Cat causing problems with the neighbours

deebee

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Hi,

I'v registered on the forums here because our cat is becoming a major cause of friction between us and the neighbours.

They already had two cats, and we decided to get one ourselves. In the end we decided to re-home a cat from the local RSPCA centre and Jake entered our lives.

When we took him, we were told that if he was around other cats he needed to be dominant. He has been spayed.
Thats fair enough and I'm sure everyone realises that cats do fight each other, especially when a new one turns up in the area - not much to be done its just the cats sorting out who is boss. It always looks and sounds much worse that it actually is.

The problem is that we are 6 months down the line now and Jake is still fighting with the cats next door. If he sees them in either our garden or the neighbours garden he is straight after them. It also turns out that he keeps on going through the catflap next door and eating their food and fighting them in their house.

We have tried working with our neighbours to find some resolution to the problem but its just not working. We now have a situation where our neighbours are not speaking to us and, in fact, the last conversation that I had with them was when they informed me that they were reporting our cat to the RSPCA for beating up their cats. I was also told that I needed to 'control my cat'.

Short of sitting guard on their catflap 24/7 I'm not sure how I can do this.

They have also accused us of not feeding him properly. Nothing could be further from the truth! Jake gets an 85gram pouch of meat per meal (yes. twice a day) and he also has a bowl of Iams down along with a bowl of water that is kept fresh.

Right after we took Jake on, I did tell our neighbours that if they ever caught him in their house they should scare him off by squirting him with water - In my experience it only takes one or two wettings for a cat to get the message.

I really don't know what to do now and so I'm looking everywhere for some advice! help! I'm a placid guy and I dont want to be falling out with the neighbours over a cat!
 

proudmamiof4

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Is there any way you can keep him indoors? if not, maybe build an enclosure on your property??
 

nance

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There is only 1 solution well maybe 2....keep him inside...that would solve the issue....or you can get/make an enclousure for your cat...then your neighbours will have to keep their cats out of your yard...I dont see any other way to stop the fighting...but to keep them apart....I am sure others will come along soon with some advice...
 

Willowy

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Do you have a wall/fence around your garden? If so, there are special cat fences you can buy (or improvise your own version) to keep your cat inside his own garden. I think this would probably work best, as it seems that keeping him entirely inside would be difficult, and obviously things get bad when he leaves your garden. If you get the right fence, it will keep the other cats out of your garden, too.
 

rarepuss

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there are electronic cat flaps that will only open if a collar with a correct fob is worn by owner's cat. They are not expensive. Buy your neighbors one.
 
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deebee

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thanks for the reply guys,

thing is, I'm never going to curtail my cats freedom. I believe that its cruel to keep a cat indoors. I may investigate the cat fencing - but I dont want my garden to end up looking like a tennis court or prison camp!

I'll definitely investigate the electronic cat flap although I'm not sure how the neighbours will receive it even if I do buy it for them.
 

cheylink

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Originally Posted by deebee

thanks for the reply guys,

thing is, I'm never going to curtail my cats freedom. I believe that its cruel to keep a cat indoors. I may investigate the cat fencing - but I dont want my garden to end up looking like a tennis court or prison camp!

I'll definitely investigate the electronic cat flap although I'm not sure how the neighbours will receive it even if I do buy it for them.
I'm sorry but I have to say that I think you are in the wrong here and making statements such as " I'm never going to curtail my cats freedom" is denying your responsibility of the situation, at the very least your cats safety! If this is the way you feel, then you should have never gotten a cat, especially one that you were told is dominant/aggressive. Do you have any idea how lucky you are that your neighbors have tried talking to you about his intrusion into their home, attacking their cats and eating their food?! If another cat came into my home and attacked my Maia, I would do whatever I had to and defend her and chase that cat off! But guess what, that would never happen because Maia is an indoor kitty and is extremely content, happy, healthy, and safe! She only goes outside with me, and she would never want it any other way.
If a wild animal came into your home and attacked your cat and ate his food, what would you do?
 

meowqueensdaddy

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Originally Posted by deebee

thanks for the reply guys,
thing is, I'm never going to curtail my cats freedom. I believe that its cruel to keep a cat indoors.
Getting run over by a car is a cruel way to die.

Being attacked by a larger animal is a cruel and violent way to die.

Being hurt by some weirdo that thinks it's ok to torture animals is horrific (and it does happen).

Disappearing without a trace is an awful tragedy with no end and no closure.

You can prevent or nearly eliminate any possibility of those things happening by keeping your cat indoors.

Living indoors, in a nice warm home with plenty of food, water, soft places to sleep, and friends, is not cruel, whatever else you may call it. Many if not most areas inhabited by humans are unfriendly towards free roaming felines in one way or another.

As my vet says, cats who are new to the indoor-only thing may complain and act like they're suffering, but only at first. The /vast/ majority get used to it and learn to thrive indoors.
 

lil maggie

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I know there are lots of people that have outdoor cats. I have a indoor cat(declawed by a previous owner) and it doesn't matter to me if people keep cats indoors or not. But I'd be afraid that with people putting lawn chemicals down like flea and tick killer that it might make a cat deathly ill. I just watched a neighbor of mine putting that junk down on his lawn.

Your kitty is very use to door flaps and he's even using a neighbors door flap too. Hopefully your cat doesn't decide to go into another person's house through a doggie door flap
 

carolina

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Originally Posted by meowqueensdaddy

Getting run over by a car is a cruel way to die.

Being attacked by a larger animal is a cruel and violent way to die.

Being hurt by some weirdo that thinks it's ok to torture animals is horrific (and it does happen).

Disappearing without a trace is an awful tragedy with no end and no closure.

You can prevent or nearly eliminate any possibility of those things happening by keeping your cat indoors.

Living indoors, in a nice warm home with plenty of food, water, soft places to sleep, and friends, is not cruel, whatever else you may call it. Many if not most areas inhabited by humans are unfriendly towards free roaming felines in one way or another.

As my vet says, cats who are new to the indoor-only thing may complain and act like they're suffering, but only at first. The /vast/ majority get used to it and learn to thrive indoors.
don't forget the statistics: Outdoor cats live an average of 3-4 years, while indoors live an average of 15+...
I can pretty much guarantee you will have a much healthier, and consequently happier cat if you keep it indoors...
 

zane's pal

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You don't have coyotes in the UK, but you do have stray dogs, and foxes, and badgers, and raptor birds, all of whom can and do kill cats. For his own safety, keep your cat indoors.
 

arlyn

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I think, that unless you want to make enemies of your neighbors, you will have to figure out a way to keep him only on your property.
It is your responsibility to control him if he is the one causing the problems.

This is probably the best solution http://www.catfence.com/pictures.htm, I'm sure you can probably find a retailer in your country, or a similar product.
 

ckblv

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My Gray One lived indoors for 15+ years and she was happy and she was safe.

My brother's cat is a stray that took refuge in our warehouse at work and my brother took him home and he lives with their seven dogs.
Tiger loves to be outside and it was a constant battle keeping him in so my brother rigged up an enclosure so Tiger could go out the doggy door to their north yard, which was enclosed by a block wall fence. He rigged up that wire shelving stuff that is used for closets on the block wall. Now Tiger can go outside but can't get out of into the rest of the yard.

I would never in a million years let a cat run free, I think it is cruel to do so, as there is way to many dangers out there.

A co-worker of mine has a cat they let run. I advised him many times to keep that cat inside but he wouldn't listen. Finally the day came and the cat came home in awful pain. Took her to the vet and she had a broken sternum.
I think some rotten kid drop kicked that poor cat. That cat has lost all desire to go outside and stays inside now.
 
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deebee

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Ok Guys,

firstly I didnt realise that this was an american site until after I had posted!

secondly I can see that my views on cats has caused quite a bit of controversy here.
Thing is, its just different over here in the UK - We are truly a nation of animal lovers. I am not alone in my viewpoint that cats should be allowed to go outside as and when they wish. In fact, a cats 'right to roam' is protected by law here.
In fact the RSCPA website should give you a better idea:

http://www.rspca.org.uk/servlet/Sate...#1112958900434

I fully take on board the fact that Jake is my responsibility and I have honestly tried and tried to come to a solution with next door and its just not working. We have offered to pay half the cost of a new fence but they dont seem interested (the fence to be replaced is theirs anyway). I explained to them straight away that they should throw water at Jake if he went were they didnt want him to go and they just dont appear to have listened to me.

Honestly, at my parents house we used to have a Ginger Tom that would regularly beat up our cat and spray in the kitchen. I resolved the solution by putting the catflap on 'in' only and leaving a couple of pints of water handy. Next time I heard the cat flap go and it was the Tom I threw the water over him and then let him out. The result was that he never came in our house again!

Another poster mentioned what I would do to prevent another animal coming into my house - well pretty much what I did to the Tom. If that didnt work then I would find some other method of 'training' that animal to understand that coming in my house would result in an unpleasant experience (albeit one with no long lasting effects because I'm not a cruel guy)

Bottom line is that there is absolutely no way I'm going to lock my cat in. Especially when next door have no intention of doing the same with their cats.

Cat proof fencing I did look at, but then I love to spend time in my garden and having it look like a kitty prison camp is not at all appealing. furthermore it could potentially create an issue with wildlife getting into the garden and not being able to get out. Or even their cats which would be even worse since then Jake would see it as his duty to defend his territory and they would have no place of refuge available.

I'm not sure where those stats came from regarding the longevity of cats when compared between indoors and outdoors living. However here in the UK its a very different story. My first cat Cally died at 13 - was never kept indoors. Midge was very much an outdoor cat and lived with Cancer of the liver for 3 years before it finally beat her at 9. Lucy my sisters cat is approaching 19 years old, comes and goes as she pleases and just last month was observed to be seeing off a fox that was in the back garden. shes got asthma, athritis and a dicky liver too.

anyway guys, I'm going to leave it here and try to find a UK forum for this issue. You have been very helpful, but I can see that our attitudes towards cats and how they should be treated are rather different. I'm not interested in upsetting any of you or causing any strife on the forums so you won't hear from me again.

Hugs n Kisses
Darren
 

meowqueensdaddy

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anyway guys, I'm going to leave it here and try to find a UK forum for this issue. You have been very helpful, but I can see that our attitudes towards cats and how they should be treated are rather different. I'm not interested in upsetting any of you or causing any strife on the forums so you won't hear from me again.
This always amazes me. Someone comes onto a forum looking for advice on some problem or other, and leaves immediately when they find out that the experienced voices of the forum disagree strongly with their position which is causing the problem in the first place. It always seems like the OP just wants someone to tell them what they want to hear. In this case, I'm not sure if it's a US v. UK issue or what... is the OP right, and our attitudes across the pond are just plain different? I can't answer that.


From your RSPCA faq:
You need to be aware that cats are free to roam and are protected by law. Cat owners cannot be sued for damages; it is an offence to steal a cat; it is an offence to harm or terrify a cat; it is also an offence to put down snares or poison or an unlicensed deterrent.
Does legal protection mean that nobody is going to break the law? Nope. Animal abuse is a crime on both sides of the atlantic, and it happens. Furthermore, how does that legal protection affect drivers? Are drivers in the UK required by law to risk injury to themselves and others in order to avoid running over a cat? I don't have to look up the answer to that one, and neither do you. My cats stay indoors because there are four lanes of highly unpredictable traffic outside of my front door, and I've witnessed tragedy firsthand AND lying dead on the side of the road. Comforting a mortally wounded stray cat while you wait for the humane society to arrive is not something you want to experience... let alone calling the humane society later in the day to find out that the poor kitty's broken leg was just the tip of the iceberg and was accompanied by a crushed pelvis, ruptured bowel and other organs, so she had to be euthanized.

But that wasn't my point. My point is that confining a cat to the indoors is not cruel or inhumane, and it's not torture. For anyone in an urban area, it's the right thing to do. For someone in a more suburban situation, it's still a very good idea. If you have a special situation, in a rural area, free of predators, where you're friendly with all your neighbors (and they're friendly with your cat), and where traffic is sparse and drivers are attentive, then I have no argument with letting the cat out. In fact, my GF's family has that sort of situation, and their cats come and go as they please. In fact, for a number of years, the dogs in that neighborhood would come and go as they pleased, roaming freely, and not causing trouble. But it's a special situation.

Ok, now on to the life expectancy issue:

I'm not sure where those stats came from regarding the longevity of cats when compared between indoors and outdoors living.
http://www.petplace.com/cats/life-ex...ats/page1.aspx

http://www.cat-world.com.au/IndoorCats.htm

http://www.runway.net/b/moonmaid/in-or-out.html

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Cats-1606...Expectancy.htm

Ok. Fine. I'll admit that those few articles contain lots of claims and no real link to hard numbers. But statistics themselves can be used to prove or disprove anything. I still find the argument compelling, aside from my own experience.

Sorry to go on a rant here. Obviously, we all care deeply for our cats, and I feel very strongly about this issue. It's about care, love, and responsibility. Every situation is different, but with so many unpredictable factors, I'm an indoor advocate.
 

snickerdoodle

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I can understand our ways of thinking may be different between the US and the UK. There are too many dangers here in the US, even in the deep country where I live -- cats are no longer safe outside. If it isn't neighbors, cars, kids with bb guns or boys driving too fast, it's dogs illegally roaming without leashes and hawks snatching them up and away forever. We have several cats that roam free in my neighborhood and they have managed to survive fine, but I won't take the chances with my cats ever again, after I've had one die from a neighbor or his dog, one die from bb gun pellets sickening her, and one snatched by a hawk.
It's just not worth losing your baby/furbaby/best friend to something that can be prevented or getting hounded by the RSPCA. If the neighbors are already dead set against trying to work this out with you (if your suggestions actually would work, I guess maybe they would) .. then it sounds like you have little choice other than to keep him inside, build a fence for him outside, or take him out on a lead. It's sad when neighbors won't be a neighbor and try to help you find a solution to something, but it would be way more sad to lose your cat to any number of things. That's just my opinion. It's always a good thing having an indoor-only cat. I live way out in the country, and there are still tons of things that could happen. The saddest thing for me was knowing I could have saved every single one of my cats that passed, and I make sure it won't happen again to an innocent animal. Boo-Boo may not have "freedom" but he's also not dead either, and he's certainly not in misery. I hope you find a solution to your problem, I really really do.
 

yayi

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Originally Posted by deebee

anyway guys, I'm going to leave it here and try to find a UK forum for this issue.
Darren
Aww, don't feel bad. I am one of the few members here whose cats (9 of them) are free to go wherever they please. I've been here a long time and the issue of outdoor cats has always been a debatable subject. There are advocates on both sides.
 
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