Young cat going outside

[YourOnMute]

Hello. I had a cat that was a stray originally who loved going outside. She would go out and wander, sit in the garden if sunny. She passed away of natural causes during the summer. Everyone was devastated.
We weren't without a cat long until someone found a tiny kitten that we ended up taking in. Tuxedo cat, he's now about seven months old. In great health and neutered etc. I used to let him outside and he would wander around the garden and then come back in.
Since Thursday however he has been hopping our high back garden wall. I'm not worried but my dd is beside herself when he disappears. Today she could see him in the garden of the house opposite and was beside herself. After a short time he hopped the wall and ran back inside.
Thursday he turned up at our front door after being let out the back so he's obviously able to climb.
Now my dd says that she can't bear the anxiety when he's outside.
Any advice on managing this? I know that outside can be very enriching for cats and he loves being outside. We live in a quiet estate. He is also quick as lightning if an outside door or window is open.
Should we keep him inside? How did you manage the anxiety around your cat being outside?

Please don’t keep him inside. They are extremely good at knowing where they live. All of mine have had a cat flap they just come as go as they please 24 hours a day. Why is she so worried if your other cat wanderd and she wasn't worried about that.

I have indoor cats as we live in a first floor flat and because there is a dangerous road at the back. I feel so sorry for them as they just lay about all day with nothing to do. I play with them every night with a laser pen and have a projector that plays cat games for them to chase and "catch" but it doesn't make up the quality of life that a cat has outdoors I'm actually planning to move to a house in a quiet area over this

There is a solution. Look up a company called Freedom Fence. They put an invisible wire around your garden. The cat wears a collar to go out and after initial training, won’t leave your garden. It’s endorsed by Cat’s Protection and used by farmers to keep livestock in. Our cats spend summers in our little garden chasing butterflies, hiding, pouncing and loving life. And we don’t need to worry about them. The collars are fairly large.

Thank you all.
Our first cat was a stray/feral adult so when she turned up first she lived outside and got tamer over time, eventuallyturning into a real lap cat. We actually had to trap her to spay her initially. She was 15 years with us. Dd would have been very young then so was used to her coming and going.
I think the loss of her and the fact that he was so young when we got him means she is very frightened of anything happening him.
He's a real escape artist and manages to get out at any opportunity. She becomes very anxious when he's out.

Giving a cat a shock just to keep it in your garden is cruel.

Please don't keep him inside.

You need to explain to your daughter that this is what cats do, he is exploring and enjoying his life. Show her books/articles and videos about what amazing athletes cats are. For instance

https://iheartcats.com/no-olympian-could-ever-match-the-athleticism-of-your-cat/?srsltid=AfmBOoq3i_g4cAzwZK302-JiBHPeeND4mBNixW4r7eWEAvz-6q9l3iAO&zCountry=GB

Your daughter being anxious shouldn't mean this young cat spends his life confined.

Put an air tag on the cat’s collar. You can track him on your phone. Or for a bigger cost you can get a GPS collar.

It is a radio wave, not electrical. They only try it a couple of times and remember. The cat has a happy, safe and fulfilling life. Letting it out to get lost, stolen or run over is a better option?

You might find the cat doesn’t actually roam very far. I see ours so, so high up in next door’s trees that my heart is in my mouth sometimes, but after an initial mad exploring spell when we started letting him out, he’s pretty much always in sight and 100% always in shouting distance. I love when I call his name and see him scramble over the wall!

Our last cat was slightly more adventurous in her wandering but still totally reliable on coming when called (although occasionally in the height of summer she would sleep under a bush in our garden rather than come inside for bedtime).

We live on a quiet one way street, our garden backs/neighbours other gardens. Our boy is ginger and white, previous girl was pure white - I might have more reservations about a pure black cat in terms of road visibility/safety.

Don’t keep the poor cat inside, he obviously loves being out. Your DD will get used to it, it’s just new and scary! My son was the same now he doesn’t mind them wandering. Keep you Dcat in at night though!

I think times have changed.
I have had outdoor cats for decades with no problems.
Recently I've had two lovely young cats come to grief on our quiet rural road. One survived one didn't. Im not letting my 2 current cats out. They've got plenty of stimulation and fun and seem quite happy.
Plus they're not killing the local wildlife, or pooing in other people's gardens.

I think it is one thing to raise a cat as indoors from kittenhood, or to keep a cat indoors that isn’t particularly bothered either way, but quite another to keep a cat in when he has got used to the enrichment of outside and is clearly signalling that he wants to go out. Especially when your previous cat lived to a ripe old age and so it’s not like you have reason to think he will come to harm.

If it was my DD, I would talk to her about how she would feel if you curtailed her activities and independence because you couldn’t cope with the idea of something happening to her. Loving the cat means wanting him to have the best and most fulfilled life he can, not treating him as there just to fill a need for you. It is like how as parents we have to accept our anxieties when our children start becoming more independent in order to allow them to live rich lives.

Also if he is desperate to get out and can’t do so easily, isn’t there more risk of him hurling himself out of a window if it is open or rushing out into the street when a car is coming? And if he escapes and hasn’t been allowed to explore by himself, he will be less familiar with the area.

Please don’t keep him inside

This isn’t about the cat it’s about your DD. What is it she is so anxious about? The death of a first pet can be quite traumatic, she’s obviously worried about losing the new cat. She’s needs some support with her anxiety.