How to tell if a cat is abandoned?

Question

What are the telltale signs that a cat has no owner?

---

Some Context on the cat I'm worried about in particular

I have a cat who jumps through my window into my home and just walks around. He runs whenever someone walks, but he has no problems if there are awake humans (There are no animals in my home, however there are several dogs around)

Recently I started leaving him some food or even feeding him by throwing some food out the window (He refuses to come close). He does seem to be hungry all the time, however he does have a necklace and doesn't seem to be weak (He has to do quite a big jump to get to my windows)

Other than that I know nothing of the cat, except that he panicked the one time I accidentally closed the windows with him inside. I'm unsure if the cat's scamming me for free food or if he's abandoned

---

Due to that, my question. How can I figure out if a cat has no owner, and if you would so kind (although I do understand it might be too localized), how can I tell if this particular (seemingly fine except for the recent approximation he has made towards my house) cat has an owner?

Answer 1

If you can't hold him, there's not a lot you can do. If you can catch him, you could take him to a vet or animal shelter to have him scanned for a microchip. The absence of the chip doesn't tell you he's abandoned, but the presence of one, and the ensuing phone call, would tell you if he is. If there's no chip and you want to adopt him (or at least ensure he's getting veterinary care), you can attach a note. The way I did this once was to take a flea collar (which has the virtue of being white) and write "owner: please call (my phone number)" on it with a Sharpie. After a week with no response I took the cat to the vet for a screening and then adopted her.

He might be scamming you for food. I wouldn't be all that concerned about helping him be overfed; if he's roaming the neighborhood already, he's not on a restricted diet. If you want to feed him, feed him. When it gets cold and you're not keeping your windows open, either he'll start showing up on your doorstep instead or he'll dine elsewhere.