Cat: Tom or Queen?

[CountryGoalie]

I hesitate to say that this falls under the "Homesteading Questions" thread, but I'm not sure where else to put it.

Before heading out to the barn tonight, one of our house dogs was rather worked up and barking at the door, but it was about time for my father to be coming home from a late project, so I didn't think anything of it. A few minutes later, I came downstairs and he wasn't home. When I stepped outside to get the water buckets to fill, our cat Sami (the newest recruit to move from indoors to the great outdoors due to cleanliness habits...) was standing in the open screen door, looking extremely attentive and keyed off of something out in the yard. I, being the paranoid person that I can be, noted this and decided to take the house dog with me out to the barn.

There are two vehicles between the house and the barn, and after clearing both, I saw a cat that moved low and quick like our Sami move along the edge of the silo up aheadand dissapear. I thought, "Wow, that was quick," and when I glanced back over my shoulder... she was behind me! The cat that I saw was light like her, so I knew it wasn't our oversize brown tabbycat Noah, who I saw coming from the other direction afterward, or our old one-eyed two-toothed declawed torbie, who was sitting inside the barn looking disgruntled and waiting for food. So, I know I saw another cat - none of our close neighbors have outdoor cats. One neighbor did for a while, but their orange cat went missing, and they have since kept their black cat in. If it weren't for the fact that the orange cat has been missing for two years, I would have guessed he was dropping in for a visit.

I fed our three, and went around feeding and watering the rabbits, and as I was finishing up in the "rabbit room", I heard a deep yowling sound from outside the room, part of which is a converted run-in stall. There are no lights outside on that side of the building, so I didn't go outside to see if I could see the cat, but my question is this:

Is a yowling cat more likely a queen in heat, or a tom being a loudmouth male? We've only had one cat show up that didn't get spayed right away, but it was a long time ago and I don't remember the sounds of a female in heat. Do tomcats yowl? Any help here is appreciated...

I'm thinking that this cat is yet another drop-off, as that would explain why the dog was barking - she wouldn't bark at a cat at the door, but if she could hear a vehicle in the driveway, or peeling off down the street, that would explain it. It also wouldn't be an uncommon thing - seven of our eight cats are from "rescue situations", and four of those seven were cats that simply showed up, definitely dumped...

[QueenB04]

Oh yes do tomcats ever yowl. Females in heat will yowl too, but it's a very diff. sound then a tom. Tom's are very deep, loud and drawn out, they are extremely mouthy, especially if there are other cats around. I'd be listening for a few cat scraps, they will generally chase females rather than fight them, but if you have other males neutered or not a fight is likely to break out. Keep an eye or nose rather out for them spraying, you cannot mistake it. If you get a look at him body mass usually defines a tom cat. They are usually larger, heavier cats(not all the time though) but the especially have a heavy jowl, also watch for torn up ears, top of heads, and facial injuries. If cats fight, especially males, they go for the ears, and top of the head and can really do damage. If you're concerned about him, I'd set a live trap out, snare him neuter him(or spay if it's a female) and then let him go. Tom cats will cause trouble though, especially feral ones. Hope this answers your question(s.)

[CountryGoalie]

It sounds like I might have a tom on my hands, then. I wouldn't say that is was really drawn out, but it was certainly much longer than a meow, loud and deep like you mentioned. I only saw it move through the shadows for a couple of seconds, but the way it moved and its physique made me think of our female maine coon cat, Sami - long and somewhat lean, light on the feet - so it may have been a younger cat, as well. If it is a dumpee, it could be that perhaps they didn't want to deal with him as he hit puberty. :no:

The only cat outside who is declawed is our old girl who is supposedly thirteen - but she is physically a very old thirteen - but all she does is move from a sunny hill to the barn and back again daily.

Our twelve-year-old, Noah, is a male, and is quite hefty - he used to be extremely overweight, but has lost most of that and is just a rather big boy. He can be a bit grumpy with other cats, and I would think he could handle himself with a passing tom... so we'll see if it shows up again at all.

As long as he doesn't get into fights with Noah, I'll be happy to have him around, as rats have recently been trying to re-establish a home in our barn. We don't like to put down any poison because of the idea of a rabbit getting loose and chewing on it, or a rat in its death throes stumbling into a kennel run and making one of our dogs sick, etc... but the cats have been leaving us "presents" pretty consistently. So, if he just wants to eat... I'll happily let him. :haha:

Thank you for your input!

[Maura]

Get a live trap and catch that fellow. Take him to your vet or the Humane Society. They will quickly know if he's been a pet or not. You don't know what kind of baddies he may have and you don't want your kitties getting sick from him.