Almost all of our cats have been strays or rescue cats. Starting with an old ginger cat whose owner no longer wanted him. I was at the vets with my friend and her kittens. We saw this straggly, ginger long haired cat, he was thin as a rake and it’s owner who was an elderly lady, could no longer care for him. We asked if we could take him in and she signed him over to us. He was quite old but he lived another couple of years with us. He used to walk along the wall between us and the house next door. He knew when I was coming home and came and greeted me. One thing I always do is teach my cats to come when I whistle them. I have never regretted the risk of taking our first cat in, and now after many years of cat ownership I still feel the same way.