We have inadvertently become the chosen home of a cat! It's a little complicated, it involves some sorry situations, things I won't post in public and one sorry little mite deciding that our house is her new home.

Anyway, a few details, she wasn't feral, but should we say 'wild'. No rules, no litter tray, no care. She is a little sweetie though, who is no trouble and just wants to spend most of the day on her cushion on a windowsill.
She doesn't have any interest in a litter tray and I doubt she will be happy with one, she doesn't seem to know what they are for, so she has to go out to toilet, which doesn't actually sit well with me, as it's a bug bear of mine, cats going in my garden!

One thing we have an issue is is the night.
She comes alive at night a bit more, she can settle down and I will stay down with her, luckily Alfie is amazing with cats, so they can be in together, however she will then wake up at three in the morning or so, wanting to play or go out. I don't like the thought of her being out at night and on the whole she wants to be in.
She has a carry crate thing, but she won't settle in it to sleep anyway. Is there anything I can do to stop her getting up in the night? Should I let her out?


Also, I am not really clued up on cats, I know how to handle them and basic care, but I have no idea about common diseases, what to look out for for good health, the best care for them etc. Is there anything anyone can recommend me to read, any resources, things to look out for.

Thanks to anyone for help, dogs I know, I was born into a family with dogs and learned to walk holding onto them, but cats are an animal I've never had in the house.

Firstly well done for giving her a home.
Secondly - cats are not dogs. I'd recomend getting down the library/bookshop and read a few cat books about their behaviour. In many ways you coax a cat to do what you want but often its a case of us doing what they want, not the other way around. There are some useful guides on the Cats Protection website:
Cats Protection

Have you registered her with a vet yet? A health checkup is a must as there are innoculations she should have and she should be neutered else you will quickly end up with half a dozen or more cats! Chipping is a must too.
As for using the tray - sadly a lot don't, especially if they have got the habit of going outside. But it could simply be the tray isn't in a place where she feels comfortable using it - make sure its in a private place and sometimes they don't like the type of litter. They won't want to use a tray thats too small either.
Outside at night - I let mine come and go as she pleases but it depends on your locale and what you're happy with. I also let my girl sleep where she wants even though that means being woken up for cat-kisses and strokes.
Do try to play with her and get her some toys - even ping pong balls or balls of paper can amuse them and tire her out a bit for a longer sleep at night.

Of course feel free to post any more questions you have, but a busier forum might be more useful for you - I use this one quite a lot:
Mad Cat People!

I used to have a cat that wouldn't use a litter tray with cat litter in it, but would use one with garden soil. It meant the whole lot had to be thrown out rather than scooping the mess but you might try this with your cat. If she's used to going outside this might be a way of getting her used to going indoors. Otherwise I'd echo what Shrike said. Good luck with your new friend

Thanks for the links.

I do treat her very differently to the dog, I've had a lot of experience handling cats, just never had one who actually lives here.

She has quite a few toys of her own already, little things to chase a tug, she loves rolling around the floor with one of them in her mouth.

She chose her windowsill, we've offered her everywhere, even the sofa, which she seemed to like at first, but she's really set herself up there though.

She is already spayed, that's kind of how she came to being here, her along with others have been mistreated, some with repeated back to back to back litters, they come on call, left outside for all the cats (hundreds here) to mate with them and never fixed. So I called cats protection who helped advise me to go to the vets with them for a C4, anyway, afterwards she set herself up here and asks to come in and stays all day.
Looked over be the vet, heart was good, she was at a good weight as we were feeding her too, she's been flead and now wormed and vaccines are booked in.

I would like to work towards her not going out for the night, early night she doesn't seem to want to, would rather sleep, it's just at 3am or so she really comes alive, the past few days she's wanted to play at 11pm too. I worry about her being out, pretty much why I've never had a cat, I've always loved them and had dogs who were amazing with them, my dog is friendly towards all cats coming into our garden.

Petforums, I do know it, I decided to start out here, a bit less identifiable in a way.

That's a good idea thanks, I may give it a go. I understand as it's what she has done for a few years, so it's just normal for her to go outside.

The day our lad was first allowed outside was pretty well the last time he used his litter tray. We have spread a large amount of used compost under the shrubs in the garden and this is now his kitty latrine (for most of the neighbouring cats too!) It's out of sight for us and the worms and insects do their job. Every time we have compost to dispose of, it goes under there.

Mine is also able to come and go as he pleases at any time of the day or night. In our opinion, it's what is most natural for him and a decision we took before adopting him.

Good luck and well done on giving her a good home. You'll all settle in very soon, I'm sure.

For newbies to cats....they just love cardboard boxes. Gawd knows why, but they can have the comfiest cushion in the world but they will still head for the box.

If anything upsets them or they feel threatened, it also gives them somewhere to hide, as well as something else other than the settee they can destroy. Try some newspaper in the bottom too!

In regards to diseases and stuff, a cat is generally happy if they're eating and grooming themselves. You may have days where she comes in looking like she's been dragged through a hedge backwards, but if she doesn't settle down and groom herself then keep an eye on her and if she doesn't settle within the next 12 hours or so get her to the vets. As time goes on you'll start to realise when she's feeling sorry for herself and is ill, but the above is pretty good as a guide.

Keep an eye on her eyes and nose as well. They can get "sleep dust" like humans, but if it becomes really gunky, usually along with a bit of a snotty nose, get them to the vets. When we rescued our two they were in a bad state and needed a lot of TLC to get them back to fighting strength (they'd also been weaned too early and you could fit them in a tea cup). It turned out that they had a respiratory infection, and was fairly easy to treat although trying to hold a kitten down and give her drops in her eyes wasn't easy when she realised that her tiny claws were still an effective weapon.

You mentioned that she sits in the window a lot, so a word of warning there. One of mine has a habit of sunworshipping in the summer and will find the window that gets the most sun and spread herself out on the windowsill for the day. The problem is she overheats and then spends the next 24 hours feeling sorry for herself and being sick. When it starts to get warmer an idea might be to keep nudging her out the window after a few hours so she has a break from the sun. Oddly enough her sister doesn't have the same problem, but then again she's not a fluffball like her sister.

Another thing to bear in mind is furballs. Cats get furballs and will quite commonly throw them up. Some of them will cause trouble for them though and it's not uncommon for them to spend a day intermittently trying to get a furball up. They can look pretty gross as well (bit of grass and other stuff they know to eat to get them up), but as long as there's no blood or anything and it looks like a ball of fur with clear "saliva" type stuff around it then that's normal. You can get anti-furball food, but my cats seem to have a reaction to it so if you go down that route keep an eye out for her having the runs, although I know this isn't easy if she won't use a litter tray.

You may also occasionally find claws around the house. This is normal too. They can get them caught on things and they'll detach. They will grow back and nothing to worry about, as my wife discovered when she found one and did a claw count (gently press the paw between your index finger and thumb and they'll extend their claws) on our two only to find they had the right amount.

Just enjoy having her and feel honoured that she's chosen you as her pets.

I've had cats for many years, and I've found that they can become accustomed to your sleep cycle. Not always, of course, and you'll probably have the occasional night where she'll dive on your quilt thinking she's found a new bed mouse, but my cats have usually 'adjusted' themselves to sleeping when I sleep. Usually on my bed, too. Good job I've got a double bed for just me - if I had a single, I'd never be able to get in it because of the cats.

So, I think your little one might still be in her own night-time roaming cycle - she may have found her hunting forays were better at stupid o'clock, so she's still in 'stray mode' at the moment. Give her a bit of time, and don't play with her at 3am or whatever. Try to ignore her, and teach her it's still bedtime. Best of luck with that.

One way to help the ignoring is to keep her in one room when you go to bed. Whichever room her favourite window sill belongs to, maybe? Leave her a dish of food and water, and see how she goes. Being consistent is key, though, I think.

I believe cats are supposed to be crepuscular, meaning they like to be active and hunt in twilight or before it becomes fully daylight. That said I think they can fit in with your own cycle, particularly as they have to fit in about 18 hours sleep a day.
I prefer to keep mine in at night so I actually get to see them and I know where they are. It is also beneficial for local wildlife etc. as they are less likely to catch it in daylight hours.
They are quite good about coming in, probably because they are quite food orientated. This seems to be working OK unless I try to lie in although I think they are more inclined to stay out on summer evenings just like the rest of us.

My advice is definitely get your cat a big cardboard box as previous poster said. They go mad with them, push them around, paw them, hide in them, jump on them. The other thing my cat and other cats of friends love is having access to a very high position in a room, like the top of a bookcase, bureau or dresser, they prefer the security of height.