Follow our advice on what to do if you have found a cat and suspect they may be stray or lost.
Avoid feeding
Try not to feed cats who come into your garden unless they're clearly underweight. This will only encourage them to keep coming back and they may have owners feeding them too or have special dietary requirements due to health issues.
Use a paper collar
Put a paper collar on the cat asking an owner to contact you if the cat is theirs. If you get no response after a couple of days you can assume the cat has not been back home or may be stray.
Spread the word
Cats roam over wide areas so ask your neighbours if they know who the cat belongs to. Create a found poster and put it up around the area where you found the cat, share a photo on social media, local community apps and on any lost cat websites.
Report the cat to your local rescue centres and vets
Report to your local rescue centres and vets as many of them will keep a lost and found database.
Our Lost Cats Line is open seven days a week from 8am until 5pm to receive reports of missing or found animals within the M25 area. The team also works with other lost and found agencies around the country to help reunite as many dogs and cats with their owners as possible.
Call 020 7627 9308 or fill in our form.
check for a microchip
If the cat is approachable take them to your local vet or rescue centre where they will be able to scan for a microchip with the owner's details.
Our centres accept stray cats between 9am and 5pm only. Please contact us before bringing the cat to us. Unlike dogs, local authorities do not take in stray cats.
If you decide to keep the cat, make sure you fully consider the commitment and responsibility of owning a pet.
If you find the cat's owner please remember to inform those who are still looking and take down any found posters.
