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

Original poster

Keeping cat in overnight? Thoughts please!

37 replies

Ivebeeninlockdowntoolong · 11/05/2021 10:48

Our cat recently had injuries that required a hip operation and pins to repair his broken leg. The vet has stipulated caged rest / supervised exercise for at least the next 5 weeks.

We're now coming towards the end of the 5 weeks and our lovely boy is doing really, really well (and when you see him moving around you would not know he had been injured). So we're hoping the vet will give us the green light to let him have the run of the house with minimal supervision. We have a lead so we can take him outside into our garden.

Before the injuries, he could let himself in and out as he pleased via the catflap (the vet thinks he injured himself climbing a tree, got stuck, then broke his leg and twisted his hip out of alignment). Where we live is a cul-de-sac and there's a park opposite a house - ie he is fairly safe from any main road traffic.

Obviously when we feel he's ready to have the cat flat opened again, we will intend to lock it after he's in for his 5pm meal. Our thinking is, if he comes to any harm it will be during daylight so if he's not back at his usual time, we can seek him out whilst it's still light. But he will be frustrated as he is so active during the night. However at this stage I'm wondering if I will ever feel confident to let him out at all at night ever again. Is this reasonable or not?

OP posts:
Original poster
Ivebeeninlockdowntoolong · 11/05/2021 14:20

Bumping - appealing to all you cat lovers out there :)

OP posts:
DogsSausages · 11/05/2021 14:23

Poor puss, glad to hear he is on the mend. I would keep him in at night, can you build a catio so he can sit outside safely.

Original poster
Ivebeeninlockdowntoolong · 11/05/2021 14:47

Thanks Dogs, for being the first to respond! I hope some others will join in soon.

OP posts:
DragonWillow · 11/05/2021 14:49

we have a curfew catalpa from sure flap which unlocks at 5am every morning & locks for outgoing at 10.30 pm - cat is happy with it as it's been this routine since a kitten

fantasmasgoria1 · 11/05/2021 14:54

Get him into a routine of being in at night if you can. My cat very rarely stays out at night but on occasion if the weather is warm she stays out. My opinion only is that if your cat is used to having access to the outdoors then how's he going to feel being kept in? A catio is not the same and neither is a lead on a permanent basis.

OhRene · 11/05/2021 15:50

We have a catfew for ours. She's not allowed out overnight.

I moved on to a farm attached property and on that farm was a colony of feral cats numbering maybe 30 or more. With the assistance of the CPL I trapped and neutered as many as possible and rehomed kittens but by the time I moved a couple of years later there were two cats left. Just two. Each and every cat that died did so overnight/in the early hours. Cars, foxes, dogs etc. The only reason there were 30+ cats was that breeding was keeping the numbers up.

We live somewhere else now and my cat (a descendent of those farm cats) is not allowed out after we go to bed.

If you can change your cat's routine to being in at night, do. It reduces the chance of bad stuff happening significantly.

Newfluff · 11/05/2021 15:53

We tried this after a similar accident. Whilst he seemed to accept he was indoors whilst injured once he had been let out again he didn't agree with it.
He yowled until we could take no more and let him out at night. Saying that it's got to be worth a try.

QuestionableMouse · 11/05/2021 15:53

One of mine stays in permanently, the other goes out during the day. Ideally I'd like both to stay in but the older cat came to me used to being outside.

DarcyLewis · 11/05/2021 15:56

I always call mine in at night (no catflap). Doesn't seem to do them any harm.

Kittekats · 11/05/2021 15:58

Having had cats for 19 years in our house without a problem, we had two run over within a year, both during the early hours of the morning. The last one was a year ago, and we now keep the remaining 6year old cat (and her new companion) in overnight. She was not happy to start with but soon got used to it. Little one (now 1 year old) has never known anything else.

We tend to manually put something in front of the catflap once they are both in, anytime between 6-9pm. We then let them out when we get up in the morning, usually 7am ish. They are both clearly keen to go out in the morning but don't otherwise complain.

We have a microchip catflap and I am tempted to upgrade to the next one which has the curfew option but it's about £160 that I just can't bring myself to pay for a catflap!!

So, OP yes I would definitely try to keep him in at night and now is a good time to implement that as he's used to being in for a while.

ViperAtTheGatesOfDawn · 11/05/2021 15:58

I did this with my last cat after he was diagnosed with arthritis, he wasn't happy to start but got used to the new routine. I did get a bigger size cat flap to make it easier for him to use.

Stickytreacle · 11/05/2021 16:00

I have 8 cats, they are all in overnight and 5 are indoor only. They have a large catio and are healthy, happy cats. It is much better for wildlife to keep them in overnight too.

QueenPaw · 11/05/2021 16:01

Mine is in overnight from 10pm (latest) until I wake up. Doesn't seem to bother him but he doesn't hunt anyway

Jaxhog · 11/05/2021 16:02

He'll get used to it. We've kept all our cats in at night and they are fine with it. They now don't go out even if we forget to close the flap. Cats are creatures of habit. If yours has been in for 5 weeks, now is the time to do it as he's already used to not going out.

SciFiScream · 11/05/2021 16:06

I keep both my cats in overnight. We try to ensure they are in before we go to bed but if one is being a bit tricksy we put the cat flap on "in only"

Generally both cats are in overnight from 22:30 to 07:30.

Having slept downstairs with them after one had an operation I'm pretty sure they sleep most of the night.

It's all they've ever known so are used to it.

Dopeysofee · 11/05/2021 16:07

Our cat is always in and shut in the downstairs kitchen / dining area over night. She comes and settles on the settee at 11ish and when we come down in the morning she gets up and has a stretch! No idea what she does in between, but she seems happy enough!

wearetheweirdosmr · 11/05/2021 16:10

We always have the cats in overnight.

We try to get them in before dusk but they know it's coming and scarper. They come in overnight and are let out in The morning.
It helps cut down the wildlife killing at dawn

BlibBlabBlob · 11/05/2021 16:19

Another house with a 'catfew' here too. Access to cat flap blocked off sometime during the evening, having checked they're both here, and they can't leave until I'm up in the morning. (Usually pretty early, and well before dawn in the winter.)

I do it for selfish reasons to be honest: it means they can't bring any wildlife in to surprise me with during the night or upon waking, and I sleep easier knowing that they will both be safe and well and here when I wake in the morning.

One of them would quite like the freedom, I'm sure, but he's never known anything else and seems fine. The other isn't bothered at all. They sleep a lot at night and have access to almost all of the house (just not the corridor that leads to the cat flap haha). I think any awake time is spent hunting down spiders and watching for wildlife through the windows.

BlibBlabBlob · 11/05/2021 16:21

We lost a cat in a road accident before we had these guys. Killed in the middle of the day, so keeping him in at night wouldn't have helped. But for some reason the more restricted freedom that our cats have now still makes me feel like they're safer.

We never let them in and out of the front door either, to try and cement the idea that the relatively safe back gardens are their territory, but the main road out the front is not.

jesusmaryjosephandtheweedonkey · 11/05/2021 16:28

My old boy was always out all night till a couple of years ago.
He's just too old now and is not able to keep himself safe so we have a nighttime curfew and he is only allowed in the garden.
He was not happy for the first couple of weeks but he now just gets cosy and goes to bed himself at 10pm 😀

MMM2 · 11/05/2021 16:33

Catflap is closed at 10pm until 8am next morning, have done this with all my cats and it works fine for them.

SciFiScream · 11/05/2021 16:42

Why are we all saying catfew? Surely the cat equivalent of curfew is a purrfew? Ba-doom-tish! GrinGrinGrin

chipshopElvis · 11/05/2021 16:54

I have 9 month old kittens we keep them in at night. I've lost a young cat on a road before at night, they seem OK with it.

Original poster
Ivebeeninlockdowntoolong · 11/05/2021 17:05

Ooh so many replies and thank you for each and every one. Yes, ours loves going out at night (before accident) but now he's been in for 5 weeks we will definitely give the night curfew a go.

But during the day, even when he's downstairs for some supervised exercise, he always goes to either the front or patio doors and whinges a lot - because he wants to go out! So we may have a battle on our hands ... but given he's used up 6 of his 9 lives already and we have cleaned out our insurance pot for the year, we can't afford any more mishaps.

Also I think the local birds are pleased. I think they plotted our chap's downfall by weakening the tree branch beforehand :)

OP posts:
Wolfiefan · 11/05/2021 17:09

If he’s out and about during the day then he should sleep at night. Our cats are always in at night.