All things walking jacket

I took out my two cats for their initial outdoor adventure with walking jackets. They did really well as they were quite inquisitive and were not scared at all. I even talked to 3 neighbors and the kitties remained very cool. Unfortunately, one of my conversations must have gone on too long as Josie, my feisty troublemaker, nearly freed herself from the jacket! She had gotten her body free from the jacket and the only thing left was the collar. My neighbor was picked her up before she was able to do much else.

This did give me a fright. I thought walking jackets were more secure than other harnesses, that's why I paid extra money for them. I thought I had tightened them up enough, but afterward, I brought the cats in and took off their jackets, I made sure to cinch up the straps even more. Hopefully the jackets won't be too uncomfortable.

It also made me think twice about walking the cats at the same time. Since I was holding Dory also and Josie was behind a railing, I found that couldn't grab her quick enough. Luckily my neighbor was able to do it. But what happens when there isn't someone around to help in a situation where I need both my hands?

Lastly, on an unrelated note, are their clothes where there are openings in the back? It's getting quite cool here, especially in the mornings, which is when I'd like to take my cats out. I'd like to buy them sweaters that have openings for the leash that connects to the walking jacket at the cats' shoulder blades. Would small dog clothes work? My local has a dearth of cat clothes, it's discrimination, I tell ya.

I'll be honest, I would never take more than one out at a time, just sounds like a recipe for disaster.

Not sure about the clothes. The cat that wears the harness probably wouldn't mind clothes but I don't see me putting them on her--she's outdoors anyway--I just use the harness when I take her places.

Leslie

I think a determined cat can escape most any kind of harness.

As for the clothing, couldn't you get a doggie jumper and cut a hole in for the lead to come through?

I tried again this morning. I cinched up the jackets, by a lot. I also used a carabiner hook to tether both leashes to my belt hook. I also brought a bag of treats.

Big improvement today. Though I wouldn't say we walked Them cats just like to do their own thing. We all had to coordinate a bit though since we were tethered together. I still held onto the two leashes in each hand, but I found with the carabiner hook, when needed, I could let go of the leashes and use my hands to take care of an issue. For example, I could give them treats to head them into a desired direction. I may go with a strong nylon rope worn around my torso and hook the carabiner to it for a stronger base than a belt hook.

I think the girls were fascinated, but also noticed that when I headed back home, they ran up the stairs and were pretty eager to walk through the lobby door.

I would recommend walking them separately unless you have someone to help you. The only time I take more than one cat out is if I have the stroller and one cat is in the stroller while the other is out on the leash. That is unless I have a friend along to hold one leash while I hold the other.

There are clothes with holes for a harness. These are mostly dog clothes. I did have one shirt customized for Harley. We were at a pet show and I wanted something to help keep her warm. There was a booth there with t-shirts for dogs but the woman said she was starting a line for cats as well, so she asked if she could measured my cats and try them on to help her get an idea of the sizing for cats, and I also ordered a shirt while I was there with a cute patch and a harness opening. It worked very well, and she is sending me another shirt to check the fit since she altered the pattern since then to fit cats better. If you're interested in these send me a PM and I can give you her email. Otherwise just look for clothes made for small dogs, they sometimes have the harness opening.

Here is a photo of the cats 'modeling' the shirts at the show for fit:

Thanks all for the advice. I walked my cats separately this weekend and it did seem safer and better all around. The cats couldn't stay out as long but on the other hand, their movements weren't hindered by each other. Dory freaked out while on some grass and ran away, her progress stopped by the leash I was holding. She was very agitated by something. In any case, I thought that would have been a much more difficult situation if Josie had been there. I was easily able to calm Dory down and we walked elsewhere.

I'll be keeping an eye out for little doggie clothes!

I also noticed that they want to go back out the first couple of hours after their walks. So I may be opening up a can of worms here. Luckily, each time, their crying subsisted after a few meows. Hopefully this won't get out of hand.