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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

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Original poster

Am I being too PFC (Precious First Cat)?

24 replies

EngeldinkHumpabert · 13/07/2012 16:46

My ten month old tabby originally turned up on my friends doorstep about four months ago, unchipped, un-neutered, no collar. She contacted all the relevant places and the Cat Rescue people basically told her they were full and she could keep him or send him off into the world again. So she kept him. She then had to move house to somewhere where cats were not welcome so I have taken him and I love him to bits. He is now vaccinated, neutered, chipped etc.

I've had him a month, got his chip sorted to my address, full pet insurance etc and I think the time has come to let him out. Problem is, I can't bring myself to do it! I keep thinking what if he wanders off and never comes back? What if he gets run over? What is someone steals him? I know he wants to go out, I've let him out a couple of times over the past week, for ten minutes at a time and I've watched him. Now he miaows at the back door and desperately wants to go out but what if he never comes back? I'm on a quiet, one ended street, not much traffic, abut 200 yards from a very busy main road. The other neighbours cats all wander about the street and never seem to come to harm.

Someone tell me he'll be fine and yes, I know I am being PFC. But he's luffly and I don't want to lose him!!

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Lizcat · 13/07/2012 17:26

Let him out an hour before a meal he won't go far and will come bounding home when you call him.

tribpot · 13/07/2012 17:30

I love the expression 'Precious First Cat'. My DH used to watch the cat out in the back garden - god knows what he thought he was going to do if she wandered off or got stuck given he's in a wheelchair! But anyway.

Cats stay where their basic conditions for a good life are being met, e.g. food, warmth, love, general contentment. He won't go far, esp if you do as Lizcat suggests and let him out an hour before food time (alternatively, just after food to avoid any surprise presents as my cat likes to bring back every now and then).

He will come back. And he does need to roam freely.

Sparklingbrook · 13/07/2012 17:39

My Mum and Dad have just let there rescue cat out for the first time. My Mum was beside herself. Lucy disappeared under the conifers into next door's garden.

5 minutes later she was back.

It is nerve wracking but it does get easier, and then he can start bringing you 'gifts'.

Fluffycloudland77 · 13/07/2012 18:08

Gifts are the best, you become really good at identifying species of field mouse, shrew, finches.

issey6cats · 13/07/2012 19:46

dont let him out when he is desperate to go out as he could be so excited at going out that he might bolt, wait until he isnt showing too much interest open the door and let him decide if he does want to go out and yes first thing in the morning before hes had his breakfast, and put some biscuits in a tin or plastic container and when you want him in shake the biccies and he will start to associate the rattle with treats comes in useful when hes sat at the end of the garden cat laughing at you like mine do

Original poster

EngeldinkHumpabert · 13/07/2012 19:56

Aw, thank you all for your replies.

I think I'll go with the general advice and let him out when he's hungry. I let him out before his breakfast this morning but chickened out and followed him to next doors gate and picked him up and brought him inside after five minutes. But tribpot is right, he does need to roam. And I'm not remotely squeamish about possible gifts. I have a 'resident' mouse somewhere than occasionally puts in an appearance and PFC has resolutely failed to catch him. I suppose I might be a little thrown should he drag a fully grown, live seagull into the kitchen.....I wouldn't put it past him.

And thank you for not sharing any stories along the line of 'When I let MY cat out for the first time, he was instantly run over by a bin lorry/stolen by gypsies/sucked into a wormhole and now resides in Victorian London' etc....

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Original poster

EngeldinkHumpabert · 13/07/2012 19:57

And I will keep repeating the mantra 'All the other cats are FINE, all the other cats are FINE!!!!'.

I'll let him out on Sunday morning. And watch out the dining room window do other things for a while.

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Sparklingbrook · 13/07/2012 19:58

I have had 3 rescue cats, my Mum has had 2 and every one of them went out for the first time and returned, and carried on returning.

You can get cat harnesses but I don't know how that would work. Sparkling Cat wouldn't have liked that.

Original poster

EngeldinkHumpabert · 13/07/2012 21:20

I'm fairly sure PFC would try and rip my face off if there was any implicaion of a harness!

I am going to have faith in him coming home. He knows he's got it good here....all the Felix he can eat (well, two sachets a day and some biscuits) and his own Womble and laser pointer......

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edam · 13/07/2012 21:23

Love Precious First Cat, what a great concept. He'll be fine! V. sensible advice about trying it when he's hungry and rattling dried food to call him home. If we ever needed my childhood companions home, we used to bash the can opener against a can of Whiskas - that fetched them every time.

Wolfiefan · 13/07/2012 21:30

Watch out the window? I went out with mine for the first time and gave them cuddles. Fish or catnip brings them back. Take a toy out to play with? Mine come to a whistle. I called them for dinner like this!

LadyEdward · 13/07/2012 21:49

I've found out my kitties favourite food and always ask them in a stoopid voice if they would like they're fish. Now when I need them to come home I call 'fish' in silly voice and they come bounding in. Cats are very clever they know where dinner comes from

Fluffycloudland77 · 13/07/2012 22:22

I tried mine on a harness, pink with diamantes.

It didn't go how I planned, all that stuff about bengals being like dogs and walking to heel was bobbins.

He will come to have his collar on though. I haventhe neighbours trained to bring discarded collars to me as well,

edam · 13/07/2012 22:25

Pink with diamantes go very well with a name like fluffycloudland... Shame the cat refused to play ball - but I'm not surprised. Cats like to have their dignity respected, you know.

DontCallMeBaby · 13/07/2012 22:50

To be honest, bad things do happen to cats who go out. And of my two, one treats the house like a hotel - came in earlier, ate, shouted about the weather, went out again. But - they're happy. It would have been nice to have two like the other cat, who's more of a homebody, and even nicer if either was a lapcat, but they are who they are. They'd have to be in little kitty straitjackets to be kept indoors.

And neither of them lives in Victorian London.

CMOTDibbler · 13/07/2012 22:57

Ours love being out - the current three would not deal with being kept in at all. 2 out of 3 are currently snoozing in the sitting room, one is out hunting. So really, don't joke about the seagulls. They make a terrible racket as they are dragged through the cat flap.

Sparklingbrook · 13/07/2012 23:01

The snake Sparkling Cat got me is still on my profile Engeldink, you too could be a recipient if you are lucky.

Original poster

EngeldinkHumpabert · 13/07/2012 23:48

Um...OK,er...snakes....I can handle snakes. Maybe....

I do live next to a cemetary.....err....do cats dig at all?
(Damn cat has just sat on keyboard and managed to open Microsoft Office like A MILLION TIMES! I didn't even know you culd do that with the keys!)

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edam · 14/07/2012 00:08

Jeez, how big was that snake?! Mice I can handle. Even the quite unpleasant headless variety that our current moggie is quite so adept at leaving at the bottom of the stairs for me to tread on when I wake up. Birds I can rescue. Managed a frog, once (much alarums and excursions but got it out in the end, only for the dratted thing to sit on the step outside looking all folorn and refusing to go away in case we changed our minds and let it in again). But snakes?

Please tell me you live in the middle of the countryside and these things could never happen in the middle of a small town...

Sparklingbrook · 14/07/2012 00:11

Semi-rural. BUT our back garden backs on to a huge railway embankment where there are lots of things to catch. We had sloe/slow worms, where she comes running down the garden with a droopy green moustache.

That was the first (and so far only) snake. It was very long and still alive. In the end it slithered off. Phew.

edam · 14/07/2012 12:17

love 'droopy green moustache' (actually mis-typed grim which is also applicable)

MinkyWinky · 14/07/2012 18:01

I second/third (lost count) the sending out when they're due to be fed. With our two PFCs (can you have two?), we let them out about an hour before they were about to be fed and sat in the garden. We nearly had heart attacks when they disappeared over the fence into next door's garden. One reappeared about 30 mins later (and isn't that interested in going over again) the other returned about an hour later. He still goes over the fence pretty much every day, but has always comes back:) I still worry about him though

My cleaner (who fosters cats) said if they don't come back, empty your hoover bag into a bucket and leave it in the garden. Apparently they recognise the scent and come back. Luckily haven't had to try that one yet.

Fluffycloudland77 · 15/07/2012 18:57

My harness was reduced at pets at home! I'm not fluffy in rl.

Original poster

EngeldinkHumpabert · 21/07/2012 18:18

Update. PFC has been out several times now and (so far) has not been catnapped/run over/got lost/abducted by aliens. Yay! He also comes home when he wants now which is nice.

Only thing is...today he came back after an hour of investigating stuff outside and he STANK TO HIGH HEAVEN! What do these vile creatures roll in? Urgh.....

P.S. No 'gifts' yet.

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