INFO on taking cats out for walks, please!

[rchynkim]

Hello! I want to begin taking my indoor cats out for weekly walk sessions at the park. It just seems very repetitive for them to be stuck inside the unchanging home and never experiencing anything outside of it. 

Any recommended (brand?) leash/harnesses in particular? I know not to get one that ties around their neck. 

I'm also very freaked out about the possibilities of fleas and/or any parasites out there. As long as I give a monthly application of Revolution, is there no possibility of them bringing any pests inside? Also, I plan to only walk two out of my three cats. (The third one is very antsy and hates the prospect of being outdoors.) Is it fine for me to administer anti-flea meds to them and not the third? Or is there a possibility of fleas/bugs/parasites hitching a ride on one of my two cats when they go for a walk, then finding my third cat once inside the home?

Any other tips, ideas, stories, please!

 

[handsome kitty]

There is an article re: leash training a cat.   If you go to the HOME tab it is one of the featured articles.  There are also some great videos on you tube.

As for the harness, I would say it depends on the cat to some extent.  I have 2 types and prefer the H harness simply because it is easier for me to put it on and I know how the cat can wiggle out of it.  He likes to walk along fences (6 ft privacy fences), and still gets startled by noisy trucks and tries to run home - across the road in front of the noisy trucks.

I have a friend w/a Siberian cat and uses a dog harness because he is so large.  She also has a long rope tied to her leash so the cat can roam on ppls lawns.  I use the standard 6' leash and trample my neighbors lawns.  The difference between a cat walking for 10 yrs and one for 1 yr.

I would treat all 3 cats.  I know the revolution kills fleas and stuff but don't know how long it takes to work.  You may want to consult w/your vet for a professional opinion.

I can tell lots of stories about my misadventures. LOL  Finding the possum in the yard, the Raccoon in the neighbors driveway, losing a leash to a bush because the cat tangled it too much, pulling the cat out of the tree when it got just out of my reach, the day he caught the bird, the evening he fell in the pool and my worst nightmare the night the fireworks went off.  Then there are the everyday fun times; jumping through bushes (starting to reconsider the longer leash), chasing down neighborhood cats, standing around while the cat perches on the neighbors' fences, large rocks, retaining walls and the ever popular hanging around the dogs houses so they bark and bark and bark.  And don't forget all the smiles your neighbors will send your way.  If you think you will be leading your cat around LOL think again.  They won't go if they don't want to!

I will caution you to study up on local toxic plants so you can avoid them.  Other things to watch for are automotive fluids on the street which can soak through paw pads and/or licked off during grooming.  Wildlife and their scat, feral cats, broken glass, loose dogs and loud noises.

Be aware the cat can back out of the harness, it is recommend that you can fit 2 fingers under the harness so it isn't too tight.  I have it even looser around my cats neck because it hurts his ears if it is too tight.  It slides over his head and the strap around his belly has a clip.  If your cat gets away the harness can get stuck on things and the cat may need to escape, so be sure not to tighten it too much.

It's a lot of fun.  Let me know how it goes.

 

[Margret]

Also watch out for neighbors' lawns with those little flags that say they've been treated with pesticide or herbicide.

Jasmine thinks a "walk" means sniffing every blade of grass in our yard, attempting to chase the local bunny rabbit, and refusing to come anywhere near neighbors who want to meet her.

Margret

 

[NewYork1303]

We use this kind of a harness
It is a very good harness and cats can only get out of it if they pull against a taut leash and go backwards. My cat got out of his only once, and this was because I tightened the leash when he was startled by something rather than just trying to start by grabbing him.

With any harness, escape is possible, so I would be very nervous about walking cats in the park. This is because a park has lots of dogs, runners, bicycles, screaming children, and plenty of other things that could easily spook even the most confident cat. If a cat gets off his harness in a park, he won't know where to go to get back to safety at home with you. When my cat got off of his harness, he just ran back to my porch since he walks in our yard only (big yard 5 acres).

I would definitely get your cats just used to being outdoors at all, before going somewhere with loud noises and potential hazards.

 

[handsome kitty]

 
We use this kind of a harness
It is a very good harness and cats can only get out of it if they pull against a taut leash and go backwards. My cat got out of his only once, and this was because I tightened the leash when he was startled by something rather than just trying to start by grabbing him.

With any harness, escape is possible, so I would be very nervous about walking cats in the park. This is because a park has lots of dogs, runners, bicycles, screaming children, and plenty of other things that could easily spook even the most confident cat. If a cat gets off his harness in a park, he won't know where to go to get back to safety at home with you. When my cat got off of his harness, he just ran back to my porch since he walks in our yard only (big yard 5 acres).

I would definitely get your cats just used to being outdoors at all, before going somewhere with loud noises and potential hazards.

That's how my cat gets out as well.  have to make sure I keep the leash behind him.  Is that an easy harness to get on?  It looks a little like a jacket.

 

[NewYork1303]

Its very easy to get on. It secures with heavy duty velcro though, so if you have a somewhat skittish cat, the cat might not like it. I literally lay it over the top of my cat, velcro under his stomach and then velcro his chest strap and I'm ready to go. It also took a good amount of time for him to get out of it when he did. I just  wasn't able to grab him since he became a flying tornado of claws and scratched me so bad I still have a mark several months later.

 

[LTS3]

A pet stroller is another option to take a cat outside. Some cats like to walk on a leash for awhile and then hop into the stroller when they get too lazy to walk anymore

 

[rchynkim]

Oh my goodness, I had no idea anyone had even responded to my post. This delights me 

 Thank you for all the advice. I will definitely start my cats out in my neighborhood (no dogs around, it is an apartment complex area--probably at late night when there's no cars or people) before attempting the park. I had been considering the idea of run-ins with dogs and it probably wouldn't end well. I will also lookup some toxic plants and information on the such. I can't wait to begin taking my cats outdoors! They just seem SO unstimulated at home most of the time.

Also, I have decided to apply anti-flea/parasite meds to all my 3 cats, as @Handsome Kitty  suggests. I have been looking online for a way to bulk purchase Revolution to save on money. 

I found this http://www.sierrapetmeds.com/revolution-for-cats-5-1-15-lbs-12-month-supply-kit/ on a website called Sierra Pet Meds. This Revolution product has only 1 Review so I can't tell whether it's the real thing or not. Has anyone had experience purchasing off this website? And does this Revolution definitely seem to be the real thing? Thank you!

@LTS3  a pet stroller!? Sounds like something my cats may be able to appreciate. I will definitely have to look into that as well.

 

[handsome kitty]

 
A pet stroller is another option to take a cat outside. Some cats like to walk on a leash for awhile and then hop into the stroller when they get too lazy to walk anymore

My cat just walks around the house.  He was a little more adventurous until the night the Warriors won the pennant.  Fireworks started going off while we were out. 

I also have a stroller and have been using it for vet appts.  We stop at the lake and walk around and look at the ducks and geese as a treat afterwards.

 

[LTS3]

 
@LTS3  a pet stroller!? Sounds like something my cats may be able to appreciate. I will definitely have to look into that as well.

Here's one stroller: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=27745 There are many others out there. Some are decked out like a baby stroller while others are basically just a dog crate on wheels and with a handle.

 
I also have a stroller and have been using it for vet appts.  We stop at the lake and walk around and look at the ducks and geese as a treat afterwards.

There's a local cat who loves going around town in his stroller

 https://abyaday.wordpress.com/?s=stroller&submit=Search

 

[Margret]

You need to go to settings and tell it to email you whenever someone responds to your posts.

Also, I should have responded before; I apologize for taking so long. Cats are experts at backing out of harnesses, even H-shaped harnesses. The best harnesses are, indeed, H-shaped, but they're really more H-shaped. As in, a bold faced H. They're made from wider material, not the strap stuff the leash is made from. I believe that either PetSmart or PetCo offers a harness that's made from some kind of webbing, and you can buy hand made harnesses online. The key there is making sure you measure your cat's size properly, because you can't return it if you get it wrong.

If you do a search on this site for harness reviews I'm sure you can find the links.

Margret

 

[betsygee]

@rchynkim  Here's a tutorial on setting your email notifications:  http://www.thecatsite.com/a/subscription-tutorial#user_changesubsnotifications   If you need any more help with it, please let a site moderator know and we can help you with it.  

 

[chibster]

Make sure you get a high quality harness because I bought a harness from Ebay and my cat quickly escaped from it and made me run around trying to get her back into the house. Even when you have a good quality harness on, some cats will want to make a dash and you could accidentally let go of the leash. 

 

[Margret]

The one I bought onlIne is a Hyendry Walking Jacket (http://www.hyendry.com/Hyendry_cat_walking_jackets_and_harness.html).

Extremely high quality, and Jasmine is not able to slip out of it. Only two problems with it.

1. You have to get your cat's measurements right because you can't return it if you get them wrong. It's made to order. This also means that if you get it for a young cat, who's still growing, she can outgrow it. I ended up getting some one inch wide double-sided Velcro so that I could enlarge it when Jasmine grew.
2. With a long haired cat, fur tends to get caught in the Velcro fastener, which is uncomfortable for the cat and tends to clog the Velcro over time. I find that I have to be very careful when putting it on Jasmine, as well as cleaning off the Velcro occasionally. Considering the way she begs for walks, and her impatience when I'm putting the harness on her, Jasmine is in no real pain, despite the amount of fur I'm having to remove from the Velcro.

As for dropping the leash, this is why I always slip the loop over my wrist as well as holding on to it. If you really have a problem with this, try running the leash loop through a belt loop on your jeans and then running the other end of the leash through its own loop, so the loop end is attached to you. You can still hold on to it with your hand, but if you drop it it won't go anywhere. Of course, you'll need to attach it to yourself before you attach it to the harness.

Margret