Indoor cat wants out - what to do?

[rw3967]

Sorry in advance for the essay…

I grew up with cats allowed outside, who lived long and very healthy lives, but when my SO and I got a cat last year we decided to keep her indoors because we were in an apartment on a busy street in Los Angeles, so outdoors just didn’t seem like an option. The only outdoor cat I knew of in the neighborhood was killed by a coyote within about six weeks of being allowed outside. We had no regrets.

Kitty never minded staying inside there – we were on the second floor and she had window seats to watch the birds on the electrical wires all day long. She was very happy.

We just moved into a house which is in a hillier neighborhood, and there are several outdoor cats around. We’d hoped to let her outside, but quickly found out that the coyote problem is pretty bad here. The previous tenant had a cat who was killed by a coyote in the middle of the day, and my SO has seen a coyote roaming the streets when he went for a jog. So then we decided, kitty stays indoors.

The problem is, she sees other cats outside, and wants to go play. There’s a pretty siamese cat that hangs out in our backyard almost daily and my cat will run back and forth through the house to each window she can see from, tracking the cat as it moves through the yard. They even became friends (I think) through the window yesterday – the siamese came right up to the window near my cat and they hung out sort exploring each other for a while.

Worse yet, we felt bad and wanted to let her explore a little, so we got a kitty harness and leash and took her out. She was surprisingly well behaved in it, until she figured out how to wriggle out. Now that she’s had a taste of the outside, anytime we’re outside without her, she meows like crazy.

I’m generally a fan of letting cats outside if they really want to go outside, but we just moved in and we’ve already seen a coyote hunting in broad daylight. Our cat is accustomed to being indoors and is literally the friendliest cat I’ve ever had (and I’ve had a few) – I have a feeling she’d walk right up to the coyote and try to make friends. Not to mention, she’s dark gray, so you can’t see her at night, and we’re still on a fairly busy street.

We’re thinking of getting her another cat to play with inside, but I’m not sure if that will solve the problem or just give us two cats who want out…

Any cat gurus have any advice?

[Diamondindykin]

Are you and your SO willing to lose her? I have 4 indoor only cats and I am not willing to lose them so they never go outside. I would be devastated to lose them to a coyote or anything for that matter. I do have 2 barn cats but they came here as ferals and could not live inside ever. I love them to pieces and if it were my choice they would live indoors and stay safe.

I think that getting another cat is a safe bet and might give your kitty someone to play with. It is safer than letting her out with other cats that may have diseases or that might fight with her. Most cats I know don’t “play” with other cats outside that they don’t know.

Good luck!

[Simkie]

@Diamondindykin;5990625

Are you and your SO willing to lose her? I have 4 indoor only cats and I am not willing to lose them so they never go outside. I would be devastated to lose them to a coyote or anything for that matter. I do have 2 barn cats but they came here as ferals and could not live inside ever. I love them to pieces and if it were my choice they would live indoors and stay safe.

Yes, me too. I live in a high coyote area. Cats stay inside or they disappear.

When I brought home a cat who likes to sneak out, I posted here asking for suggestions on how to keep her in. Here is the thread. I would NOT allow your cat outside at all. Too difficult for them to understand why they’re allowed out sometimes and not others.

[didgery]

Our cats are allowed in and out but we’ve never had a predator problem here. If I had any concerns about predators, I’d build them a nice covered yard with permanent access. At least that way they’d get some fresh air and sunshine!

[JB]

http://www.purrfectfence.com/

[jetsmom]

I like JB’s link, or buy a dog run that is covered, and put some climbing stations/large pet safe plants in there.

[HenryisBlaisin]

Is it feasible for you to get another cat? Perhaps if she had someone to play with, she wouldn’t want to go outside so much. Many cats really settle with a feline companion; I’ve found that it’s actually less work to have two than one.

I’m a firm believer that pet cats should be indoor cats, period. Barn cats are necessary and can be a great option for some unwanted cats, but in general, I really think keeping cats inside is the kindest thing. There are coyotes, owls, dogs and other things that prey on them, as well as cars that run them over and people who have dark, cruel sides. The average lifespan of an indoor cat is many years longer than that of an outdoor cat.

If the outside cats are the source of the problem, there are repellent sprays that you can use around your property line to keep them out of your yard.

[Canaqua]

Our cat is in and out, but then there aren’t many predators in my neighborhood and there is little traffic. A guy on the other side of town, with more open space and occasional coyote visitors built a structure on the side of his house, with chicken wire enclosing it. He built shelves and climbing things in it for his cats…they have a kitty door in a window to get out into it. They seem happy enough, they can go out, watch the birds, etc…but they can’t go off into the woods and nothing from the woods can get them.

[BasqueMom]

Here’s just a few links…from just a search for cat enlosures

http://www.cattastic.com/

http://habitathaven.com/blog/category/cats-den-photos/canada-cat-enclosures/

http://catnet.stanford.edu/articles/enclosures.html

[rw3967]

You guys are awesome – I’ll check out some of these enclosures! It would be so fun to have her outside and let her play but I would be absolutely heartbroken if we lost her, so I think keeping her away from the coyotes is the right thing to do.

In the meantime, I think we’re going to get her a “Christmas present” of a little kitten to play with. Maybe with a friend inside, she won’t be so eager to go make friends outside…now fingers are crossed that we find a little sister (or brother) that she’ll like…

[JB]

We adopted 2 same-age kittens from the shelter in June, and less than 2 months later lost one to FIP We knew we’d get another.

In late Sept, we decide we were ready to get the kitten her own kitten We told her she’d have to take care of her, and she’s been the best “mommy” kitten ever Loves her, grooms her, makes sure she gets her exercise

So yes please, head to the shelter and get your kitty her own kitten!

[cloudy18]

Yes, go to a shelter and get her a friend, and then build them a fun outside enclosure. She will not last long outside.

Or you can go insane and do this to your house:
http://www.thecatshouse.com/

[JB]

OMG, I SO WANT TO DO THAT!!!

[rw3967]

Well we will definitely be going to the shelter to get her a friend! The Cats House - while completely insane - is my new favorite thing. My SO has decided that I, too, am crazy.

But he’s on board with the kitty friend, so it’s all good.

Any thoughts on whether she will get along better with another girl or a boy?

[Nootka]

Here are some more enlosures

http://www.cagesbydesign.com/t-suncatchercat.aspx

[Aponi]

When I was fostering, the general consensus from people looking to adopt was that if they had a female cat already, they wanted a male cat to bring in. I don’t know how much truth there was in that preconception.

If you think you could handle fostering, I’d encourage you to see if your shelter has a foster program. Then you can bring in a kitty friend (or a litter of kittens) and see if everyone gets along. Even if the cat/kitten isn’t the right fit for your house, you’ve done it a favor by giving it a home until the right home does come along. It’s definitely not for everyone, though. Sometimes it can be hard to send them on to other homes (which is why I stopped after 1 “foster failure”).

[summerhorse]

Yes keep her inside like it or not and get her a friend to play with. Or foster. Don’t let her out and set yourself up for tragedy (and guilt)

[ASBJumper]

Rule of thumb i always heard is :

two males = good
1 male and 1 female = good (what I have)
2 females = can be tricky

So, my advice would be to get a little male kitteh to be her friend. I have never once regretted getting a 2nd cat, not for a second!

[Simkie]

I’ve always had multiple female kitties and not had any issues. They do definitely have a pecking order, just like a herd of horses!

[danceronice]

Our barn is one female (11 now and the only one to live longer than six years so far) and four-five males. She’s the only one who DOESN’T have a massive cow every time a new male shows up.

Indoors, I have 2 boys, 1 girl. They do NOT go out. If it’s not chomp by a coyote, it’s splat with a car. If you live somewhere you can build a really nifty wire enclosure, that would be as far as I’d ever go. Usually, though, they aren’t pesky about wanting out–one has probably never lived outside (he was an SPCA seizure that got handed to an adoption agency where I got him), one was not outside for long, and one failed barn cat (he just was not cut out for roughing it.) They prefer sleeping on furniture. Though sometimes the failed barn cat will forcibly bathe the other two, or bully the dogs because he can.