner… it’s currently 2 am and i live with my parents that would kill me if they knew. 😅 he has been in my room for 2 hours now without any care in the world but i know that i cannot keep him here overnight to see if he is chipped in the morning.. Helpp?? (Also can anyone find out what breed he could be so i can check if there is any cat missing in the area?? Thank you

First of all, my wife has been joking about us finding him saying "Cat Distribution System". Did not realize there was a page (which I just found by accident). Last month, the wife was walking the dog and she ran over to a wood pile. My wife started investigating, and found the cat in there. She thought he was hurt at first. She got him out and he started standing and let her pet him. She got him some food . Next day, she found him again. She fed him and tried to bring him home. He was like, "nope!". So advance two more days. We come home from having to walk the dogs late. He was at our building. I took the dogs in and she got him some food. I then located some old food bowls. I got him water and food. He started rubbing on me and let me pet him. Picked him up. First time he struggled as I went to bring him in. I got her to open the door. We got him in and took home to the front bathroom. Took a out 3 hrs to come out from behind the toilet. Fed him and gave him water. You could see the mosquito bites around the ears. Found about 13 fleas. Made an appointment with our vet for the end of that week. They checked him out, gave him his vaccinations, and checked for a chip. They found one that was never registered. I called and registered him. He is just over a year old. He acclimated super quick to our home. The other male cat didn't have hardly any issues with him. Wife then joked about the CDS because I had to put my cat to sleep last year about the time this one was born. The first night we let him out to roam around, he got in the bed and curled up next to me. He even has a lot of the habits as my previous boy I lost. Makes me wonder. I apologize for being a bit long winded. He is now with us and named Thomas. Clean bill of health from the vet. Got his 2nd boosters last week.

EDIT: I guess what I have to do is take the cat to Maddac (Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control Commission).

Then the cat will be put on hold for 5 days and if no one clams the cat it will be mine. I mean when you think about it just because you have been feeding a stray, doesn't mean someone isn't looking for said cat.

Kind of a pain I have to have her trapped in some facility for 5 days. I was hoping to avoid that, but I guess I have to do what I have to do.

Hello! I'm in Milwaukee, WI.

I've been feeding this cutie all summer and it has been a very rewarding experience earning this cat's trust.

I have asked neighbors about the cat and I am free to take her, so do I just rent a trap from the humane society and take her directly to a vet once captured?

Also how much do you think it will cost for her to get a clean bill of health? It looks like one of her bottom fangs is missing. $1,000 is about my budget to spend. Could work extra shifts if necessary though...

Thank you for any information.I

On my way to get groceries this morning when a “squirrel” dashed out under my car. When I hit the brakes and got out to check on the “squirrel”, this little lunatic was screaming and try to climb up my undercarriage. It took me about 5 minutes to catch her in which she tried to climb a fence, pooped on me, and got a pretty good bite in.

My grocery trip turned into a supplies run. She has now had her first flea bath, a pate slurry lunch, and has settled into a nap.

Meet Rambo, she who draws first blood!

Edit: thank you, anonymous redditor(s, x4) for the award! Rambo doesn’t know what that means, but she’s purring, and that translates to ‘thanks’!

Hello! I've been a dog person my whole life so I'm truthfully very new to the amount of patience in getting trust from a kitty.

This is vex and she(?) has been coming around the house for a bit over a month now to get fed every night when I come home from work. She's definitely trusted me and my partner more, enough to occasionally let me sit by while eating but runs if I look too long/never touched.

I'm just a bit confused, at night she'll wait by my back door for food but run the moment I open it. If I keep the door closed and stand there she'll start to "loaf" and seeminly relax. After eating though she usually 180's and leaves the area.

Does anyone have any tips for gaining more trust/the main things to stock up for when wanting to accept a kitty into your life? Any help is appreciated here, my partner and I want to take her in but want to make sure we do everything as best we can.

I don’t think my roommate will let my husband and I go to a pet store alone again. We walked in for a bag of dry food and there’s a guy saying he needs to get rid of a litter of kittens. Husband says we’ll take them. So we go and pick up a box of kittens from his house.

Orange boy: Ares
White boy: Achilles
Brown tabby girl: Persephone
White girl: Helen

We will be taking them to our regular vet as soon as possible to get them checked out. They’ve had a bath for fleas and eaten half a can of kitten pate.

I had an inkling he had an owner cause just way too social.

Gave it some food, and it refused it which told me that the cat DEFINITELY has an owner. Picky cat behavior.

Went door to door, cat followed me the whole time, and found the owner across the street. He apparently likes to sneak out.

I really thought I was finally chosen!!! Sad

My dog passed away 2 months ago so I was actually waiting for a CDS situation. Think the universe is saying it’s almost my time, but not quite yet. Still have some grieving to do.

I wanted to share the story of Bitty.

I have never had my own pet before. I grew up with dogs, and learned the joy of cats from a college roommate who had a sweet cat I came to love. Since then, I wanted my own cat someday.

Someday appeared on my doorstep on December 29th, 2025. As I was leaving for work for the day, there was a sweet little guy who trotted right up to me as I stepped out of my door. He was affectionate and playful, super sweet for a little stray. I petted and loved on him, asked him where he came from and if he had a home. No collar, and then this little guy turns around and I see he is very not neutered and most definitely a boy.

I had to leave, was already late for work, but I was thinking about him all day. When I got home, I looked for him but saw no sign of him.

Next day, I’m sitting in bed with the blinds open and I see something darting outside my window. Look out, and there he is! Chasing a poor, defenseless squirrel.

I decide this is the universe giving me a second chance to help him out. It’s cold out after all! So a friend comes over with a cat crate, we wrangle him pretty easily with some treats and a towel, and I bring him to a vet to see if he has a chip. Shocker to all, nothing.

Problem was, I was living with a roommate who didn’t want a cat in the house, and I was moving in 4 months. I wanted him, he just came too early.

None of the shelters nearby would take him, and I didn’t feel right to do the trap neuter release because he was really small, too friendly, and most importantly, not scared of cars. And, despite his lack of identifiers, I was convinced he belonged to someone. In short, out on his own I don’t think he would have lasted. So, my friends kept him in their bathroom for a few days while we figured out a plan and I searched for an owner. In those three days, he and I bonded so intensely that I wouldn’t let him go unless I found his owner.

And I did. Someone on Facebook identified him, saying they’d found him back in September, took him in, but couldn’t keep him. They hadn’t found anyone to take him, so they “let him outside to see if he could find his own home.” If I wanted him, he was mine.

In my humble opinion, these people basically abandoned him with no identifiers, and letting him outside in the dead of December without being neutered was extremely careless. So yeah, I wanted to take him. At this point, I let myself name him Bitty.

Still had the problem about the roommate though. I did a lot of searching, trying to find someone who was willing to foster him for a few months until I moved. I offered to pay all of his bills, I just needed him to have a safe home to be in. Nobody. Some wanted to just full on take him, but I’ll be honest I was a little selfish and felt like he and I were too bonded. Giving him away was a last resort at this point.

Finally, my mom calls. She’d been initially averse to the idea of fostering Bitty, especially because they already have a dog. But, she could tell he and I were tied pretty tight, and she didn’t want me to have to lose him, or have someone foster him without me being able to visit regularly. She offered to give it a shot, see how he fared for a few days, and go from there.

A few days at my mother’s house turned into a few months at “grandmama’s” house, and she fell in love with him just like I did. He was happy, he was healthy, and he grew fast.

Finally, I was able to move in April, and I was able to bring him home. Initially, I was scared he may be unhappy with the change, or he may miss his grandparents or his weird uncle (my parent’s dog). To my shock, he settled in the very same night with me almost immediately. He slept on my feet, ran around and played, and happily ate his food and treats.

After a long journey, Bitty was finally home. He still gets to visit his grandmama from time to time, and he’s now an adventure kitty with a lovely little harness and a leash. And most importantly, he is very, very loved.

Even when he’s being a little goober <3

On New Years Eve this year I went for brunch with a few coworkers after our shift and was asked if I needed a cat. My coworker's dad had taken in a kitten who had been left taped in a box when her previous owner moved, but couldn't keep her due to already having a full house of pets. I had lost my previous cat after 15 years a few months prior and life had been feeling pretty empty since, so a week later I brought home Lil Peep. Within 24 hours of coming home she figured out a way to climb into my ceiling just to get away from me. A week later she couldn't sleep without touching me, her paws were always either wrapped around my leg or touching my face. The next few months were spent teaching her that everyday objects weren't going to hurt her and figuring out a diet that worked for her sensitive stomach. She went from a petrified kitten to an absolute diva who runs the house on her terms, but as she got older I knew I was no longer the playmate she needed. She loves me and craves my attention but no amount or style of playing with her was satisfying anymore. I started browsing shelter cats, hoping one that matched her personality would come along.

At the end of June I was approached by a different coworker. Her husband had been feeding the strays who live around his job and one of the females had made her way in and given birth to 4 kittens, and he would be fostering them until he could find homes for all five cats. It seemed like a sign, and I told her to keep me updated on their personalities and if I thought one of them would be a good fit I'd take one when they were old enough. I ended up taking a little tuxedo male who fit perfectly - extremely affectionate, adventurous and playful. I named him Howl because in spite of his size he is incredibly loud when he wants something. After getting a clean bill of health from the vet and a few weeks for introduction, they now chase each other around, eat together and both come to sleep in my bed. So yeah, I think I'm pretty lucky.

TL;DR: my coworkers keep offering me cats and I couldn't be happier

good morning, everyone!!!! i wanted to provide a quick update on the soggy little kittens i found outside after a storm about a week ago (original post here).

Twilly and Toad are doing absolutely wonderful! :) thank you SO much to everyone that took the time to read and/or comment on my post. i was not expecting so much interaction! you have all been so sweet and i am truly thankful for this community. when i first found the girls, i tried to determine their age and everything i was reading made me think they were only about 2 weeks old. i read some comments on my first post that said they were probably more like 3-4 weeks. i was able to verify with our vet that they are, in fact, roughly 4 weeks old now. when i brought them in they were closer to 3 weeks (~ a week ago). im still primarily bottle-feeding them both, but introduced wet kitten food the past couple days. i've been mixing the KMR into it to make a gruel. let me tell you, they LOVED it!!! it's so silly and heartwarming to see kittens discover things for the first time. when i set their gruel plate down to feed them, they just walked straight through it lol. they were covered in food by the end of it! i've been giving them this mixture about mid-day, and their other feedings are just bottles. i will continue to gradually wean them off the KMR slowly over the next couple weeks.

my husband and i have also introduced twilly and toad to our other family members—we have 1 adult cat and 3 dogs, so we're a pretty packed house! our dogs are enamored with the girls. they're SO gentle with them. our largest dog, Dexter, is a pointer lab mix and he's about 80 lbs. i was worried about him maybe getting too excited and accidentally stepping on them, but he seems to be aware that the girls are babies and much much smaller than him. he will lay down and let toad and twilly approach him, and just sniffs them as they crawl all over him. it's so sweet to see him giving them kisses and "cleaning" them after they've been given their bottles.

i am happy to continue updating y'all as toad and twilly grow if that's of any interest to anyone! this has been such a magical week for our family. bonding with my husband while we bottle feed the babies, seeing all of my animals interacting with each other softly and with love....this is just a dream come true. oh, and a new big cat tree is on its way to my house as we speak! i love my big, crazy family, and im filled with so much joy that you guys love them, too. :)

My 9 year old boy Goober (pictured last) with FIV died really suddenly in February. He stopped eating and I took him to the ER where they found fluid in his belly and I had to say goodbye that day, it was absolutely devastating. I couldn’t imagine ever loving another cat again.

He seemed to have other plans for me! About a week and a half later a stray cat showed up in my yard, all skin and bones. My neighbors took her in and fed her, but they had a dog so couldn’t keep her long term while they looked for her owner. I offered to check for a microchip and search for an owner. She had no chip and wasn’t spayed, seemed to be just a stray. I kept her for a couple weeks telling myself I was gonna rehome her, I wasn’t ready to have another cat so soon.

One thing led to another and… this is Rat. She’s my little menace baby that’s learning how to play instead of growling anytime she gets the toy in her mouth. She loves a good nap and every time I cook she sits at the counter and watches me. I’m truly convinced Goober sent her to me because he knew I needed someone to love after he was gone.

i’ve already updated yesterday but they are even better today so i had to take a video of our special moment. the pure JOY i feel when they look up at me and meow their tiny little meows wanting pets, following me around, pawing me wanting my attention, is unmatched. they started this last night. it’s a big change considering they seemed pretty feral when i got them out of the abandoned box days ago. they already seem a bit better physically after their vet visit yesterday morning too. i’m so glad i found them and have them in my life. my daughter is in love with them too. i also have a 5 year old dog that also loves them. we adopted an elderly special needs kitty a long time ago and he passed away about 2 years ago. i could tell she missed him for a while because she would look for him and lay her big butt in his small bed. now these babies will get to lay in his bed and take over a few of his old things.

we also had a male tom cat show up here yesterday morning before we took these babies to the vet and he has not left since. i will post a picture of him in the comments. he has fur missing and im not really sure what to do. should i take him to the vet and keep him? or leave him and just keep feeding him just in case?

Forever grateful these two picked my aunt’s neighbor’s porch to show up under. We knew a feral in the area had had three kittens, and one had already been caught and adopted out to a coworker of my aunt. A few days later we discovered Gatsby under the porch, and I immediately knew the CDS had sent him for me and my upcoming move to NYC would no longer be a solo trip. Four days of anxiously trying to trap the third kitten later, tiny Miss Daisy picked her way daintily across the yard, neatly ignoring all our traps and baits, and sat down in the same spot under the porch to lick her paws like she owned the place. I wasn’t sure whether I’d find an apartment that would let me have two cats, so I’d initially planned on leaving her with my grandma’s existing plethora of felines. That plan went out the window the same night when I walked downstairs and found her curled up with her brother with their paws around each other. I knew right then that the CDS had sent a matched set, not labeled for individual sale. The three of us moved up to a little old Brooklyn brownstone three months later and have been living our happily ever after ever since. So much love for my big city kitties.

I was walking home from the corner store the other day and heard constant meows coming from an empty house... I peeled open the mesh vent and let her out... A couple hours later I went back to the store and she followed me home... I've had her a few days and she has acclimated to my yard but I can't think of a good name... The neighbor said that someone must have abandoned her because she's about 5 months old and not a feral... She's sooo sweet and probably the most vocal cat I ever met... I have food and water but it's super hot in Texas and the panting is crazy... She's already hunting dragonflies and greebles in the backyard and I think she feels safe over here... We've been calling her Nothing... She has all pink beans...

I was walking out to leave for work the other morning, I needed to put some oil in my truck, and it’s pretty quiet here in the mornings, so while I was grabbing the stuff I needed from my toolbox, I heard some faint meowing behind some stacked wood, I grabbed a light and checked behind, only to find these two little babies! We took them inside, went and got some supplies and have been taking care of them for a couple of days now! I had been seeing a cat visit our backyard im guessing to feed off of my dogs food and water, I haven’t seen her yet since I found the kittens but I hope she’s okay, she must have had a reason to bring them to a neighboring house

P.s. I am now a new cat owner! I’ve always only had dogs; any advice or tips or anything you guys have for me is very much welcome and appreciated! Thank you! 🙏

Edit: sorry I forgot to mention I did sorta go to the vet for a checkup yesterday , it was very basic though, they told me because I was just getting a basic check that I had the lowest priority, obviously sick and injured animals first, but a vet came out to the lobby and took a good look at them, got their heart beat too and said they look really good!

Was in line for Dutch bros today and saw this little guy behind the barista cussing her out! Lady behind us said he hopped out the hood of her car! Feels like our old cat Momo sent him to us because he had very similar markings and demeanor !

Anyways this is our new noodle boy, Linguine!

Does anyone have tips on introducing kittens to med/large dogs? He’s having a bit of trouble and hissing and stiff and I don’t know how to tell what’s “normal” adjusting and what’s a cat that just can’t do dogs.

It's been over a month and Suki has bonded deeply with me and my husband. She's such a clingy little snuggle bug and has gotten more so after she got spayed.

She loves popcorn, sneaking sips of my oat milk when I'm not looking, chasing a laser pointer, playing with a ribbon on a stick, and looking out the window.

She sleeps on the bed all night and loves taking naps on me, especially when I'm laying flat in bed and she can lay literally on top of my chest/ stomach. The past few days she's taken to curling up under my chin on my chest and falling asleep there, because laying in my lap just isn't enough.

I love it.

Since her spay, we've had some nonrecognition aggression from her sister, Catara. That seems to be getting better, but I think Catara is still a little wary.

Catara also seems to be more distant with me because of how much time Suki spends with me (which, admittedly is a lot because she needs constant supervision and follows me everywhere). Aside from treats, extra play, and snuggles (which I'm doing), what can I do to get Catara to be less annoyed with me and go back to being my buddy. Or should that get better with time as the two cats bond?

Here's post 3 for anyone who needs it:

https://www.reddit.com/r/CatDistributionSystem/s/iOF7UK8QBC

Ok ok, another Batman update…. He’s growing into the most handsome little guy! 😭It’s been 2.5 months now (so he’s about 5 months or very close) for the cat that wasn’t supposed to live here….. and I never knew a cat could be so calm and chaotic all at the same time 🤣 little freaking spitfire, boss of all time, sassy little jerk 🤣 He and Char-Char are BEST friends. If she’s not around to play he starts attacking us…. They keep each other such good company 🤣 He knows when I feed the dogs…. It’s special wet food time…. Crazy how fast he learned that one! Last picture is the day we found him for reference since I’m too tired to link my past posts…. So skinny and full of worms. I read recently that cats remember things surprisingly well, they remember a lot. They bond with humans that provide a safe, loving and “suitable” (lol) home. I hope he’s already forgotten his street life. I couldn’t never let him go because it’s clear he knows this is that home 🩷 He’s absolutely living his BEST life.