I hate my cat. I did not sign up for this

[Ragcatdoll]

3 year old male ragdoll. Bought from reputable breeder as a kitten. Researched the breed before buying. Consensus was I was signing up for a “living breathing teddy bear who will follow you everywhere”.

Reality is an unfriendly bored cat whose only aim in life is to leave his home. He has a 3 storey house to explore. Cat trees. Multiple toys. His 3 year old sister from same litter to play with. Attention all day from my grown up DS who works from home and my DH.

Did I mention I spent 4k professionally cat proofing my garden which he has access to 24/7 via a cat flap? Still not happy.Sits by front door screaming day and night to go out. Tries everything to get out the front including leaping from 2nd floor window which he did on Saturday. I’ve had enough.

Hes spent all day crying at the front door to go outside even though he has a secure back garden!!

I can’t cope with him anymore. Didn’t sign up for this. Not sure what else I can do except let him go outside the front where we have a road, a quiet road, but a road none the less. All I see on social media are ragdolls who lay around the house sleeping all day quite content.

His sister is lovely, loves her back garden & is a content little thing. He on the other hand is making the whole family miserable,

This. You don't get to secure a certain personality when you get a cat. They don't all fit into neat "teddy bear " boxes. Poor thing probably knows you hate him too

You have no choice but to let him out even if it means losing him. I bet he is smarter than that and will adapt and learn some survival skills. Otherwise, I guess you got your wish (I know you don't mean it but with a cat with such a strong personality, it is cruel to shut him in).

He has got to learn for himself.

This was my fear. Both of my boys are stunning. But they're still here 13 years later 😂

What I did:

Let mine out the front but took a camping chair and sat out there and watched them. The first few times they did not go far and kept coming back to me.

But you haven't provided the enriching environment he needs which is to go outside

Trackers don't stop them getting run over or stolen!! Knowing where he's laying dead doesn't help and anyone wanting to steal them we'll just take the tracker off

@Ragcatdoll

I wouldn't let him out the front, every time he's at the front door whingeing I would just pick him up and plunk him in the back garden or the back or the cat run.

The reason I won't have a cat here is because I don't want to have to make them a house cat and for some reason our residential road that never actually seems that busy has cats killed on it all the time it's an almost certain thing if you get a cat here🙄🙄

As I said, every time he wins, I would just pick him up and plonk him outside, he eventually get the message that whingeing at the door like that only gets them put outside the back!!

We catproofed our garden to keep our cat safe from the little bastards with catapults. We didn't know how he'd take it but he wasn't bothered, he had the run of the flat and 24/7 access to the garden whereas when he was allowed out the front he wasn't allowed out at night. I think his little cat brain thought it was a good compromise! We also put in an additional door in the hall so he couldn't sit by the front door. No temptation and no chance of him making a run for it.

Is the smart one looking out for the thick one?

Let him out the back and uncatproof your garden so he can get into other gardens.

He is less likely to bother going to the front that way (not guaranteed)

Sorry about the £4k

Honestly with all the will in the world some cats just cannot be indoor cats. I have one of them. He would try and escape out of any open door/window. If he gets run over whilst obviously very sad it’s even sadder that he is so desperately unhappy indoors

Let him out or rehome him. You sound awful.

And FWIW, I absolutely cannot STAND people who say they have "indoor cats". There is no such thing. Just people who don't want to let them outside to roam and be animals.

That sounds really cruel.

He's a house and back garden cat. He wants to be out of the front door to go further afield!

We've had 2 cats run over. Ironically I think quiet roads are just as dangerous as busy ones as they lull cats into a false sense of security.

Far better for a cat to have a good life ended a bit early than a long life frustrated and bored.

You have done what you can. Let him out as he’s clearly desperate to explore the outside world. He might actually not be that interested once he has outdoor access but if he gets hit by a car or stolen, then so be it. As cruel as it sounds, your home life will be better either way.

Let him out. He's miserable, poor thing.

House cats FFS 🙄

To the people who don't let their cats out in case they get run over, do you also not go out? Do you not let your children out? At the end of the day, of course there is no risk of being hit by a car if you stay indoors forever but you also lead a miserable and bored life!!!

Let him out. Chances are that once he's allowed to, he won't want to any more.

Is he neutered? Males often lose their interest in wandering once neutered.
We've had numerous doctored Tom cats (moggies) over the years. None have ever lost an interest in roaming and the outside world.

My Maine coons were meant to be indoor cats but one of them just didn’t like that idea so now she goes out.

if you hate the cat anyway you may as well let him roam!

Cats are not designed to live in zoos. You’re keeping him in a zoo. Thus he is miserable.

Keeping cats locked inside is cruel. Having access to a safe garden doesn't change that.

He's clearly desperate to go out so let him out. IMO people shouldn't have cats if they're not willing to let them out to roam.

Have you tried him on a harness? I used to do that with an ex housemate's cat who was a bit of an escape artist. Sometimes they just want to bimble about for a bit.

Well, that’s too bad. You’re making him unhappy by essentially keeping him a prisoner.

OP: what a horrible post. You sound so nasty.
Poor little thing - rehome him to loving home.
You don’t deserve cats.

IKR. Lifelong cat owner never had cat run over.

NDN’s dog got run over, but it didn’t stop her taking her dogs out.

Personally I’d much rather have a short life living free over a long life in captivity.