Does your pedigree cat get outside?

[haggisaggis]

Just wondering - our 18 month Maine Coon has been getting out since January - and absolutely loves it. Couldn't think about keeping him as a "house" cat (but we do live in the country with no busy roads near by). Noticed on theh breeder's website that they no longer sell to people who let their cats out (unless into a pen) and wondered if we were in a minority letting ours out.

Itsallgoingtobefine of course cats are fully domesticated, why on earth would you say they aren't?

Some cats just have no inclination to go out . My DMs Ragdoll sits by an open conservatory window which he could easily get out of but he just doesn't . Having said that he is well entertained indoors and spends most of the day hunting people . I'm not sure mice and birds are big enough prey for him .

Would I let a child out unsupervised? No, not when they are of an age they cannot safely cross roads or keep themselves safe from dangers to a reasonable extent. Would I let a dog out unsupervised to run free? Would any responsible person allow a dog to do that? I really don't think they would. The risk of the dog getting stolen, hurting themselves, getting run over or abused in some way is too great. Noone can eliminate risk, but we can do everything to reduce risk to those we are responsible for and who cannot be responsible for themselves - and that includes my pets.

I have been walking a family member's sheltie recently, I only let him off the lead when we are in a park, and only because I know he will return, I don't like doing it at all. I would not open the back door, say "see you later Elvis" and let him roam free.

I do take my raggies out now and again for a walk, and they are allowed out on a leash in the backgarden. I play hunting games with them at least daily, and brush them, so they are not shedding all over my house. Young cat is a proficient spider hunter actually.

I know what it is like to lose a cat traumatically, and it is why I would not have a moggie who might be the kind of cat who demands to go outside instead of my docile and domesticated ragdolls.

I'm selfish I suppose. I had to support my Mom through losing her much loved cats on a very regular basis due to cars. She had a country road outside - but sadly, these days, that's no guarantee of quiet and because it was properly surfaced - as most roads in this country are - it actually became a 'cut through/playground' for the local wide boys so the average speeds were high. You'd go out the front door and suddenly a car would swoop out of the dark and be upon you, almost without warning.

Even in town, near my father's old house, they installed chicanes as a 'traffic calming' measure. Did they calm the traffic ? They did not. The local wide boys treated them as a positive challenge and average speeds went up and not down. There would be at least one chicane bollard taken out every weekend until they removed them entirely. (What happened to the cars is another matter.)

So when she got her last boy (my current senior boy) she decided, for the first time for her, 'House Cat' and a house cat he's been ever since. Quite happy with it - but as I think I said above, he's a Siamese and they're mostly just happy if they can sit with and be around their special person all day long.

I read a long article about house cats by an animal psychologist once. Her report of research was that cats are quite happy as house cats as long as they're well stimulated, have enough room and - importantly - have never known anything else. Fits my Siamese to a T. Even the lodger started to modify his behaviour when he was living here. From going out regularly, he started to go out only occasionally (just to get the craic, I think) and spent the rest of his time inside, using a tray instead of the garden as well. And he had the choice.

Cats on leashes - in your garden???

Wow!!

Fair enough Wolowitz, but I do. Im protecting the cats from harm, and bothering wildlife/shitting in others gardens. I have ragdolls, who would be stolen in a heartbeat and are not well known for their road sense. I would be culpable if my cats got run over or otherwise hurt. Its my choice, and I dont think my kitty's need your pity tbh. Try saving that for the numerous cat threads I read on here where someone's beloved cat has been run over/poisoned etc etc.

MrRected, I used to take them for little walks along the street, but dogs are a problem and terrify them. So now we take them into the garden for a scratch around. They have been leash trained since tiny kittens and have no problem with it. We are arranging a run to be built for them, so they can play safely outside. They also dont mind being bathed, blow dried, or cuddled.

So Mrsw do you suggest that all the cats in shelters with feline Aids that have to be rehomed to indoor homes only should be PTS because its unnatural to keep them inside?

I think it's down to the cats, the owners and the circumstances. A big, young bouncy cat in a small flat where the owner is out most of the day might be a recipe for disaster for the cat. An older, lazier cat in a house with plenty of room and an owner who is home most of the day and can give them all the attention they need? Well that's likely a different ball game.

(I except cats with special needs. That's 'as best you can manage the situation' sometimes.)

CPL do rehome to indoor homes, though with some caveats. They have a section about it on their website.

I don't get the unnatural argument. It is unnatural for any animal to be a pet at all. Dogs, rabbits, ferrets, cats. Unnatural for all of them. The only reason cats are the pets that roam is because they don't cause much damage to property, and they return home (sometimes). I fail to understand why cats would be more deserving of this freedom than other pets.

I have two Burmese cats and keep them indoors.

This is mainly because of research I did before buying them. This breed are not at all streetwise and we live on a road that can get busy at peak times.

The breeder also made it a condition of sale that they stay indoors.

My two have no fear of humans and would go off with anyone who offered them a cuddle. They like to be warm all the time and they want to be as close to me or anyone else with time to cuddle them possible. If I let them hang around my neck all day they would!

The older one likes the occasional walk around the garden with me in the sunshine. I used to put him on a lead but now he follows me around and I can trust him not to run off.

The younger one is not interested in going out at all.

My house is quite big so they have loads of room to run and climb and we have lots of toys for them. The older one even plays fetch. They seem very happy.

The litter tray is a pain though.

Our 2 Burmese go out, but only when we are here in the house, for about 1/2 an hour at a time. They don't wander out of our garden, so I am happy enough.

Angel - I know what you mean about them being overly friendly.

Cats are semi-wild animals in law.

I am shocked at how many people keep their healthy cats indoors for 18+ years. I really cannot fathom how a cat would live it's life to the full without feeling the sun on it's fur, the wind, the rain and cold even. Without jumping fences, running from other cats, meeting foxes, hunting mice, catching birds. Without that freedom to just do what it likes in the open air and then come in and sleep and dream of it all.

I have a lovely rescue cat and have had a number of cats before. I think the rescue might be a pedigree of some kind he seems so unusual. But I'd rather he had a few full years of outdoor and indoor life as he chooses, than a safe but boring half existence within 4 walls. He hunts, he brings me dead and not so dead things, he has cat friends in the area who hang out together, he has our kingsize bed to sleep on whenever he wants, he treats the garden hedge as a sushi bar of birds and mammals, he jumps fences and annoys the neighbours dog.

The four weeks of keeping him in while he bonded with us and our house when he first arrived were tough. He was desperate to get out. It was v.scary letting him go and waiting to see if he would come back. But he knows where he is fed, brushed and loved and even with two preschoolers he chooses to come back.

Having a pet is always about risking loss and trying to minimise it (in at night, microchipped, neutered, decent catfood, vaccinations) but to try and eliminate risk altogether? That has too high a cost for a cat or a human.

I have a Coon boy and he goes out. I can't imagine him being cooped up in all his exuberance for (hopefully) his long life. He's 11 now and we have moved house once and he has never gone far from home.. he is usually seen in the neighbours front garden (and frequently on her lap on her doorstep in summer!)

I agree with Lovethesea.. we love our cats dearly but they are not possessions..they are animals and deserve the freedom they are designed for. I would be devastated if he were killed on the road, but I'd rather he had 11 years of being a cat in all his tail waving, pouncing, hunting glory than cooped up in 4 walls.
As it is I have to encourage him to go out to the loo.. he comes IN to use the litter tray