Ever lock up your cats?

[pushylady]

I think it's fair enough to lock the cats up for awhile when we have people over who're allergic. It's in everyone's best interests. Not that we have many people over anymore since we got the cats. People seem to have the idea that we're unhygenic now!?

Prosperity - love your siggy pic! Had to watch for a while to see who wins the fight!

 

[MoochNNoodles]

Originally Posted by Bugaboo1

My husband put a sheet of plexi glass on the door from the handle to the floor so they couldn't scratch and ruin the door.

At my parents, Tiger would scratch to get in and out of my room at night so we cut a piece of plastic floor runner. The clear kind with the points on the bottom and stuff. We cut it to the shape so it fit around the wall and under the door. The trick was to cut it snug so she wouldn't pull it up.

 

[laureen227]

i've only done it for short times, like when i moved, or when someone's recovering from a vet visit, or is ill & needs to be secluded. [or accidently got shut in there

] the only room in my house i can put them in is the bathroom - none of my other rooms have doors.

 

[waddle]

I've only locked mine up for floor cleaning and when I do my nails. They are ever so eager to help with either activity! I have a spare room with their kitty tree and a nice big window so it doesn't seem to bother them.

 

[beckiboo]

Not very often. It's interesting to read how others handle people with allergies. Recently I've had 2 kids over with allergies. One comes from a pet free home, and doesn't really like animals. She is usually fine here for a few hours, but the last visit they played in dd's bed, where the cats sleep. Poor girl, I ended up taking her home about a half hour early, because she was coughing! Before when she has visited it was just fine!

Then ds's friend came over. He also usually does ok, but we had just moved cats out of the catroom (for foster litters) which is also the kids playroom, where the playstation is located. And it turns out he had visited another cat-home the day before. I ended up giving him a dose of Benadryl. His eyes were so red, and he kept sneezing! And it is harder for him, because he loves animals. He kept saying how cute Festus is, and wanting to pet her! His cat has been relegated to the family room at their house, and she has free run of the fenced in yard when the dog is outside to protect her. She is very happy with this arrangement, and is quite a lovely cat.

If I had an elderly or ill person visit, I wouldn't mind closing the cats in a bedroom for a period of time. And I do shut my dog away sometimes. She doesn't understand that not everyone wants to pet her, and have their hand licked!

 

[cyberkitten]

I tried once recently - I had a visitor coming who I had been informed was quite allergic to kitties. My baby was already asleep in my bedroom and the Sphynx girls tucked into bed so I thought I'd sneak out and entertain sans my beloved Wedgie girl. The Sphynx - who are quite used to the bedroom they share usually like to cuddle in there on occasion, as if they are hiding or praying for their meomy to get well.

WELL!! It was one of those cases of "the best laid plans..." I imagine YY's ears perked up pretty quickly when she heard the door open but the visitors were inside and sitting down no more than 15 minutes when I heard an ungodly and indignant yowl!!! As in how dare you keep me in here and I cannot oversee what is going on in my domain!!! Soon, the Sphyx Girls chimed in and it was a meow chorus. I realized how foolish I had been in assuming this might work - and that cats with big ears might sleep but with curious Siamese and Sphynx, there was NO way around it. YY wanted to inspect the new person in HER house but I held her while continuing to entertain. Now I just inform ppl if they have allergies, they may have to work around the feline members of the family.

 

[pandybear]

my two have complete run of the house, i leave every room open so they can explore and play in it, they don't ruin anything so i never have that problem, if i try to lock pandy out of the bedroom or any room i'm in the gets very upset and crashes into the door, she especially loves to curl up next to me at night and pur herself to sleep, she does this every night without fail.

if people come over with allegies then they know not to go near the cats, that's if they actually see them, pandy is very skittish and hides straight away, after a while you will see her peeking around the doorway at our guests but if one moves then she's outa there, bonnie's a bit better but if kids are around i keep an eye on her, she doesn't like them at all and has scratched a few while they were trying to play with her.

i lock them both in my bedroom or the spare room if my nan ever visits because she leaves my front door wide open even though i have told her i don't want the cats outside

Isn't it funny? We have eight in the house right now, and they are always underfoot, but if the house suddenly has kids in it—like magic, there are no cats to be seen.

so true

 

[booktigger]

The foster cats are kept in their rooms for the first two weeks of being here. Then they are allowed out in the evening, but put back in at night, for maybe another two weeks, then they are allowed out all night too. They are always put in their room when I go to work or out for the day though, as I have an open plan house and only one door, so they could very easily get out, and I don't want to lose a foster!! i do sometimes trust them in the house while I put the rubbish out or go and get Ginger, but only after a couple of weeks and knowing if I can get in and out in time. I also dont let them out in the evening till I know my cats have had their time out, and are going to stay in the house (except Ginger)

 

[beckiboo]

Originally Posted by pandybear

pandy is very skittish and hides straight away, after a while you will see her peeking around the doorway at our guests but if one moves then she's outa there, bonnie's a bit better but if kids are around i keep an eye on her, she doesn't like them at all and has scratched a few while they were trying to play with her.

LOL! My cats are the opposite, when kids come to visit they are ready for attention. I got a picture Saturday of dd and her best friend playing Ello (like girly Lego building blocks), with Festus right in the middle of it. If they go to the friend's house, her lab Parker plays with the girls!

My kids can even play with cats that scratch other people. Having been around animals, they are usually good at watching the signs, and leaving crochety kitties alone when they need to.

 

[kathylou]

Sure. Anytime the plumber or the air conditioner person, or anyone else who is likely to be careless with doors and such. I'm not taking any chances with my babies getting outside and run over by a car or lost or whatever!

 

[lillekat]

No we don't lock up Tosca. Neither of us can bear to do it! None in our family have allergies or dislike cats - Rune's mother is a real cat fiend, she makes us look like amatuer cat lovers! - so we've no need to shut her inside. I feel guilty because we're on a 4th floor apartment so she can't get outside to play like I'd like her to do, but we're moving into a house sometime next year and that has a nice garden for her