Prince spotted in yard-- feral and wary

I bring out food.

He looks at the food. Puma checks from behind a screen.

Prince is alone again. There is more than a cat to socialize in such an endeavor... and always much to learn...

The moral of the story

The moral of the story is: dont feed someone elses cat, especially if you can see that cat belongs to someone and has been cared for. Cats arent like dogs, especially feral cats, they go where the food is. Years of work and love is lost when someone selfishly feeds someone else's cat. Feeding means caring for the cat, not just tossing food- it is vet bills and flea and worming treatment and spaying and neutering. If you see a stray, wait and see if it belongs to someone. A cropped ear means this cat is part of a colony and someone has taken time to do all the necessary things for this animal's survival. Prince is microchipped as well. There are so many cats needing a helping hand- find one no one else is loving and helping.

This is a bitter sweet ending to the story of Prince but hopefully he can live the outdoor life into which he was born, now safely and fully. Hopefully, the ending for Prince is happy; he is home at last.

Luna warms herself in front of the fire.

Prince in the distance

Prince seems fearful of the other cat he now idolizes but this one time, he got to be bookends with him. Otherwise he is in his submissive ground position. I can see him from a distance and he doesnt come home out of the cold or rain anymore. The white blob mid photo is PRINCE.

Socializing a feral cat

I saw Prince last night at the other house, just a few homes away around the corner where he was being fed. He spent an iota of time with me. I realize now how the difficulty in socializing this animal was compounded by another feeding him - the competition of another food source. With me, he had to come inside the home, meet and greet the other cats. With the other house, he had only to appear in the yard and be fed. Surely this slowed and eventually ended the process. I had no idea, having only told the neighbors on either side of me about him. I had no idea someone would feed my cat. I appreciate the thoughts of the 2 comments added the other day. I miss him desperately; I should have informed all the homes along the pond he was my cat a few years ago---how could I know someone would feed neighborhood cats? He was microchipped with a cropped ear. Hindsight too late. Perhaps others will learn from us I hope he comes home when it gets cold. he has an electric blanket here for him. He was my cat, Prince. Patting him before -- he rubs against my hand.