Having 1 Cat

Is it ok to have one cat?

Sure, why not? I have one cat.

Is it happy by itself and do you let it out during the day also can you give me your cats sleep times?

She is an indoor only cat and she seems to do fine by herself. She sleeps most of the time

why do you not let your cat outside thats what I will be doing but it sleeps inside

I have only one cat and he is strictly indoors, the reason for that is indoor cats have longer lifespans and it is so much safer for them (no chance of being hit by a car or attack by another animal) if you do want to take your kitty outside you can train him to wear a harness.

It's fine to have one cat, although if an indoor cat s/he might like some feline company Depends on the individual cat a lot - some are more than happy to be on their own.

Buta cat is ment to be outside,you should give it the freedom it deserves.If it gets hit by a car well thats thats nothing can be done but at least it had a good life and fighting with each other is natural.

I'm sorry but you have got to be kidding!!!

If you own a cat, it is your responsibility to make sure it's safe. Anyone who says oh well, can't help it if he gets run over should not own a cat.

You can get a cat fence so the cat can't get out of your yard, build a secure enclosure or harness train.

I have just one cat and I keep him indoors. For ages I wanted a cat but didn’t live in a safe place for an out door cat. I had always thought that cats needed to go out and do what ever it is cats do. When I lived at home we had a cat. He went out, had a life, and came in at night and slept with me.

I felt that keeping a cat inside would deprive him of his natural social outlet and I detested the idea of scooping poop.

But in my decline I decided that I needed more company than my three fish could give me.

Making a long story much shorter that's how I found Chester.

Before he came to live at my house he spent almost a month in a cage because he former people didn’t want him. The way I see it any place has got to be better than that cage.

Sometimes I worry that he might want a playmate. But he is afraid of other animals so that’s out. As far as I am concerned he is the perfect cat for me. I don’t want to risk messing up a good situation.

Also now I realize that these days it is just too dangerous to let a cat out. There are too many unnatural things that can hurt him.

I will give you my opinion both ways. It is great to have just one cat. I had my Bit for a little less than a year before we decided to get Scratch. He was Mommy and Daddy's little boy, but once we brought Scratch home I fell in love with him in a different way. Bit was great, but is better with Scratch.
I hope that makes sense.

Oliver is an only cat and I'm sure he wouldn't have it any other way! haha... heck, he gets jealous when I turn my attention to the dog or one of the tanks... plus Oliver is FIV+ so he should remain an only cat anyhow.... he is definitely indoor only but I take him outside on a harness

As for the whole indoor/outdoor thing - cats are now domestic animals, they have not been wild for thousands of years... yes they still have their hunting instincts, but the wild is no longer their optimal or correct environment. I've been in contact with a woman recently who works for and is VERY learned in wildlife protection (we've had feral cats and she was helping us out)... outdoor cats are starting to DESTROY wild bird populations!! Yes, it's natural for cats to hunt which is EXACTLY the reason they need to be kept indoors.... its kinda like when you have tropical fish or a frog - you absolutely cannot release it into the wild if you dont want it anymore because it has the ability to DESTROY or severely alter thriving natural ecosystems.... this is all in addition to the fact that cats are MUCH safer being indoors - it is not natural for domesticated cats to have to fight with other animals or even other cats to the point of serious injury. Yes we see our cats playfight inside because there is still a natural need to establish who is alpha and who is not, but this dominance gets established without serious injury to our pets.

Ok... now that I've made my point on why cats should be indoor only, haha, there's absolutely no problem with having only one cat! Spoil him away!

Buzby! You could get another FIV+ cat! Rescues everywhere neeeeeeeeed adopters of FIV+'s so. badly. Just a thought.

Anyway, I personally am going to beg to differ and I think that 9 time out of 10, it's best to have more than one cat. Leo had all kinds of behavior problems when he was an only cat and become easily aggressive with humans, and I've been told he's not the only one who's had these issues. Of course, you get some cats that absolutely hate other cats or become really aggressive with other cats. Also, if I had to pick, I'd pick a cat getting an only-cat home versus living on the streets or in a shelter. It's not the worst thing you can do to a cat, by far, but we've gotten returns to the effect of the cat getting destructive from being too bored. I think that having one cat can be a lot more labor intensive.

And as for the indoor/outdoor issue, there are several threads to this effect, but I wholeheartedly believe that cats do MUCH better indoors. There are too many risks outside and where I live, it's actually illegal to allow pets in the public way without a lead and owner accompaniment. Trust me, this is for their own good. Cars and predators are the least of your worries...bunching and dog fighting are both on the rise and pet theft has become something of an epidemic around here.

I have only one cat and she loves being queen of the household. I think that unless cats are family related there can be some problems about turf. Mine rules!

Originally Posted by snosrap5

I'm sorry but you have got to be kidding!!!

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Yes, are you joking? Do you not care what happens to your cat?

Originally Posted by Dell1234

Buta cat is ment to be outside,you should give it the freedom it deserves.If it gets hit by a car well thats thats nothing can be done but at least it had a good life and fighting with each other is natural.

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Do you feel the same way about children?

Originally Posted by lionessrampant

Buzby! You could get another FIV+ cat! Rescues everywhere neeeeeeeeed adopters of FIV+'s so. badly.

Just a thought.

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hehe, oh I definitely know of all the FIV+ kitties out there that need homes! If I had the means and the room, I'd adopt them all! Unfortunately, I'm a poor college student (poor partly because I spend all my money on the animals I already have!) and I live in a studio apartment up at school... Oliver's a handful as it is and omg, I think he'd have a heart attack if I brought another cat in! He is king, and not only is he king but he better get 100% of my attention, according to him, haha... he is wonderful with all people - very social, yet definitely a mama's boy.... no behavioral problems so I'm not worried about him being an only!

PS: those looking to adopt a pound kitty - having an FIV+ kitty doesnt mean they're gonna die in like a year! Most live just as long, happy and healthy lives as FIV- kitties... they dont require daily meds and you just have to be on top of URIs and such since their immune system is weakened... you'd NEVER know Ollie was FIV+ unless you saw the test - so dont rule out having an FIV+ kitty (or two, or three!)

Originally Posted by lionessrampant

Buzby! You could get another FIV+ cat! Rescues everywhere neeeeeeeeed adopters of FIV+'s so. badly.

Just a thought.

Click to expand...

If I didn't adopt FeLV+ I would probably go for FIV+, I've also heard that people have postives and negatives in the same household, as it is not the easy to pass FIV (only through bites and mating) I've also had a double positive in the past- cat was healthy as a horse!

i'd really like to get a playmate for Wonton but he's just very alpha male, and i don't think he'd take to it very well. i only work part time right now, so i'm home with hhim quite a bit, and honestly i'm a little worried about when i go back to work full time..he'll be home alone for 8 hours a day, and he's not used to that. ever since i got him (three years ago), i've been home at least half the day with him. but he doesn't like other cats, so...there's not much i can do.