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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 8:42:44 AM   
Lorr47


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quote:

ORIGINAL: subtlebutterfly

One person I know recently got an addition to her cathousehold....had had the new cat for 2 weeks or so when the poor lil thing got hit by a car last night and died immediately...so it got me thinking
Do you believe in keeping your cat as an indoor cat or indoor&out on a leash or allow it to be free as they like?



It always has ended up being what the cat wanted not what we wanted.

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 8:43:25 AM   
EbonyWood


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Farm life is different than city life.  Have you met up with a trully feral cat?



No, but I broke up a fight between two chicks in a biker bar once. Never again.

< Message edited by EbonyWood -- 11/19/2009 8:45:06 AM >

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 8:45:58 AM   
subtlebutterfly


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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 8:47:13 AM   
Lorr47


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quote:

ORIGINAL: EbonyWood




Farm life is different than city life.  Have you met up with a trully feral cat?



No, but I broke up a fight between two chicks in a biker bar once. Never again.


Adds a new dimension to the phrase "cat fight."

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 8:55:43 AM   
soul2share


Posts: 7084
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From: somewhere out there.....
Status: offline 		Our family's cats are all indoor, but they are leash trained so they can be taken outside.  My Smooch sneaks out on me all the time...did yesterday, in fact, and the two folks who work here at the hotel got him back into my room....little pisser that he is!  Fortunately, the gentleman who works here is very observant and had seen him in the window.  As most hotels are, I'm right next to a major highway, but like I told him, between the eagles and the gators, he wouldn't stand a chance!  None of our cats have the foggiest idea what a killer dog is...theirs are all friendly...by the time they'd know what was going on, they'd be dog food.

The reason all of our cats are leash trained is because we lost our cat to a car...my mom found her in the bushes, and my dad had to bury her.....it was only the second time I'd ever seen him cry.  None of our cats are declawed, I have those scratcher boxes that they love.  Yeah, they may get the furniture once in a blue moon, but I don't stress about things like that...it's what kittehs do.

Myself and two other women used to feed the ferals at the Capitol Mall complex......and a woman living nearby my herd actually did catch them and get the spayed/neutered.  She brought them back to where they'd lived and released them, but again, they weren't going to be producing more.  They didn't appear any worse for the wear, and would still come to me at dinner time.  They were very careful about the street, but again, it was familiar territory to them.  After a while, they actually let us pet them. 

And LaT, not that you need it, but I agree with the way you handled the situation with your ferals.  I actually lost one indoor cat to a feral with Feline Leukemia.....he busted thru a screen to get to my cats inside.  Alex fought with him tooth and nail, and she ended up getting infected.  Those people who just dump animals make me so angry I could spit nails.  The last of my adopted ones was actually found inside a dumpster.  My sister's first kitteh was one of three that her hubby found tossed in a ditch in a trash bag the middle of an upstate NY winter.  One can only hope that what goes around comes back around tenfold.

Honestly tho...my kittehs have such an easy life, they don't care if they're inside or outside......right now, they're fighting over the open window space.  The only one that seems to crave his outdoor adventures is Smooch.  Boo just hates the great outdoors, and Squeaks isn't fond of the harness.  I'm definitely getting a place with a screened in porch for them, that'll give them a dose of the great outdoors, but still be safe.  I just couldn't stand the thought of losing any one of them.

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 8:56:52 AM   
LaTigresse


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Status: offline 		That reminds me of the first time I met my youngest sister-in-law, over 10 years ago.

My brother called and said that she was embarrassed and didn't want to come over because she'd been in a fight the night before. She didn't want to make a bad first impression. We talked her into it anyway. I took one look at her and cringed. (she is a beautiful woman but really looking rough that day). My brother was all proud and bragging about how she'd kicked the hell out of the other, bigger girl. My first reaction was to say something like "damn if this is how the winner looks I am not sure I would want to see the loser!" But I wasn't sure I wanted her trying to kick my ass.

They were young and foolish and now we laugh about it. I cannot imagine my petite and beautiful little sister in law doing anything like that.

Then again even her 15 yo son says "how high!" when she says jump.

< Message edited by LaTigresse -- 11/19/2009 8:58:24 AM >

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 9:01:24 AM   
Mercnbeth


Posts: 11766
Status: offline 		"The Queen" at our house goes in and out as she pleases.  she is unable to reproduce and there is ample space for her to frolick and hunt without having to cross the street, though.  when we lived right next to a busy street, she wasn't allowed outside.
 
we tried to adopt and were turned down, so we purchased her at the local pet store, almost 5 years ago.

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 9:06:20 AM   
AquaticSub


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quote:

ORIGINAL: Icarys

quote:

ORIGINAL: LaTigresse

Who would you propose I should call to come pick them up? Will you purchase the live trap for me and where do you imagine I will take an adult feral tom cat that would rather rip your arm off than be touched? And why on earth would I video tape such a thing???


Sure I would buy it if I actually knew(since I don't know where you live and all) you and you couldn't afford to purchase it yourself. I've called animal rescue before and they come out.....Did you try anything other than yelling at them..My point is I'm sure if you wanted to you could have found a different way of handling it...as creative as you are and all.



Every shelter I know of puts down feral cats. The options are severly limited since people don't bother to spay and neuter and don't donate money to shelters. Either way, the cat dies.

Not saying it's good. Just that there isn't a way around it unless you are lucky enough to find someone willing to take and work with the feral cats.

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 9:09:55 AM   
AquaticSub


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quote:

ORIGINAL: NuevaVida

quote:

ORIGINAL: LaTigresse

The above is one of the reasons I am so very passionate about spaying and neutering because guess how those feral cats came to be? Some yutz that didn't want to take responsibility for their pet didn't want to keep the offspring so they decide they will take them out on some gravel road near some farm and dump them. Most get eaten immediately by coyotes or birds of prey, or run over. A few survive to reproduce and create more like them.



This is why I am so passionately vocal about spaying and neutering, too.  And for every family that thinks it would be cute to let their cat have kittens, for however many kittens they give away or sell, there are that many kittens still sitting in the shelter.  Grrr...



I do love having litters around. I really do. It's weird though... we got the first by a stray who adopted me and happened to be pregnant and my family kept all the babies. The second, we went through hell explaining to shelters that we wanted to adopt a pregnant cat or one who had just had her babies and take them all.

I don't know what they thought we were going to do but we got the weirdest looks.

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 9:13:02 AM   
GYPSYMAMBO


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quote:

ORIGINAL: EbonyWood




Have you met up with a trully feral cat?





yes! on our acerage..he was knarled old bastard..with one eye and no tail..story was he was part bobcat..
HE pinned all the females in a rapist way and bite the shit of them ..worse than a regular tom..
MAny many bob tail kittens were born over a period of about 10 years in our area within a 6 mile radius..as he lurked and raped and pillaged.
He took down a full grown badger in our pole shed..

fuk he was awesome...as a survivor and thriver


GM

< Message edited by GYPSYMAMBO -- 11/19/2009 9:14:17 AM >

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 9:36:56 AM   
Llyren


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Claudius was well on his way to being a gnarled old bastard, though he kept losing his fights.   He hasn't had any serious injuries as far as I can tell since he lost his addendums.   Given how easily he took to using the litter box when I did have him inside, I suspect that he was a kitten someone threw out when he stopped being cute, or they didn't want the bother of a cat anymore.  I'd like to meet them and show them what I think of people like that. 

The stable where my sister boards her horses often ends up with cats who are just dumped out in the country.  That just makes me so livid.   So far they've all been good cats, and the lady who owns it is a Sterile Feral colony manager, so she gets them fixed, but she has had trouble with truly feral beasties coming and causing trouble.


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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 9:56:43 AM   
impishlilhellcat


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Status: offline 		My cats are indoor cats.. The cat that likes to go outside goes on a harness and chain. He's been an indoor cat his whole life and he likes to hunt, but people speed like crazy down my road.


Feral cats are a bit different. They are hard to socialize and like their freedom it's just who they are. However, if feral cats are present I participate in the program that catches them (live traps) fixes them and then releases them back to the wild.

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 10:00:52 AM   
pahunkboy


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Joined: 2/26/2006
From: Central Pennsylvania
Status: offline 		FR:

Cats are a necessary part of life.

Rats are absolutely terrible- poison.  Cats will keep rats and such at bay. 

The old block I lived on- a house had 30-70 cats.   The others were upset because the flowers and yards were all wrecked.  I did not see it myself- tho I lived several blocks away.

For the inside- even tho I am casual in my house- I dont want cat hair- and pee anywhere.   The smell makes me sick.

I also am not a car person per se.

But I am owned by a cat.   :-)   When Jim passed I inherited his cat.   At first I was cool to the idea.  But now she is part of my home and part of my life.

My cat tho has been spayed and no claws in the front.   Somehow she does not shed.  When she gets up the cover is not hairy.

At this house- my cat does go outside- and there are a few strays. Indeed 2 or more houses put out food for them.

I should also say that I am quite the green thumb in my yard.    I never experienced damage from ANY cat at this house or the old one.

Now what is responsible?

For several months- my cat has used the outside every time to go to bathroom.

I do not let her out for "days at a time".    I let her out for a bit- she comes 90% of the time when I ring the bell.

I do have have a litter box just in case.

I like the idea that a few strays or cats are in the neighborhood.   The houses here are pretty close and we also border a large river.  So mice and whatnot are everywhere.

During the bubonic plague of the 14th century- much of Europe was wiped out in death.  They traced the death to fleas on rats.
So it is this and other germs- that are a very real threat to life.

If the area did become over run- then maybe I would want the herd thinned out.   But frankly as much of a yard green thumb enthusiast that I am- I doubt that they damage as severe as some say.

Cats are your friend...even if you never pet one.  A killed rat is a good thing!!

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 10:16:03 AM   
Hillwilliam


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Status: offline 		Keep the cats inside.  Few things piss me off as much as someone that has an "outside cat" that starts whining and pissing and moaning when it gets run over.  Guess whose fault it was?  The way they dart, it certainly wasnt the driver.  And Im sure that your neighbor just LOVES the cute paw prints all over their car and the cat poop in their window boxes.

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 10:28:55 AM   
Llyren


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At the risk of starting flaming, have you =ever= tried keeping a cat in the house when it's determined to be outside? 

It's a daily struggle here, since my neighbour has started issuing threats, because he says my cats terrorize his pit bulls.  And trying to keep a black cat in the house when you're trying to go outside at night...  erlack.


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I'm not perving. I'm compensating for my myopia. So nyah.


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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 11:21:47 AM   
JudasButcher


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Status: offline 		At the present time, we have one cat. Not long ago the kids had 5 and took them with them when they moved. None of them were outside cats at all. Though we're out a bit more in the country than most, we do live on a busy road and don't want to deal with animals geting hit. (we did once when our bloodhound got out of the fence....3 days and $3000 later he came home) Besides that, we have small farm animals, and the cats would terrorize the chickens, playing or not.
Around here, NO ONE will take a feral cat. No rescues or the local Humane Society. Most have been outside their entire lives with no human interaction and simply couldn't be adopted into a home. Sure, they can be great in a barn for rats and mice, but I've also lost chicks and ducklings to them. We've had to deal with feral cats in our own way here, no different than coyotes or raccoons getting into the henhouse. While we're both animal lovers, a predator is a predator, cat or not.
Another point is that a large majority of people do not get their animals spayed or neutered, then complain when they have to give away kittens. A farmhouse around the corner has a "free kittens" sign up in their yard almost year round. I sware I wanna stop one day and thump these people in the head. 1-get them fixed, 2-keep them indoors. It's pretty simple.

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 11:38:26 AM   
DesFIP


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From: Apple County NY
Status: offline 		Animal control here will not even bother about feral cats. They'll take a feral dog if you trap it, but they aren't going about 6,000 acres of preserve/state park looking for them. But if you trap a feral cat nobody will take it.

And the coyotes prefer house cats to trying to take down a feral one.

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 11:53:00 AM   
switch2please


Posts: 494
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Status: offline 		I do regular volunteer work with an animal shelter (in a more rural area) and I've worked with a different shelter in the past (in an urban area). I tried to "socialize" a feral cat someone brought in once...and I still have a few little scars on my arms and a long (faded) scar on my chest. He was euthanized not long after, deemed unfit for adoption.

I adopted my cat about 5 years ago, she is fixed and stays indoors unless I'm outside too. If it's a nice day she'll sun herself on the porch while I read, or we'll play in the backyard, but I do keep an eye on her because I do live off a busy street and she's not the brightest feline... :) and I don't believe the issue of declawing was discussed, but I am set against it - my cat has all her claws. In case she does manage get outside, I want her to be able to defend herself.

I agree that it's a bit asinine to be surprised when your outdoor cat gets run over...or in a fight...or catches a virus...or gets pregnant if your female cat is not fixed (DUMBASS)...or gets caught in a storm and freezes...or is poisoned...or...!!

We've seen poisoned cats - and dogs - several times. Usually food is laced with something and left outside, the intent is to reduce the overpopulation of feral cats in that area and not usually malicious per se (as one poster wrote, the most humane approach is not always cute and fuzzy, and overpopulation is definitely an issue) but any animal could get to it. There are also people who take out their aggressions on animals, but this isn't as much of a threat to an exploring housepet - I hate to say it, but they usually have pets at home to abuse.

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 11:57:37 AM   
GYPSYMAMBO


Posts: 660
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Status: offline 		ALL:
THE average life span of an unneatured TOM who is outside is 1.7 years..

GM

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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 12:12:56 PM   
pahunkboy


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From: Central Pennsylvania
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quote:

ORIGINAL: DesFIP

Animal control here will not even bother about feral cats. They'll take a feral dog if you trap it, but they aren't going about 6,000 acres of preserve/state park looking for them. But if you trap a feral cat nobody will take it.

And the coyotes prefer house cats to trying to take down a feral one.


I live in PA-  Animal control does not do anything about cats here. 

To the poster who mentioned cat paws on a car- other creatures do the same thing.  If it bothers you there are natural things you can put on your property to  repel them.  (to a point)

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