Person's 15-year-old microchipped cat starts going missing for days at a time, they find out he has been "adopted" by a neighbor, who refuses to back down and asks to "share" the feline instead: 'She’s clearly trapping him indoors'

Author image for Mariel Ruvinsky
Mariel Ruvinsky • Writer and Editor
May 7, 2025 9:00 AM EDT

Having neighbors is dramatic enough sometimes. Really, people seem to find the smallest things to get upset over sometimes. And having a curious indoor-outdoor cat that can hang around the neighborhood and visit the neighbors when he feels like it… seems to add a whole heck of a lot to the drama. Seriously, we have seen some crazy stories when it comes to neighbors and cats. We have seen everything from neighbors abandoning their cats and the cats choosing the neighbor as their new human, to cats breaking into their neighbor's home in an attempt to get adopted by them, all the way to neighbors holding lost cats for ransom and demanding money before they return them. 

Crazy stuff, and still… this story is up there with some of the most insane ones that we have covered. Listen, we can see this happening to anyone - accidentally "adopting" the neighbor's cat without knowing that it's the neighbor's. But to stand there and, instead of returning the cat and apologizing, demanding that the cat be shared between the two of them… the audacity. 

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  • 01

    "My cat has been ‘adopted’ by someone else"

    Cheezburger Image 10501612288
    via sthefu
  • 02
    In his 15 years, my cat has always liked to wander outside and hasn't really ever been fond of other people but recently he has been going missing for days at a time.
    via sthefu
  • 03
    I had no clue what was happening and was scared he had been hurt - however, I had a phone call from the vets yesterday and they told me that somebody had called in asking if my cat was a stray and if they could adopt him, despite him clearly being well-loved, microchipped and well fed by me;
    via sthefu
  • 04
    the vet told me not to worry and to give the lady a call just to politely declare that he's my cat and I don't want her feeding him.
    via sthefu
  • 05
    I called the lady and she told me that she has been keeping my cat, feeding him and spoiling him with treats and new toys/cat bed/scratching post, etc.
    via sthefu
  • 06
    I politely reminded her that he's my cat and he is loved at home and I would like her to stop, this led to her crying down the phone saying that she loves my cat and even asking to 'share' him and stating that she'd like to put him in a cattery while she goes abroad.
    via sthefu
  • 07
    This baffles me as she won't back down, now I haven't seen my cat since Tuesday evening as she's clearly trapping him indoors. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks.
    via sthefu

  • What an insane situation. We love cats, we truly do, sometimes too much. And we could totally see ourselves doing something like this on accident. Adopting a cat that is clean and looks like it might have belonged to someone, but the cat is roaming outside… we could see ourselves doing that. But the second you find out the cat belongs to someone and is loved and well-taken care of, we would obviously give it back. 

  • 08
    Cheezburger Image 10501627904
    via Unsplash / Abhishek Kumar - abhishekkumar98

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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  • 09
    RollnRye74 find where she lives and go over with an officer. then, tell the lady there are lots of cats in shelters that would love to be spoiled by her.
    via RollnRye74
  • 10
    MrA Face69 I'm guessing if she staunchly refuses to return the cat, you'll need to go through small claims court and have proof of ownership and all that; I've seen a few of these cases on Judge Judy over the years. This cat would be an indoor cat or supervised very carefully outside afterward if it was me.
    via MrA**Face69
  • 11
    MarsGirl24 I went through the same thing. My cat was a formerly stray rescue and was really used to a lot of supervised outdoor time when I lived in the country. We moved to the suburbs and she would sprint out the door sometimes just because she wanted to go exploring.
    via MarsGirl24
  • 12
    I called my local police's non emergency line, just to see if they knew anything about the legal side of our situation. Basically my neighbor intentionally kept our microchipped cat in her house, knowing she belonged to us. I was thinking of filing a civil suit for the surrender of personal property.
    via MarsGirl24
  • 13
    The sheriff's office told me that Texas doesn't really have a law about this situation, but our city does have an ordinance stating any animal not on a leash can't be considered personal property. The civil suit would've been legit but since my neighbor didn't trespass then cut the cat off a leash, local police can't do much. Generously, a police officer offered to go talk to them, sorta like a mediator. This worked really well and we got her back!
    via MarsGirl24
  • 14
    Cheezburger Image 10501627648
    via Unsplash / Abhishek Kumar - abhishekkumar98

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • Whatever you have to do - do it. This is your cat, and this neighbor might be a nice one in their hearts, but this behavior is unacceptable, suspicious, and possibly a hint that they are not too stable. Get your cat out of their hands by any means necessary before something truly crazy happens. 

  • 15
    Artistic-Arachnid274 The vet called you so you have a microchip then right? Open and shut case f that lady. BUT why the h I would she want to put him in a cattery if she really wanted to share him. What a horrible person.
    via Artistic-Arachnid274
  • 16
    [deleted] I would go to the police, it's your fur baby not hers.
    via reddit
  • 17
    an_edgy_lemon Why would she need to put a "shared" cat in a cattery while she's gone? She doesn't want to share him, she wants to steal him. If she doesn't back down, you'll probably have to get the authorities involved.
    via an_edgy_lemon
  • 18
    TheWaywardOak My aunt ended up catproofing her back yard because of something like this. One of her cats kept sneaking off across the train tracks into another neighborhood. The lady that was feeding him there got annoyed and started making threats when the cat started to tear up her screen porch to get inside.
    via TheWaywardOak
  • 19
    Clyde Belvidere Everyone telling you to call the cops like they even do anything for humans. Grab a friend, your carrier, and go get your pet. F that woman and her tears, and don't let your cat out again.
    via ClydeBelvidere
  • 20
    Jacket111 Im not Liam Nielsen, but I will definitely do everything within my means to get my cat back in this situation
    via Jacket111

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