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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

Should we teach cat to walk on a lead?

11 replies

Jinglebellsarenearlyhere · 03/03/2015 16:46

Rescuejingles cat is a huge Tom with lots of energy. But he refuses to go outside unless a human is with him. We have toys and non toys around the house for him to play with but generally he ignores them. I am worried that he is not getting any excersise. He is getting a bit podgy as he eats quite happily. Also he can get quite aggressive with the other cat and I wonder if a bit of excersise would help (like a small toddler!).

But he won't go outside and if I go out with him he sits next to me so I was thinking we could take him for walks. Is this ridiculous?

OP posts:

Fluffycloudland77 · 03/03/2015 17:25

Try it, he might love it.

StayGoldPonyBoy · 03/03/2015 17:29

I have a maine coon who we walk on a lead. She's a mostly indoor cat and is happy to be, we have a big enough house, but she some times comes to the park with us.

She enjoys chilling the grass and playing outside with DD who loves walking her about. She just sits there if you take the harness off, it's more so we can keep hold of her if a dog off lead comes up or something like that as if she did get spooked and ran off, we may never find her and she may never find her way home since she's 99% indoors.

Original poster

Jinglebellsarenearlyhere · 03/03/2015 19:16

I am encouraged. Will go to pet shop for proper cat harness. I'm sure he will tolerate it as he does not mind being dressed in build a bear tops.

OP posts:

DownAtFraggleRock · 03/03/2015 19:20

We had our kitten out in the back garden on a lead and harness when we first let him out, as we hadn't had the fence built and we were worried if he got spooked he'd bolt. He was quite happy in it.

we took him to the vet in it once too, as the other cat was in the carrier. all the nurses thought he was really cute!

ragged · 03/03/2015 19:51

You don't take them for walks on a lead, They take you!! Leads are for preventing them from wandering where they shouldn't.

cakewitch · 03/03/2015 21:01

We tried ArchieCat with a harness. He just lay on the floor with his legs stretched out, all stiffly. Funny.

walthamcross · 22/04/2015 19:16

We live near a busy roundabout and have two cats we're looking after for a few months. Opposite this roundabout is a KFC which doesn't help! We're thinking on getting leads for them - do many people? Won't this add to my crazy cat man image?

BagelwithButter · 22/04/2015 19:33

I saw one of those Cats from Hell (or something similar) in USA. Loads of indoor cats it seems (I think because of predators mainly). But it was advised that the braver one of the pair was taken out on lead and it seemed to love it.

Definitely will enhance your image, but you can just say you're ahead of the crowd and it will be the next "in" thing for cat owners

QueenFuri · 22/04/2015 21:05

I tried mine with a lead.. she went all limp and lay on the ground, I dragged her for a second and then when I let her off the lead she run away looking most upset!

My cousins cat on the other hand loved going out her walks on the lead! Depend on the cat I think.

Corygal · 23/04/2015 22:31

Mr Cory loathes his lead and won't move anywhere. But have a go, it might work - get a cheap one first then upgrade if you get somewhere.

cozietoesie · 23/04/2015 23:06

I've never had any success with them but last summer, we were sitting on the stoop one afternoon and a woman went past on the opposite side of the road with a massive Bengal on a lead. It looked to be thoroughly enjoying itself - although I have to say that I wasn't sure who was taking whom for the walk!

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