We are getting a cat! Do I keep it as a house cat or allow it out?

[fannybanjo]

We are adopting a 12 month old gorgeous female cat from the RSPCA. We haven't owned a cat before but myself and my DH have masses of experience of them as children/teenagers.

I am just unsure what to for the best with regards to letting it out. Cats to me should be allowed out but I am frightened of it getting lost/knocked over. I have distinct memories of banging a cat food tin with a fork when I was a child desperately trying to our cat to come in!

Plus what do we need to buy for her?!

what sort of area do you live in? If I lived in an urban area I'd be tempted to keep cats indoors. Would you consider a second cat? as then they could keep each other company, and plenty of things to play with/climb on. they need a bit more playing with to keep them fit since they aren't roaming around as much as an outdoors cat would. as for what you need to buy:

cat litter tray + litter
cat carrier
food and water dishes
bedding
toys/cat climbing trees etc.
good quality catfood

It depends on the personality of the cat, have the RSPCA given you a bit of background? some cats are more house cats then others. When you get it you are usually required to keep it in the house for a few weeks so it can get used to its new surroundings-you'll need to be patient if it hides under the stairs for days! then let it out bit by bit, into the garden when you are out etc... As for buying, I'd say the obvious, food, dry and meat, litter and tray, maybe a little toy/scratching post, I wouldn't bother with a bed as they never use them! Hope this helps, we've had numerous rescue cats and they are a joy! enjoy your new pet

One of the heartbreaks of cat ownership is that you have to let them out, and there is a chance they won't come back. But the thing that makes cats what they are is that they are free spirits, and have their own life doing "cat stuff" and you have to let them. Yes, it's a risk, but it has to be done. You keep them in to meet your own needs, not the cat's - and that's not fair.

Thanks ladies!

We are rural Countrygirl but a very busy main A road is only 400 yards away. I doubt I would get another cat quite yet!

Roo - the RSPCA said she was abandoned, that is the only background they have. She is a VERY friendly cat with a lovely calm personality from what I have seen of her and doesn't mind being handled by the DC.

Suppose best wait and see if she is scratching the door down to get out. It just baffles me how you can control a cat to stay in if you have your door open etc? A dog can be trained to sit but I haven't yet seen a cat do it!

she sounds lovely!I'd agree with seeker, cats will do what they want, hence why I mentioned personality, ours won't leave the garden even though we live in the dales! See how well she settles in the first week then when you let her/him out for the first time don't feed them, they'll come back when they're hungry

With regards to equipment - we have had cats for years until recently when the last one passed away. We have no cat flap and those cats stayed out all of the time so we never had scratching posts.

We recently got two 1 year old cats who had to stay in for a while until they had all their jabs so I got a scratchy post..and then another one...and then a house thing! So in all they have 3 scratching posts.

One in the kitchen where they sleep - the house tower thing is in the lounge and the other post is at the top of the stairs. I know it seems like over kill but it has saved my furniture and even though they go outside now (they were desperate to go out despite us being told from the rehoming place that they hadn't been out before) they still use all the scratching posts all the time.

Watch Simon's Cat. They tell you everything you need to know about sharing your home with a cat (they are very funny short cartoons. Anyone who owns a cat will identify)

"It just baffles me how you can control a cat to stay in if you have your door open etc? "

You can't. They have to be shut in. Don't do it - she'll probably escape anyway!

I had always felt cats were outdoors animals and should be let out. We had outdoor cats as children.

Then we got a Ragdoll and they really should be kept in because they will not defend themselves from predators/children/dogs. She had always been an indoor cat prior to us getting her at 14 months old as a rehome as she was returned to the breeder. We have since also got a moggy kitten (now a year old) to keep her company and because the Ragdoll is an indoor cat, both are kept indoors. They are kept in with closed windows/doors, but we do let them in the garden under supervision sometimes. They like laying in the sun, but don't attempt to wander.

I really don't feel that our cats are missing out on anything by being in, and I do genuinely feel that people who let their cats out are pretty selfish in a way. If I let one of my dogs or horses go and shit in the middle of their lawn/flowerbeds on a regular basis, they'd soon be fed up. Not to mention the damage cats do to wildlife/birds, some of which are already endagered.

If you want your cats to have outdoors time and are worried about the road, you could put catproof fencing around your garden to keep them in there.

Our three rescue cats would all go nuts if they weren't allowed out. 400 yds is a long way in cat terms if there are more interesting things the other way. We live on a small estate which leads onto a main road, but as the woods and countryside are the other way, the cats never bother going towards the road unless they are following us

agree wholeheartedly with Seeker. I have lost 2 cats to the road, but in reality those cats had the life they should have been living iyswim.

They are free spirits.

My two were supposed to be indoor cats - I still think one of them would have been okay with it, but the other was not having it. We used the porch as an airlock for the first six months that we had them, we couldn't open both doors at once or he would dash out! Earlier this year we realised it was impossible, and put a catflap in. Both are very happy with the situation, and I've come to terms with it. They were supposed to stay in at night, but one of them managed to open the flap from inside when it was set to 'in only', which meant they were both locked out all night, so now they're completely free range.

It may be worth a try to see if the cat is happy to be a housecat, if that's what you want ... but mine were 'outdoor ready' as soon as possible, ie vaccinated and chipped, just in case, and that's proven to be realy useful.

Most cats who get injured it happens at night, cars can't see them, more cat fights etc. An excellent half way house it so to let your cat out during the day, feed a supper so they come and then shut the cat flap. This is what I have always done and despite living beside some very busy roads including currently the A4 I have had 12 accident free years (crosses fingers now).

I'm from a place where many city councils issue tickets if you let your cat roam loose, so I've had indoor cats nearly all my life and they've all been fine, healthy and happy.

Brits find this cruel, but I find it very backwards how many don't spay or neuter their animals when there are so many unwanted ones.

We live in a maisonette in a secure door building that starts on the 1st floor, so our moggie is indoors only at present.

It can be done!

Outrageous that anyone would have an unspayed/un neutered cat particularly if it'sn outdoor cat.

Cats do get hurt, or lost or even killed, but they are doing cat-stuff and leading cat lives - we keep them in for our own best interests, not theirs. IMHO!

I would agree with letting out during the day and keeping in at night.

Our 6 month old beautiful, male kitten (who had been neutered) disappeared (believed to have been attacked by a fox) when he was let out in the early evening in Feb. Have still not gotten over him yet . We live in a surburban area.

If I could go back, I wish we'd made him be a house cat but feel that is a bit cruel.

We have two spayed female cats who are about a year old, from the Cats Protection League. We were advised to keep them in for the first two weeks or so to get them used to feeling that they lived here, but after that we started letting them use a catflap. They do sometimes bring mice in, but even so this way feels a lot healthier for them. If it rains heavily they stay in for a bit, go stir crazy and start chasing each other like loons, then eventually go out and play in the rain anyway! I can't imagine them psychologically surviving as house cats. However they are quite active, so if yours is lazier and you decide to keep her in she might not mind so much.

Good luck with your new cat, whatever you end up doing. She's lucky to be being adopted by someone who's putting actual thought into her care!

"we keep them in for our own best interests, not theirs"

Where exactly do I benefit from keeping my cats in? Having to keep all my windows shut even in summer? Having to chase up the kids to make sure they don't leave doors open? Having/emptying a litter tray? Buying extra things like cat trees/toys that I simply wouldn't need if my cats were outside? Having to spend time playing with my cats/keeping them busy? (although admittedly, having two helps here as they amuse each other)

They benefit from being in as they are not as risk of being in pain if they are run over/attacked by a dog/wildlife/nasty or spiteful children or ending up locked in someones shed or garage and dying a long and painful death. They are also not at risk of Feline HIV. On top of which, they are not crapping in my neighbours gardens and not bothering wildlife, some of which is endangered.

No real benefit to me that I can see....