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We’ve never moved indoor/outdoor cats before… Loki seems to be fairly content to be an inside kitty, but Pixel doesn’t seem to be settling in as easily as Loki. She’s very restless and just wants OUT and she’s very insistent about it (she’s got a very loud voice). I’m not comfortable with the idea of letting her outside yet. She’s not collared and is used to a much more rural area. I’m afraid if I let her out she won’t come home. What are chances that she’ll try to find her way back to Soda Springs???? *bites nails* Sean worries about her as well since she is his kitty. He knows she wants out and goes out with her. He hasn’t let her wander very far… She did get out a few days ago and took off like she was shot out of a cannon and landed in the creek behind the house. Sean was able to catch her due to the fact that Pix was now soaking wet and not very happy. Any ideas or help? 😕
twindragonsmum 😕
tdm
I had a cat a long time ago that I harness broke. She was able to go outside on her tether under the porch. 😕
I guess that it comes down to “how do we help Pixel understand that ‘home’ is where her people are” and not a geographical location 😕 Sean calls Pixel his “mighty huntress” and it’s very true; she used to run the deer out of the backyard, catch birds mid-air and dragged home rabbits that were bigger than her 😮 Not bad for a little 5lb. girl kitty…
twindragonsmum :scratch:
tdm
WOW where the rabbits live or dead?
My 4 have been indoor kitties since I got them so I’m sorry I’m no help hereDragon Master wrote:WOW where the rabbits live or dead?
They were generally alive and kickin’ when she brought ’em home, ‘tho she dispatched them quite quickly at home *shudders* Thankfully, most were really, really fast and hard to catch; it was rather interesting to watch her teaching Bubba (our dog) how to hunt varmints… It’s funny to see two cats and a dog sitting outside the same critter hole at the same time and then see said critter get away from all three of ’em through a ‘back door’. 😀
twindragonsmum 😀 😀
tdm
Do you think you can convert her to an inside kitty? Cats generally shouldn’t be outside; as you mentioned they put a pretty big hurt on birds and wildlife, and are far more prone for something to happen to them. I think it’d be a win-win situation if you can convince her to stay inside. 🙂
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My art: featherdust.comI don’t know… she paced and yowled all night. She comes from barn kitty ancestory and I think was bred for varmint hunting 😕 Loki, her litter mate is quite content to be indoors but Pixel just wants OUT and is very insistent about it. I think I’d feel better about her being out if there were some way to keep her in our yard. We’re on about an acre and no one puts up fences here unless it’s to keep folks out of livestock areas…
twindragonsmum 😀
tdm
Have you considered building an outdoor cat enclosure? The breeder we got our American Bobtails from has a huge enclosure that is attached to her house at the door to her cattery. Its made out of heavy duty mesh netting that is wire-tied onto a pipe frame. I’ve seen them made from PVC pipes, and I’ve seen them made from regular metal pipe, and all stages inbetween. It has all kinds of perches and shelves, along with places to hide and climb and all and it keeps the kitties safe. The key to the DIY idea is making sure to use the best materials that will keep the cat in and prospective….”dinner” partners, out
Either that or try to teach her to accept a harness and leash. One of my friends taught her Siamese to walk on a leash, and he brings her his leash when he wants to go out.
If you look in the back pages of pretty much any Cat Fancy magazine, there are ads and websites for safe cat enclosure plans. I know we don’t allow our cats to go out but they are encouraged to spend as much time as they wish lounging in our three season sunroom.I have to agree with Jen on trying to “convert” Pixel to being an indoor cat. Between being on the menu for any number of larger critters, the risk of poison whether accidental or deliberate, and the risk of getting sick from being exposed to anything that might come along with meeting other cats/dogs/??, outside is scary. 😮 My best friend lets her cats be indoor/outdoor cats, and I always worry about them being out since we have coyotes and large hawks and owls and not to mention a bunch of testosterone fueled good ol’ fashioned hot rodding. We’ve had several discussions over the years. We’ve just kind of agreed to disagree on that subject. 🙄
Also, outdoor cats can really decimate the resident songbird population. We’ve seen a decline over the last 5 years ever since a few neighbors had let their cats (un-neutered/un-spayed) become outdoor cats. We’ve seen the cats just disappear, too. Between getting hit by cars and wandering off, we do know of a couple that became someone’s dinner. :puke:
Thankies tasgrs! I’d sorta thought about an outdoor “playpen” with a “lid” on it to keep kitties in but didn’t know where to even start looking for such a thing 😀 We’ve been in the house for a little over a week, now, and if I find the new environs a little overwhelming it makes me wonder what the furbabies must think :scratch: We’ve also gotta figure out some sort of kennel for Bubba as well. He needs room to run. We have it but since nothing is fenced he doesn’t get as much outside time as he used to, either… Sorry I sound so whiney; I know I sound awful complaining about “too much open space” vs. not enough… 🙄 🙄 🙄
twindragonsmum 🙄
tdm
It might be a good idea to at least take her out in a carrier to get used to the new ‘home’ odors and sights. The problem with indoor cats is that if they end up outdoors they are very easy to lose and hard to find because they don’t know their homes from the outside. At one clinic I worked in, we had about twelve clients’ cats get lost when a ‘straight-line hurricane’ came through, dropping trees on houses all over the area. (It wasn’t actually a hurricane, but the TV station’s weather tower read 74-78mph before it blew down.) Of the eight indoor cats, only two were ever found, but the indoor-outdoor ones came home as soon as the storm was over. Also, micro-chipping is a good idea, since the cat can’t lose that like they can a collar. If you do put a collar on her, be certain that she can get out of it if she needs to.
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