A couple of yowling cats have been visiting my yard this week.
After a bit of research, I believe the yowling means they are wanting to mate. Both have been yowling, which upsets my indoor cats. Sometimes, indoor cats will fight each other when they hear cats outdoors.
The yowling means the cats are very likely not neutered. Once neutered, the yowling should stop. I don’t mind having feral/stray cats or indoor/outdoor cats visiting my yard as long as they are not disturbing my cats.
Also, I decided to get involved and take action due to the problem of too many outdoor cats facing many communities. And I’d like to avoid having more kittens to find homes for.
Update: I didn’t get involved in time. Kittens arrived in the spring.
We fed a feral cat for a couple of years or so and Violet came to my yard because of our feeding area near the cat house my husband made out of scrap material. Just recently, we had put fresh straw into the cat house as we’ve been seeing an orange/white cat that reminds us of Buster.
The plan to help the cats
I have contacted the local humane society to learn how their trap, neuter, and release program works. Sites like Alley Cat Allies and Neighborhood Cats also have abundant information on outdoor cats.
One fear I have is neutering an owned cat. It’s possible that the owner doesn’t know their cat is out for mating season. The humane society suggested a create a flyer to distribute in the neighborhood. I have sent a long list of questions to the humane society to learn more about the process!
The flyer would help identify if the cats are owned and also provide notification of my plan to get them neutered through the low-cost clinic. And the flyer can educate on the benefits of trap, neuter, and return programs.
The Yowling Cats
There has been a tortoise shell cat and a black/white cat. I haven’t seen either of them enter the cat house. Nor have we seen the orange/white cat recently. That doesn’t mean that no cat has used it, it just means we haven’t seen them in it!
The black and white cat looks familiar. I was VERY surprised to see him as last fall I had seen him a couple of blocks away and he appeared to missing a lot of fur.
I suspected that he may have been the father of Violet’s kittens. He would come around sometimes when we are socializing Violet and the kittens. And then we didn’t see him much. I nicked named him “Fluffy” back then.
I’m pretty sure this is the same cat.
Fluffy looks big so I suspect he has a food source. The other cat is smaller and may not. I think she was drawn to our yard because of some standing water near the cat house. We will start feeding outdoor cats again if we confirm they are in need.
Yowling outdoor cats can be annoying and cause stress to indoor cats who hear them. They are likely not neutered and looking for a mate.
If you decide to get involved, your local humane society may have resources and a TNR (trap, neuter, release) program. There are many free resources online from sites like Alley Cat Allies and Neighborhood Cats.
Learn more about different cat noises here.
Have you encountered yowling cats in your yard?
Heidi Bender is the writer and founder of the Joy of Cats. She enjoys sharing cat information and providing helpful cat tips. She considers herself a cat lady and currently cares for eight cats.
That’s great that you’re going to help them out.
I am hoping to it works out! I haven’t seen the smaller cat this week, but have seen “Fluffy” a couple of times.