Moved house with cat and constant miaowing

[Sundressandsandals]

We moved house last week with our 3 year old neutered male cat. It isn't his first house move, and as last time, he's been remarkably relaxed about the experience, happily exploring his new home and being his usual affectionate self.

However, in the last couple of days, he's started miaowing much more than usual. He's a real "people cat" and always makes his presence felt, but I've never known him be as vocal as this. It's clear that he's keen to get outside, but I am planning to keep him indoors for 3 weeks or so to get used to his new environment. He doesn't seem to be in pain and is eating normally, and has never been much of an outdoor cat anyway: a short visit out and he's usually keen to get back inside. Should I be worried about the miaowing, or is this normal? I'm hoping a more experienced cat owner can shed some light on this. Thank you.

How is he acting while miaowing?

He's fairly active - wandering from room to room, rubbing himself against our legs, jumping on to windowsills and furniture: in short, pretty much his usual self, only more so!

Hmmm. I'm afraid that it sounds to me as if he wants out, if only to satisfy himself about it. Has he been near windows or the door at all? And have you seen any signs of other cats outside?

Definitely no sign of cats outside. We have a garden with a security wall round it (not in UK!) - but there are quite a few birds! He's spending lots of time looking out of windows and patio doors... But I've always understood that cats need a few weeks indoors to get bedded down in their new homes before allowing them out.

Do you think I should continue to be his jailer (with the best of intentions!) or let him taste freedom? I couldn't bear to lose him.

I would resist/ignore him for now, as annoying as it is for you all. Let him settle in for longer.
He might well be fine, pop out for a look and come back in, but for me i wouldn't take the chance of him wandering off.

In the past i have used a car harness on youngsters, so they can have a look about the first few times.

It's that awful balance between potentially losing them and them developing a 'thing' about outside because they can't get out. (Possibly not helped by your weather - there's hardly a cat on earth that would want to go outside for long here (sleet, cold, rain etc) but if you're not in the UK, your weather might be balmier? And is this a high and serious fence round the garden?)

My inclination, personally, would be to keep him in a bit longer and give him lots of game-playing and distracting activity. Maybe not for a full three weeks, depending on circumstances, but that has to be your own judgement.

My cat is forever going in and out but recently had a collar due to an injury and had to stay in for 2 weeks.

He drove me nuts for the first 4/5 days but then became resigned to not being allowed out. Annoying as it is (especially when he woke me at night), I would keep him in for a bit longer.

When we first had him as a kitten we did use a harness on him for a couple of days to let him in the garden and get his bearings.

Thank you all for your helpful advice and reassurance. I am sure you are right that he needs to stay in a bit longer, however much he tries to persuade me to the contrary!

The harness is an interesting idea - I've never used one on him, but it would be worth trying if I can get one here. Yes, it is considerably sunnier and warmer than the UK (from where we've just moved) which might also explain his newfound enthusiasm for the garden!

I've had no luck with harnesses but you might well do better so it's certainly worth considering, I think.

Looking at it from his perspective, he's 'learned' the inside of the new house now but will likely still want to feel that he's up on his total environment, so - especially if he can see garden through the windows - he may well need to get that 'under his belt' also to feel secure. It's not necessarily the case that he'll go outside and decide to stay there. It's a pity that the weather is good - from this limited perspective only - but there you go.

Good luck with him and let us know how things go.

A quick update - all is well here. Suncat was finally allowed out after 3 weeks and has adapted very well to his new life. He goes for a wander in the garden most mornings and then comes happily indoors to snooze in a patch of sun. I couldn't find a harness locally but fortunately it's all worked out well. Thank you for your support - it's so great to have a community of experienced cat owners to advise me. Greetings from South America.

Glad it's all worked out.