The Kitty Convict Project

[abyeb]

Hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone here had heard of the Kitty Convict Project, and what you guys think of it. The idea is that orange collars are the universal symbol for an indoor-only cat, so that if someone sees a cat with an orange collar outside, that means they're lost instead of being an outdoor cat. I might go around posting fliers for this in my hometown... there are a lot of outdoor cats who wander around here, and they all wear collars so it's impossible to tell if a cat walking around outside here is lost.

Here's a link to the website: Is your kitty a convict? - The Kitty Convict Project

 

[IndyJones]

I've heard of this. Website has a weird name though....

 

[rhacodactyl]

Heh.. yeah. I can't really tell if they're being serious about the kitty convict thing or not, but either way it's still a good idea. The problem they're addressing is certainly real enough, and this would be such a neat and simple solution. It would be a good way to tell at a distance that a shy cat is out of his element, instead of trying to get up close enough to read his tags when he might be too scared to let you anyways. Orange is also much less visible to most mammals than it is to us, so a bright orange collar on a cat would not be a neon beacon for any coyote, fox, stray dog, or other mammalian predator that happens to be in the neighborhood.

 

[abyeb]

. Orange is also much less visible to most mammals than it is to us, so a bright orange collar on a cat would not be a neon beacon for any coyote, fox, stray dog, or other mammalian predator that happens to be in the neighborhood.

You bring up a good point here!

I do agree with you that it sounds like a good idea. I think that maybe the people who came up with this might have called it the "Kitty Convict Project" as a humorous name to get people to remember it, or because the bright orange is the stereotypical color of prison jumpsuits. Even though the title itself might not sound serious, they do present a serious solution to a serious problem.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

I think it could be a lifesaver. Especially if you have a little escape artist with a health issue. Calling it "the kitty convict project" is catchy and will help people remember; even if they don't have cats themselves.

 

[IndyJones]

I was actually referring to the website url exploding kittens.

 

[IndyJones]

I believe the title it's self is a hint towards Orange is the new black. A popular tv show

 

[Kieka]

I thought it was a reference to cat and convict programs at prisons at first. Which are actually amazing programs in and of themselves. Especially the ones where they take abused or undersocailized cats and put them with convicts for socialzation.

As someone with indoor/outdoor cats all mine do have collars. I also think even indoor only should have collars. I don't know if I think they should be a specific color. If the cat allows someone to touch them and catch them then they could just have a regular collar with a tag saying "Please call my home if I am outside. I escaped." The color specific aspect would be useful for somewhere it is widely known but otherwise it's just a cat with an orange collar.

 

[Willowy]

Exploding Kittens is associated with the cartoon The Oatmeal. It's the name of his card game, and if you've ever read The Oatmeal you know he can be a little. . .subversive? Lol. But he luvs him some kittehs. This explains the game: Exploding Kittens - A card game for people who are into kittens and explosions and laser beams and sometimes goats

I know blaze orange is the "convict" color, but in hunting areas it's the color that hunting dogs wear, and is high-visibility for outdoor cats too. So that maybe a hunter won't blast them when they're rummaging around in the leaves, thinking it's a raccoon or something. So I do like the idea of color-coded collars but I kinda feel like blaze orange should be left for high-vis needs.

 

[Kieka]

Good point W Willowy . I probably would use orange and reflective in a less urban setting for that reason. As it is I use blue and pink/red with reflective designs. Mostly because it helps my neighbors identify my two from a distance and they don't approach the pink/red collar one. But they do approach the blue collared one.

 

[Willowy]

Oh yeah, should have mentioned that if anyone does want in on it, Amazon sells their collars:
But I think most brands of cat collar have a blaze orange option.

 

[IndyJones]

I prefer collars with a pattern. Indy's black and orange flame decal collar really matches her personality she is like a little racecar!

 

[YMIHere]

You bring up a good point here!

I do agree with you that it sounds like a good idea. I think that maybe the people who came up with this might have called it the "Kitty Convict Project" as a humorous name to get people to remember it, or because the bright orange is the stereotypical color of prison jumpsuits.

Also, there's the whole "escaped convict" thing lol.

 

[GoldyCat]

I think one of the major problems with this is that very few people would know what an orange collar means. I'd never heard of the Kitty Convict Project before, and never heard that an orange collar is a universal indicator for an indoor-only cat. They'd need to do some major advertising, not just to introduce the product but ongoing for a number of years in order to get the word out to as many people as possible.

It seems to me that any collar on a cat, no matter what color, is an indication that the cat has an owner. I don't see that an orange collar should make any difference to how you approach a cat you don't know.

 

[maggiedemi]

One reviewer on Amazon showed a picture of her cat and the orange color from the collar had stained her cat's neck.

 

[narelle]

I think one of the major problems with this is that very few people would know what an orange collar means. I'd never heard of the Kitty Convict Project before, and never heard that an orange collar is a universal indicator for an indoor-only cat. They'd need to do some major advertising, not just to introduce the product but ongoing for a number of years in order to get the word out to as many people as possible.

It seems to me that any collar on a cat, no matter what color, is an indication that the cat has an owner. I don't see that an orange collar should make any difference to how you approach a cat you don't know.

I definitely agree with you on this not being well known enough to be quite functional, at least for now. I do like another poster's idea of fliers though - if you put in the work to make sure your community knows what it means, and use it with your own cats, then it would be more effective if they do ever get out.

But as for collared cats in general, the point isn't to indicate whether a cat has an owner, its to indicate whether or not a cat belongs outside. Tons of people have outdoor or indoor/outdoor cats, so most would assume that a cat with a collar belongs to someone but is allowed outside. Most people don't see a cat with a collar and assume its lost, but more likely a sign that the cat isn't feral or a stray so it doesn't get scooped up by animal control or something.

I like the concept behind the project, and I totally see why orange is a good choice, but I'm not excited about having to put an orange collar on my cat. She's mostly black, it'd look a little too halloween to me. I'd have to see it every day. Maybe if the project were better known I'd just get over it, but orange is definitely not my cat's color, and she's just too gorgeous to dress her up so poorly.

Personally, I'd rather just something bright and noticeable with "INDOOR CAT" printed in bold in a contrasting color right on the collar, so it can be read from a distance. I'm thinking neon yellow with black writing. This would be especially helpful in our case because there's no way she'd get close enough to a stranger for them to read tags, and who would put in that much effort trying to catch a cat that just *might* be escaped? If they know about kitty convicts, they might try to help, but some people might also just like orange on their pets' collars, so I could see plenty of people giving up on a hard to catch cat that they aren't sure is even lost.
But first I need to convince my cat to wear a collar.