Indoor or outdoor cats just a question

[otto]

Originally Posted by Ruthyb

My neighbour is a ******** (wont swear on here) he had a kitten once and threw it when it tried to fuss him, we have had alot of problems with our neighbours and he will not take it out on my cats, my hubby isn't a big cat lover but he would go mad if anyone touched them, I prefer my girls to stay inside, isn't it terrible when you have to keep them inddors because you are worried about their safety.x

I don't think it's terrible at all. I think cats are happier and healthier inside.

Aside from predators and roads is the very real and growing danger of sick people who go through neighborhoods looking for cats. They do unspeakable things to these cats that they find. The big thing now is to photograph what they have done or are doing and post the pictures in websites like this (and on youtube)

I don't know how anyone can let their cats go outside knowing the kind of sick creeps out there. There are pics I will never get out of my mind that I have had the misfortune to see.

I have a need to know where my cats are and that they are safe every minute of the day. I'd be out of my mind with worry if they were outside.

My current cats are harness trained and I take them out supervised into a fenced (6 foot with an overhang) yard. But for many years my indoor cats never went out at all and never missed it.

By the way, you keep saying "except to go to the bathroom". I'm curious why don't you have litter boxes for them? Especially as they get older they need a bathroom nearby.

<edit> I just saw the post where you said you are going to get some litter boxes. I think that is wonderful.

[lilyluvscats]

Mine are inside only...... for all the same reasons already mentioned. My 4 don't try to get out and they don't look like they miss outdoors at all, And all 4 were strays. 2 from a rescue and 2 that I personally took in. Years ago I had 3 cats get hit by cars....they would sneak out when my brother came in late or my husband went to work really early. I have not let another cat outside unsupervised in the last 20 years, One of my old cats would go in the yard with me on a harness.

I am hoping to secure up my screen porch next spring so these 4 can go out there sometimes.

[bens_slave]

You cannot get a rescue cat in the UK without it having access to outside, Unfortunately a change of circumstances has forced me into rented pet free accommodation where i conceal my cat Ben,

Since the move I have noted he's become notable depressed and taking his frustration out on the sofa, it could be that he's missing the dog or more likely Ben is missing the great outdoors, I am currently researching products which may relieve his boredom

[Nekomania]

Originally Posted by otto

They do unspeakable things to these cats that they find. The big thing now is to photograph what they have done or are doing and post the pictures in websites like this (and on youtube)

I haven't seen any of this and I hope I never do, have any creeps actually ever posted horrible pictures like that on this website?

It's a shame what people do for kicks nowadays... I don't see what is so funny or "cool" about torturing any animal or any person.

[Jupeycat]

Originally Posted by bens_slave

You cannot get a rescue cat in the UK without it having access to outside, Unfortunately a change of circumstances has forced me into rented pet free accommodation where i conceal my cat Ben,

Like I said, all four of my cats are indoors and I'm in the UK. I work for the Blue Cross and Cats Protection and they know the cats I've adopted from them are kept inside. Two of the ladies that work for CP keep their cats inside for reasons of safety, I think they are both by busy roads.

Rescues will let you adopt even if they are going to be kept in, it just depends on the cat.

[Indys Mamma]

hey Ruthyb

I am from the UK and have 3 cats, one entirely outdoors (She's semi feral and won't come in the house) and 2 indoor only.

Misha, my onee year old boy, is partially deaf so is kept in for his own safety... Indy, 18month boy is also indoor only as though I live in a rural village we have evil people living nearby that like to set fire to animals. Cats that free roam in my village are nervy and tempermental. My boys are so loving and affectionate.

However... I *do* believe in them having chance at fresh air and all the adventures and smells of the outdoors, so they are harness trained and I walk them in my garden a few times a week. I also put a lot of effort into keeping them mentally stimulated and take them to catshows as occasional days out.

[otto]

Originally Posted by Nekomania

I haven't seen any of this and I hope I never do, have any creeps actually ever posted horrible pictures like that on this website?

It's a shame what people do for kicks nowadays... I don't see what is so funny or "cool" about torturing any animal or any person.

This forum is well moderated so I'm sure anything like that posted is removed right away. I recently left another cat forum that does not have enough moderation, so things aren't removed in time. So I have stumbled on some really horrific stuff. The images will never leave my mind. Some have permanently traumatized me. There are some sick sick people out there.

Cats are the main target of these sickos. Because cats have a reputation for independence and aloofness (though I've never met any like that, myself) so it gives these disgusting excrescences a feeling of power to hurt them.

In addition, because of the internet it is happening more and more, it's called copy cat crime. Some jerk sees these images on youtube and decides to do it too.

I visit another forum occasionally that is mainly UK based members. I have been told on more than one occasion that is is "cruel" and unnatural to keep my cats inside. It's not unnatural, domestic cats are not wild animals.

Many people are always looking for help because their cats have been in fights, hit by cars, sick, injured. All because it is cruel to keep them inside. The logic behind that escapes me.

[yayi]

Originally Posted by otto

It's not unnatural, domestic cats are not wild animals.

Not sure if I agree. I've watched mine while they're "playing" outside and they sure remind me of lions and tigers on the prowl.

[Brokenheart]

I had my first cat when I was a teenager. He was an indoor/outdoor fella, which was pretty much the norm at the time, and he only lived a year because he died of what was probably some poison he got into out there. To this day, it still breaks my heart to think of him, because he was wonderful and should have had a much longer life.

All my cats since have been indoor cats. I'm in an apartment building, in a big city, and when one of them goes a little stir crazy i put a leash on him and take him in the hallway, which he finds very exciting. If I lived in a suburban area, I would take a cat out only on a leash. (I've seen cats here in NYC being walked on leashes.)

I don't have to drive here, but when I lived where I drove all the time, I must have had 100 close calls with cats and dogs that were running loose. Thankfully I never hit one, but I always to used to feel so angry at the owners for putting me in a position where I would just feel terrible forever if I had hit their pet.

[Auntie Crazy]

Originally Posted by otto

...Many people are always looking for help because their cats have been in fights, hit by cars, sick, injured. All because it is cruel to keep them inside. The logic behind that escapes me.

The safety issue seems pretty cut and dry to me. Indoor cats live longer, safer lives.

However, cats accustomed to outdoor access can carry on quite pitifully when denied said access. I can understand how folks could feel terribly guilty and fold under those woeful cries. I can even understand how they come to believe depriving a cat of something it cries for that badly is just plain cruel, when it patently isn't.

We just have to be tougher than they are. And, of course, provide plenty of attention, toys and mental stimulation to replace the scents, sounds and adventures free-roaming cats enjoy.

Since their rescue, except for a couple of *seriously* scary escapes this past summer, mine have never been outside. They don't seem to miss it, either.

[Yosemite]

[quote=Nekomania;2759175]I haven't seen any of this and I hope I never do, have any creeps actually ever posted horrible pictures like that on this website? /QUOTE]

Many times but due to the wonderful membership and mods, they are reported and deleted before the general membership even sees them. Some have been horrific and have caused nightmares.

Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy

The safety issue seems pretty cut and dry to me. Indoor cats live longer, safer lives.

However, cats accustomed to outdoor access can carry on quite pitifully when denied said access. I can understand how folks could feel terribly guilty and fold under those woeful cries. I can even understand how they come to believe depriving a cat of something it cries for that badly is just plain cruel, when it patently isn't.

We just have to be tougher than they are. And, of course, provide plenty of attention, toys and mental stimulation to replace the scents, sounds and adventures free-roaming cats enjoy.

Since their rescue, except for a couple of *seriously* scary escapes this past summer, mine have never been outside. They don't seem to miss it, either.

Hubby used to let him out but after $1,000 worth of vet fees just for abscesses from cat fights, he stays in now unless he is supervised on his leash. He is a smart cat, he never cries to me to let him out as he knows I will not, in fact I just need to say NO and he walks away from the door. With hubby, it's a whole different ball game - he'll talk and cry to go out.

[ink]

I know people think, well the cat used to live outside and now he is crying pitifully, so it must be cruel to keep him in. But sometimes, for their safety, we can't let them have what they want. If a child whines and cries and throws a fit because they want to go play in the street, are you going to let them because its cruel not to? If your dog howled pitifully at the fence because he wanted to chase cars, would you let him out of the yard because it was cruel to keep him in the yard when he so desperately wants to get out and chase those cars?

What it boils down to, is that cats don't think of what might happen to them. They don't understand the possibilities. They don't understand that there are some humans that are cruel and twisted. They don't look at the road and think, "I could get hit by a car if I cross that". Its our job to think of these things and protect them from it in the same way we think of them and protect young children from them.