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They have a secret entrance through the cellar. Or, when my wife closes off all the exits, she holds out bravely until Bonnie stops mewing to get out and starts growling.
That's always a risk with outdoor cats, but it would always be a risk with a cat like Bonnie. We kept the cats indoors until after Bonnie had had her stitches taken out after being spayed, and they were always very keen to get out into the garden if they could. Bonnie actually succeeded once in a complex plan that involved getting on top of the refrigerator. So far, however, she's always been very glad to get back despite everything, and calms down a lot after a good sleep on her bed.
We have a fair idea of where Bonnie's territory is. At the moment it seems that our cats have divided the neighbourhood between them: Clyde takes everything to the north and west, Bonnie to the south and east. We have a very good relationship with out neighbours, and from what we've been told and the general lack of deer ticks and other tell-tale parasites, she doesn't roam beyond a block or two. Everyone here knows Bonnie and Clyde very well.
It's unlikely she'll just move in to a new home, as she is very cautious of strangers, although very inquisitive. If it does happen, though, we'll hear about it and we'll also have to accept it. As sad as it would be to bid Bonnie farewell, if she's happier with someone else, it wouldn't be fair to drag her back.
Having finally got a good look at that other cat, we think he is neutered. But while I understand the logic here, we knew it was time to get our cats fixed when an un-neutered tom sprayed right by the patio door and Clyde, who had never been outside, reacted to it in a very obvious manner.
How long will that take, though? Has this sort of thing been done before?
Bonnie is highly intelligent and thus very easily bored. Once she's been up somewhere and realised that there's not a great deal else to do except lounge, she'll not make the effort again, as various unused platforms, walkways and climbing posts bear testimony -- and this was before she was introduced to the outdoors. Toys and games are discarded once all possibilities are exhausted. Puzzles are either solved within minutes and then discarded, or rejected as unsolvable. I have seldom seen a cat think as much as Bonnie, and the only way to entertain her indoors for any length of time would be to invite a succession of electricians, plumbers, decorators and carpenters in to give Bonnie something to watch. Processes fascinate her, but not ones she's seen before.
Neither of those options would suit either cat, especially Bonnie. I can't imagine a more effective way of making her turn against us.
Of course there are risks involved in having outdoor cats; but I would like our cats to live with us because they choose to, not because they cannot escape. It's hard work and full of potential heartbreak, as well as risks, but with Bonnie it's a necessity: she wouldn't survive a day as a farm cat, but she, more than any pet cat I have ever encountered, would be thoroughly depressed if we kept her in.
All of that said, fortune may be on our side in the guise of a sudden deterioration in the weather. According to my wife, after Bonnie had slept most of the morning, she was in and out like a yoyo: Clyde would appear, Bonnie would leave, and five minutes later Bonnie would be demanding to be let back in (no point in going through the cellar when somebody can let her in through a window). This is a step forward even if it doesn't sound like one. When Bonnie is safely in her room, she seems a lot less on edge if Clyde happens to be skulking around, and my wife accidentally shut them both in upstairs and nothing happened at all. Bonnie also seems to be trying to get comfortable in the dining room, but that's clearly a work in progress, probably because it has Clyde's scent everywhere now.
My vague plan is to try to keep Bonnie upstairs and Clyde downstairs as much as possible for now. There's a fresh blanket on Bonnie's bed which will eventually be taken to the spot on the window ledge in the dining room, my reasoning being that, well, anything that helps reassure Bonnie can't do any harm. We can close off one or both floors from access to outside, which is a great help at nights: it's usually fairly easy to bring Clyde in, and although he'll protest, once he sees we mean business, he'll philosophically settle down to sleep, and Bonnie can sneak back in to her inner sanctum without fear of Clyde molesting her. We've been doing that now for several days.
