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RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 4:31:56 PM

LadyEllen

Posts: 10931
Joined: 6/30/2006
From: Stourport-England
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I would just like to point out that according the Mad Cat Lady Regulations 2003, one needs
1) at least nine cats, and
2) at least five litter trays around the house, and
3) a distinct edge of ammonia in the air, and
4) torn and shredded soft furnishings, and
5) a commitment to live alone, such that
a) one takes to talking to the cats as if they were human and comes to believe they are, so ceasing any sensible communication with other people except for cat like noises, and
b) following one's death, the corpse shall be discovered three weeks later, half eaten by the cats

E

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Post #: 61

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 4:53:17 PM

Phoenixpower

Posts: 8098
Status: offline

my cats are indoors and outdoors.

my two boys enjoy being outside a lot (from spring to autumn they are outside 85% of the day, in winter approx. 40%). Often they just come when I get home, claim food and off they go again

My two girls only go outside when I am at home as my tortie girl is scared outside if she is outside and has no chance to get in whenever she wants (I think a neighbour cat or fox scared her when she was younger and that this is the reason why she panics when I dare to shut the door....so I don´t put her into the stress of leaving her outside when I am not there for hours). My other girl is a birman cat and they tend to prefer to be inside anyway...so she joins my tortie girl for a little chase in the garden and then they come happily back inside.)

I unfortunately do live nearish to a mainroad...but thankfully they genuinly don´t go close to the main road as they react very well to the car noises and as much as they enjoy to follow me for a bit sometimes when I go to work via a different path, they thankfully have no interest to go far with me if I need to go to the main road...So it seems they figured out that they are safer in the huge grasses behind my flat which are going towards train racks...and enjoy it being there big time...

My white tabby boy made himself quite popular in my neighbourhood as I recently discovered...he makes sure to get buckets full of TLC

Not that I prefer him to be that way but well....he used to be homeless and there I don´t have much control over it...fingers crossed he never gets snatched from anyone...

Tuesday he was not a happy bunny when I declined him to go out due to me flying home the next day...but well, he will surely enjoy it now much more when I get back monday night

Thankfully trouble with neighbour cats got better...he had quite a few bad beatings in 2008, on one occassion I grounded him for 4 days as a huge chunk of fur was ripped out from his ear and I did not want to risk him catching any infections outside and ensured that I can see if he might get worse from it...but now since about a year he remains unharmed

thank goodness

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(in reply to LadyEllen)

Post #: 62

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 8:20:05 PM

soul2share

Posts: 7084
Joined: 12/18/2007
From: somewhere out there.....
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quote:

ORIGINAL: BKSir

quote:

ORIGINAL: soul2share
<-----S2S, who is the president of the Crazy Cat Ladies Association! Everyone is welcome to join us!

Even if we're not "ladies", we're allowed to join?

Of course BK...the only requirement is that you love the kittehs....and you're crazy!

_____________________________

I have to stop saying "How stupid can you be?"...people are starting to take it as a challenge!

*Not a fuck was given.*

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Post #: 63

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 8:52:45 PM

winterlight

Posts: 1319
Joined: 2/18/2006
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I live in the burbs. We have coyotes here. They love cats and dogs and find them irresistable.

My neighbor lost her cat. It disappeared one night and never came back. I am sure the poor thing got taken/killed by a coyote.

SPCA wants people to keep the pets indoors. They live longer that way. Average for a cat is 2-5 years if let outdoors. After seeing what happened to my neighbors cat. I keep mine indoors.

It really is up to each individual pet owner what they can comfortably live with.

(in reply to Lorr47)

Post #: 64

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 9:04:33 PM

winterlight

Posts: 1319
Joined: 2/18/2006
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I had a cat get into my garage. I had paw prints all over the roof and hood of my car. I just laughed it looked so funny.

I never got to see the cat though and as far as i know it never came back.

Cats do like to get into a car's hood and sit on the engine. It can get hurt from the running parts. I found that out later..

(in reply to pahunkboy)

Post #: 65

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 9:23:53 PM

NuevaVida

Posts: 6707
Joined: 8/5/2008
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quote:

ORIGINAL: Llyren

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

No flames here, but yes, and I do, successfully. To me it's worth the effort.

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Post #: 66

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/19/2009 9:25:03 PM

NuevaVida

Posts: 6707
Joined: 8/5/2008
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quote:

ORIGINAL: AquaticSub

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.

But but but...what do you do when they're grown? Do you keep them all, still?

_____________________________

Live Simply. Love Generously. Care Deeply. Speak Kindly.

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Post #: 67

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/20/2009 12:02:30 AM

MissAnimus

Posts: 91
Joined: 12/28/2006
Status: offline

Indoors.

Between cars, coyotes, boys with rocks and BB guns, other cats that fight, plus FIV and FeLV it’s too much heartbreak to let a cat out. I don’t care how loud or how long it howls at the door. I’ve had a cat I could let outside on a harness but most don’t like it.

I volunteer for a local rescue group and we have a T&R program for feral cats. When we can we take them in and try to socialize them. Other times they become farm cats (or hangar cats) and it’s still a short, hard life but at least it’s a little better.

Please keep your cats inside.
Please spay or neuter your animals.
Please support your local shelters and T&R programs.

p.s.- My cats will always have their claws, it’s part of the original package.

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(in reply to NuevaVida)

Post #: 68

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/20/2009 1:23:25 AM

PyrotheClown

Posts: 1950
Joined: 5/18/2009
Status: offline

at this moment I'd like to mention (as a life long country boy)that after reading some of this post and seeing alota concern over coyotes, coyotes don't kill all that many cats, if you have coyotes in the neighborhood, they're probably far more interested in your trash and or other dumber slower prey (city and Country)then a house cat. The real kitty threat is owls, they're far more capable of carrying off snow ball then a coyotes, feral dogs also go after house cats more then coyotes because they tend to be ballsier(the house cats) and poke their curious noses into sight more often then other would be prey that elude feral domestic breads.

as to the question of whether I let my kitty out, yes, all the time..
She's been a papered brat ever since I got her(she's even got one of those fancy chips in her, told the lady at the pound that all it'd do was to make some coyotes poop beep, but it came with her anyway)and is one of the sweetest most cuddlesome kitties i've known,but she's got more balls then a blind nascar driver, and I aint worried bout her at all......
to fill ya in, when I got her fixed, it took three vets to hold her down just to sedate her.when I first got her as a tiny kitten, she took on the squirrel infestation I had in my house(when she was still smaller then the squirrels), yes my house HAD squirrels, I don't have a problem with them any more 8D. She also has the habit of cornering strangers that enter my house, and attacking large dogs...Like I said, she's got balls.

(in reply to MissAnimus)

Post #: 69

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/20/2009 7:39:20 PM

LookieNoNookie

Posts: 12216
Joined: 8/9/2008
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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?

I'd hate to be kept inside all day staring out the windows if cats were in charge....so....I don't see any rational reason not to allow them to run free and come as they please.

(in reply to subtlebutterfly)

Post #: 70

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/20/2009 9:29:46 PM

LafayetteLady

Posts: 7683
Joined: 5/2/2007
From: Northern New Jersey
Status: offline

I've had many cats over the years, and usually they were the indoor/outdoor type. Rarely were they lost to speeding cars thankfully. Socks adopted me earlier this year when we were living in a motel while trying to find a new rental house. She just wandered in one day and decided she preferred sleeping in the warmth rather than the cold. She got herself pregnant and although it wasn't my initial plan, I couldn't leave her as a pregnant stray. Best decision I ever made. She is now strictly indoor kitty and not the least bit unhappy about it. I have a fairly big house and it does get mice from time to time, so she gets to do her hunting, lol.

She wasn't feral, but she was a very aloof stray who didn't like people. She still doesn't like other people, but she spends most of her days on my lap, and her nights sleeping in bed next to me. Everyone else she tends to hate, but that's fine by me.

She was very young to be having kittens and it was a very difficult birth, two of her three kittens were still born and I thought I would lose her. We have a great shelter in our town and the kitten was taken to an adoption fair as soon as she was old enough to be on her own. Momma cat didn't seem to care one bit that her baby was no longer around, and I have seen her go crazier looking for a mouse that was taken from her and set free than she ever did for her kitten!

Anyway, whether to keep them indoors or not depends on where you live and whether or not it is safe enough to let them out. Socks will probably never go outside again, and it works for both her and me.

(in reply to LookieNoNookie)

Post #: 71

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/21/2009 7:21:55 AM

OrionTheWolf

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Joined: 10/11/2006
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~FR~

All pets should be neutered and spayed, period. The TNR programs across the nation are barely a band aid on the problem of free range felines. They are not only becoming pests to humans, but they have the ability to cause problems in the ecoco system as they destroy bird life in the areas they multiply. Even mass killings of them do not help, as they can repopulate in a couple of mating seasons.

Ferals on your property should be taken care of quickly, either by killing them or contacting someone to capture, neuter and then relocate them. This is if you want to preserve the bird life in your area, and pest problems they cause. If you live in a rural/burb county life me, there is no one that does TNR in the area.

Felines have become a very disposable pet to many people in the US. I volunteered for a no kill shelter for a few years, and the board had to institute a policy of no ferals accepted, because we already became over burdened with just abandoned and strays.

If you are going to take responsibility for a feline, you should get it neutered and vaccinated first thing. Keeping it indoors will lengthen it's life, and improve the quality of life it has, unless it really does have a wild streak in it. I took in a feral kitten and tamed it (that took a very long time), and afterwards it wanted nothing to do with being outside. It did love it's bubble window seat I got for it though.

Since losing my cats a few years back, I have not gotten anymore pets. That responsibility is huge, as well as the heart break is bad when you lose them. If I get another cat it will be an indoor cat, period.

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Post #: 72

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/21/2009 7:31:57 AM

LadyEllen

Posts: 10931
Joined: 6/30/2006
From: Stourport-England
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On QI last night, (intellectual quiz show on TV), it was discussed how cats were parachuted into Borneo in the 1960s in order to deal with the massive rat population that had sprung up after DDT had killed the native felines, who had eaten poisoned insects.

I propose these brave felines as the ultimate examples of outdoor cats.

E

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In a test against the leading brand, 9 out of 10 participants couldnt tell the difference. Dumbasses.

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Post #: 73

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/21/2009 7:35:36 AM

Aneirin

Posts: 6121
Joined: 3/18/2006
From: Tamaris
Status: offline

Oh wow, what a picture, kitties on parachutes.

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(in reply to LadyEllen)

Post #: 74

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/21/2009 8:14:30 AM

LadyEllen

Posts: 10931
Joined: 6/30/2006
From: Stourport-England
Status: offline

Apparently they were in spring loaded cages A; when the cages hit ground, the spring mechanism would open the cage. They had to be parachuted in because the areas with the problems were inaccessible otherwise.

I guess the cats solved the problem of the rats, but I do wonder at the ethics of it all; the cats must have been terrified and one must ask, what did they eat when they'd gotten through the rats? Did they starve and die?

E

_____________________________

In a test against the leading brand, 9 out of 10 participants couldnt tell the difference. Dumbasses.

(in reply to Aneirin)

Post #: 75

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/21/2009 8:16:02 AM

Aneirin

Posts: 6121
Joined: 3/18/2006
From: Tamaris
Status: offline

Or what about the cages that landed in trees, are there cages in trees now with skeletons of cats in.

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Everything we are is the result of what we have thought, the mind is everything, what we think, we become - Guatama Buddha

Conservatism is distrust of people tempered by fear - William Gladstone

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Post #: 76

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/21/2009 8:18:40 AM

littlewonder

Posts: 15659
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Our cats have always been indoors. Imo domestic cats really don't have the capability to be left on their own in the wild. They are not wild animals.

(in reply to Lorr47)

Post #: 77

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/21/2009 9:09:54 AM

Aneirin

Posts: 6121
Joined: 3/18/2006
From: Tamaris
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I see cat ownership as a human agreeing to allow a cat to share their lives and homes, that doesn't mean the cat is owned , like a thing to be bought and owned, a commodity, it is a creature like ourselves, it can do as it pleases. If it wants to go outside, explore and terrorise the smaller than it population of critters, fine, let it do so, it is up to the cat. Cats also go outside to socialise with other animals, just like we do, they scrap and stare at each other, they also greet each other, and even those we think are enemies, they can be nice to each other and other things, they are not too dissimilar from ourselves socially. Around here,there are cats, currently five of them that are regular visitors, they seem to take shifts on who is allowed to be with one or other human, where they get fed,and they can sleep, the cats have owners of soughts, but they are rarely with them, as our neighboorhood cats are out there in the wild most of the time, they just seek an in, when the weather is crappy.

_____________________________

Everything we are is the result of what we have thought, the mind is everything, what we think, we become - Guatama Buddha

Conservatism is distrust of people tempered by fear - William Gladstone

(in reply to littlewonder)

Post #: 78

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/21/2009 9:35:37 AM

Musicmystery

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Joined: 3/14/2005
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~FR~

I live in the country, but I have indoor cats (two).

They are perfectly happy. And the country (mice) has a way of finding its way inside...

Outdoors is dangerous--coyotes and cars in particular. If there were a safe, inexpensive, reliable way to let them out and keep them safe, I would.

So they'll just have to keep living happy and playful lives indoors.

(in reply to Aneirin)

Post #: 79

RE: Cats - indoor/outdoor? - 11/21/2009 9:40:19 AM

EbonyWood

Posts: 2044
Joined: 7/8/2005
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quote:

ORIGINAL: LadyEllen

On QI last night, (intellectual quiz show on TV), it was discussed how cats were parachuted into Borneo in the 1960s

So these were parachutists who actually WANTED to land in trees.

but I presume they all landed on their feet....

(in reply to LadyEllen)

Post #: 80

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