Being a homeowner (or just a home-dweller in general) means that you probably have a list of must-haves that you just can’t live without.
However, what do you do when there is a house that you currently inhabit, but there is also a thing that you don’t own, but it popped up anyway? Like, it’s your house, but not, say, your cat?
This particular phenomenon has become a meme of sorts, and the photos just keep on coming and coming. Scroll down, you’ll see what I mean.
#1 I Opened My Front Door Today, And A Flea-Covered, Cuddly, Sweetheart Came Running In
I was in such shock that I first thought one of my own was getting out! She's currently trapped in the bathroom being an adorable kitten, and tomorrow we go to the vet. My dog is already hoping we keep her
UPDATE!!! SHE HAD A CHIP!!! Her family lost her almost 2 Years Ago!!!! Mom was in TEARS. I'm so very selfishly sad, but I just made a whole family incredibly happy
UPDATE!!! SHE HAD A CHIP!!! Her family lost her almost 2 Years Ago!!!! Mom was in TEARS. I'm so very selfishly sad, but I just made a whole family incredibly happy
Report
482points
#2 This Is My Garden. These Were Not My Cats. But They Are Now
Mamala, the tortie, hung around for years bringing various kittens into the yard to show them off and have a quick meal, then scurry away. We could admire them from afar, but could never touch her. Finally she brought these 4 beauties to us and decided to stay in the yard. One cold snowy winter day, she and the kids walked through our slider into our bedroom and two years later she's still with us with two of the babies. All are now spayed and neutered. Two found homes elsewhere. After living rough and being almost continuously pregnant for years she's decided she never wants to go outside again. Never once has she asked to.
Report
455points
#3 This Is Ac The Tunnel Cat
The not my cat, turned my cat after being found in my air conditioning vent. He quickly became obsessed with my pregnant belly, and is now obsessed with the small human that I clearly created just for him
Report
451points
Since nearly anything these days can be called a meme, as long as it’s viral and reproduces easily as a concept, it’s safe to say that “my house, not my cat” has become somewhat of a meme in the past few years.
If you don’t believe me, example number one, example number two, example number three… need I say more?
#4 Gave This Guy A Piece Of Bacon On My Way Home From The Bar Last Night. Followed Me Ten Blocks Home. This Is How I Woke Up
Report
443points
#5 My House. Not My Cat. It Only Took 10 Years, But One Of Our Long Term Ferals We Have Cared For Just Crawled Into My Lap. I've Never Felt More Honored
Report
409points
#6 Stanley Update! To Recap, Stanley Was A Stray Who Would Visit The House To Be Fed. He Sometimes Would Appear On The Windowsill Or The Balcony
Last week we found him in front of the house, something terrible had happened to him so we brought him to the vet. The vet had to remove his eye. He's been recuperating in our spare room since. Yesterday I brought him back to the vet to have his stitches removed, get him neutered and updated on vaccines, deworming etc. The vet said he's healing up really well and that he's put on weight! He's wearing a shirt because he kept licking the anti tick and flea meds on his nape (he doesn't seem to mind at all, he's walking around like he wears shirts everyday).
We have decided to keep him, he'll never be allowed outside again. He's such a sweet cat, he loooves belly rubs and doesn't bite. Next step is to introduce him to our sassy tortie girl.
Please tell him how hambsome he looks
We have decided to keep him, he'll never be allowed outside again. He's such a sweet cat, he loooves belly rubs and doesn't bite. Next step is to introduce him to our sassy tortie girl.
Please tell him how hambsome he looks
Report
377points
“My house, not my cat” has a simple premise: it’s a piece of visual content that captures a cat, usually domesticated, but not necessarily, inside someone’s home, but that particular someone doesn’t own a cat. Or if they do, this specific one is not theirs. And then you’re left with the confusion of finding out whose cat is it anyway, let alone how it got there.
#7 Woke Up To This Today
Not my cat, still have no idea how she gets in… but she has claimed my pillow as hers… and she purrs like a tractor
Report
355points
#8 My Kitchen, Not My Cat. My Older Cat Escorted Him In Through The Kitty Door And Walked Him Over To The Food Bowl!
Report
354points
#9 I Have Been Feeding A Cat For Some Time Now. Of Course I Set Out A Little Shelter And Blanket Also. I've Grown To Call Them My Phantom Kitty. I Could Never Catch It During The Day So I Figured I Would Sneak Out To Take A Peek Tonight. Look At This "Cat"
Report
348points
But, let’s start at the beginning. There’s a behavior that cats have called roaming. Just like humans with a healthy mindset, cats too love to just walk around all the time. But not down a particular path, but rather to wander. Also, just like humans sometimes do, I guess. This is completely normal behavior in cats—they, again, like humans, love their independence and know what’s around.
#10 This Is Swirl Who Was My Cat, The Kitten Is Not
He loved kittens and would steal people's kittens and bring them home. He's no longer with us so I miss those days of coming home to a random kitten in the house
Report
346points
#11 My Husband. Not My Cat. She Wandered In And Became Miss Steal Yo Man. This Was Last Night. She's Still Here Today.... I Don't Think She Has Plans To Leave
Report
343points
#12 It Only Took A Few Months For Amelia Pond To Go From “My House, Not My Cat” To “How’d You Get So Fat?!?”
For more than 20 years we’d been a dogs-only family. One day about 4 1/2 years ago, Amelia decided it was time to change that. She randomly showed up at our house, super skinny but otherwise very healthy...and then never left We really think she was dumped, because she was SO super friendly and *completely* unafraid of people...she SPRINTED inside the house the moment we opened the door, and jumped in our laps! Now she’s living as a cat should be, rotund and lazy and happy
Report
332points
The reason cats roam is because they are curious. Simple as that.
That’s how they keep themselves entertained all the while being up to date with what’s happening in their immediate (and not entirely immediate) surroundings. By seeing new things, they can anticipate whether their territory is safe.
#13 My Work, Not My Cat This Is In A Truck Manufacturing Workshop With 30+ Guys And This Cat Is Adored By All And Gets So Much Attention It’s Hilarious
The cat used to be feral but has adopted us all!
Report
331points
#14 My House, Not My Cat. Came Home Yesterday To Find That Santa Left This Black Kitty On My Balcony... Who Then Proceeded To Give Birth To 7 Little Beans. 7 Black Cats Born On Christmas, That's Gotta Be Lucky
Report
329points
#15 I Was Told To Come Here And Tell Y’all About What Happened Over The Last 12 Hours At My House, With This Cat That Is Not My Cat, And Now These Kittens That Are Not My Kittens Or Her Kittens
So about 1:00 this morning, I went outside and this cat, that is not my cat, meows, so I call it, and it comes right to me. Now first, we have dogs, lots of dogs, and 2 are neighbors’ dogs that live outside, and yet somehow, this tiny cat just strolls right up and none of the dogs even move. Second, we live in the country and we know all our neighbors and their cats, and this is not their cat. Third, when I pick her up, it’s apparent that she has had kittens recently.
So now I’m standing outside at 1:00 AM, holding this very friendly cat that has apparently been dumped at my house, and is somehow magical and able to sneak past sleeping dogs. But now I have to carry her past the 2 outside dogs and the 6 inside dogs to get her somewhere safe....
She is absolutely fine with the whole thing. Stays snuggled in my arms. Purrs. I’m not convinced that this is real, that I’m not dreaming. So I feed the magic cat and start looking for kittens. Y’all, I searched for nearly 7 straight hours. I even enlisted my Terrier mix in the hunt. (She could find baby mice in a snowstorm with earmuffs on.) I even walked the property playing kittens meowing sounds on my phone.
So this is the bad news, we live in the country and the likelihood of the babies being ok with all the predators here is slim, and she may have been dumped without them. So I am not giving up looking, but now I’ve got a potential surrogate mom cat. And y’all, I’ve bottlefed kittens and if there’s a chance for a surrogate, trust me, worth it.
I reached out to my rescue friends and managed to get her lined up to be a surrogate mom to 3 orphaned kittens before noon. Unfortunately, the vet check showed that she has a lot of parasites and she’s going to have to wait 3 days before she can meet her new babies. But the vet said she should still be able to feed the babies then. So now this cat that is not my cat is not at my house anymore, she’s getting well so she can meet the kittens that are not her kittens. Told you she was magic. And I need a nap.
So now I’m standing outside at 1:00 AM, holding this very friendly cat that has apparently been dumped at my house, and is somehow magical and able to sneak past sleeping dogs. But now I have to carry her past the 2 outside dogs and the 6 inside dogs to get her somewhere safe....
She is absolutely fine with the whole thing. Stays snuggled in my arms. Purrs. I’m not convinced that this is real, that I’m not dreaming. So I feed the magic cat and start looking for kittens. Y’all, I searched for nearly 7 straight hours. I even enlisted my Terrier mix in the hunt. (She could find baby mice in a snowstorm with earmuffs on.) I even walked the property playing kittens meowing sounds on my phone.
So this is the bad news, we live in the country and the likelihood of the babies being ok with all the predators here is slim, and she may have been dumped without them. So I am not giving up looking, but now I’ve got a potential surrogate mom cat. And y’all, I’ve bottlefed kittens and if there’s a chance for a surrogate, trust me, worth it.
I reached out to my rescue friends and managed to get her lined up to be a surrogate mom to 3 orphaned kittens before noon. Unfortunately, the vet check showed that she has a lot of parasites and she’s going to have to wait 3 days before she can meet her new babies. But the vet said she should still be able to feed the babies then. So now this cat that is not my cat is not at my house anymore, she’s getting well so she can meet the kittens that are not her kittens. Told you she was magic. And I need a nap.
Report
310points
From a biological perspective, hormones also give an idea why. Especially if the cat hasn’t been spayed or neutered. Males will roam about looking for a mate, while others might just have a strong hunting instinct. This can be both a good or a bad thing as cats are to some extent considered an invasive species as they do hunt down small animals like birds, mice and lizards, but they can help get rid of pests at home, so there’s that.
#16 I Left The Door Open A Moment Too Long When I Got Home One Day And This Little Goob Sprinted Inside, Circled The Living Room, And Plopped On The Floor
The first pic is what I sent to my family asking what to do about a random cat in the apartment. I lured him back outside with a packet of salmon, and all he wanted was cuddles and to go back inside.
So yeah, that’s the story of how I got adopted. He still takes very good care of me to this day
So yeah, that’s the story of how I got adopted. He still takes very good care of me to this day
Report
286points
#17 First Photo: This Was Not My Cat, He Just Entered My House And Slept In My Bed Second Photo: Now He Climbs Me Third Photo: He's Definitively My C A T T O Now
Report
283points
#18 My Neighbours Cat Arrives With A Meow At 7am And Stays The Whole Day Until Said Neighbour Texts Me At 5pm Asking For Her Cat Back
Report
274points
Now, cats are known to traditionally roam a radius of around 130 to 650 feet (or 40 to 200 meters) from their homes. At least the domestic ones who have garden space to enjoy. Farm cats, however, can roam as far as 2 miles away from home.
Since they are also territorial, they might be roaming the area that way, but urban cats have been known to share their surroundings, keep to their gardens and only roam at specific times so as to avoid conflict.
#19 This Is Homer!
"My partner and I met him probably 5 years ago, we never knew who he belonged to, so we fed him and he would spend most of the night with us, he ended up being my neighbours cat and his real name was “a**hole” (we named him homer we didn’t know what his name was) last year we ended up moving to a new town 3 hours away from where we used to live, it was really hard to leave homer behind, we loved him and cared for him almost like he was our own, my partner travels to melbourne and visits him sometimes! Well a few weeks ago, our old neighbour contacted us and said he was moving and going to work in the mines and that he was looking at rehoming Homer, so of course we said yes! So In a few days our little grey man will be reuniting with us and we are so excited!"
Report
271points
#20 My House, Not My Cat
I recently moved to a new house. About a week or so of living here I was coming home from the grocery store so I propped the door open so I could carry in my groceries. As I was heading back outside I noticed a kitty run into my house so I got my last bags and took them to the kitchen quick and went to see where the cat went. I found him like this (the first pic) in my living room. So I gave him some pets and then ended up like this (2nd pic) for the next hour. He’s so sweet. He kept coming over every day to watch tv on my lap and then going to the door to leave when he was ready. He was wearing a collar but it had no tags so I decided to write a little note and attach it to the collar. I asked if he had a home and what his name was. The very next day he returned with a note back saying his name was Finn and his address which was 4 houses down & also a phone number saying to text if I wanted to so I did. We were texting about the cat on and off all day and then we came to realize that we actually knew each other from high school. Which I thought was hilarious. Anyways, I now share custody of Finn and he is just the sweetest boy and I look forward to seeing him every day!
Report
265points