Former strays as indoor cat

[PenguinWings]

I'm looking at getting a cat. Our house is back from the main road but the road is pretty busy. I am thinking of getting an indoor rescue cat. There seem to be quite a few who have FIV and were found as strays.
I've never had an indoor cat before and I'm worried that if it had been a stray before and used to its freedom then the cat would get stressed by being kept indoors.

Has anyone got some experience of this please? Our house is a biggish 4 bed semi so reasonable amount of space but it's not a palace.

I'd look at getting a breed that is happy to stay in. Persian or rag doll. There are specific rescues for them. All three of my Persians are rescues

We've just got a couple of young rescue cats, sisters, who we know have only lived indoors, so now rarely venture outside. (Especially today in the rain 😂)

I would look to a cat that has always been an indoor cat if possible. Or cat proofing the garden.

Ragdoll owner myself (seal pointed ragdoll) 😊 beautiful cats although very vocal...meaning they do miaow alot and need plenty of attention. I got Coco from a rescue when she was 1yr and had previously been allowed outside which has proved difficult because she does want to go out alot but i have to supervise as she has a tendancy to hide im bushes for hours which is scary 😥 diet wise..royal canin indoor dry food, although expensive (zooplus online do great deals) as recommended as it keeps her coat healthy and also meets a ragdolls dietary needs as they are prone to uti's. Oh and she plays fetch..which is not unusual for ragdolls lol x

I do think though that a stray would become stressed at being kept indoors, but like you said if the road is busy then an indoor cat/ kitten would be puuurfect. X

Mine were part of a completely feral colony before they were all trapped by the rescue, and were about a year old at that time. They spent near enough another year at the rescue because nobody wanted them as they were so shy, and sadly the rescue was so busy they were very limited on the time they could spend socialising them.

I wanted indoor only cats anyway, & was told that was a condition of me having them as they may "go feral" again if let out, so they are 100% indoor only and seem pretty content as that. It probably helps that there are 2 of them and they are bonded siblings.

@Allergictoironing i have also thought about getting another ragdoll as a companion for Coco as i think this could distract her from constantly wanting to go outside, maybe having 2 indoor cats is better than one and they arnt so lonely being indoors all the time 😊

Don't get rag dolls, get Persians, they are wonderful!

I have an ex-stray, FIV cat. Vet's advice was that ideally he should be indoor only, however Dcat had other ideas! So the compromise is he goes out on a harness and extendable lead. Could that work for you OP?

Thank you for your helpful replies.
I'd not thought about breed specific rescue for cats- I really thought of ragdolls and Persians as cats you would get from a breeder so that's helpful.
I like the idea of the cat lead but I suspect that the cat would have to decide to permit it or not- I guess that it is quite cat dependent.

I don't want to cat proof the garden. It's a good idea but we get hedgehogs and I feel like they are having a hard enough time as it is.

You really don’t need a breed specific rescue. Not everyone keeps pedigree cats in. (But of course it’s another avenue to explore.)
Good luck in finding a new kitty overlord!

@Icecreamcake86 If you are confident that Coco would accept another cat, that would be an excellent idea. Mine keep themselves both fit and entertained chasing each other round the house and occasionally play fighting, and sometimes snuggle down together on the bed or the sofa. They also sit side by side looking out through the cat mesh at the garden when the french doors are open.

Gratuitous pic of "yin & yang" cats...

Oooh so beautiful. Their coats look amazing 😊

They are actually smoke black, with a soft grey undercoat. Girlcat (the one with her head at the bottom of that pic) is also charcoal tabby rather than black & you can see the stripes on her head if you look hard.

Cat proofing doesn't stop hedgehogs pootling in and out of our garden :) Exercise wheels are another good option for indoor cats. We bought one from Cazami recently and it has been a big hit.

I know lots of ex-stray FIV cats who are very happy with their indoor life.

However as you live in a house, having an indoor cat will be very difficult - or at least you will have to be very committed to being careful with windows and doors to avoid escapes. No leaving the back door open in the summer and so on... You will also need to catproof all windows (look at Flat Cat screens for example). Even cats who are perfectly happy living indoors only are at risk of escaping or falling from upstairs windows due to curiosity (chasing bugs or birds, other cats etc.) or will try to follow you into the garden.

This is Schroedinger. He doesn’t much like his harness, but he doesn’t much like outdoors either. He’s an amazing cat who taught himself to use the toilet.
He lives with my eldest DD now which leaves a cat shaped hole in my heart. Me and youngest have decided we want to get a Ragdoll later on this year.

Mr C is ex-stray and FIV. He loves being an indoor cat. So much he won't go out.

He does have his own sunny balcony with a shady sweep of flowers to keep him cool in summer, but apart from that he's done his time with The Great Outdoors.

There is no reason why cats with FIV should be kept indoors. Once neutered an FIV cat isn't a threat to other cats.

As you are in a house and not a flat, which presumably has doors that open to the outside, you will either need cats that are known to be happy indoors (the rescue will know which ones those are - and that isn't the same thing as cats which should be kept indoors) or you could cat proof your garden.