My cat has been an indoor cat his entire life, so far, and I suddenly feel terrible

[Mike03]

Have I been doing the wrong thing all these (8) years?

When I lived in Los Angeles, I volunteered five days a week at an animal shelter where I was told that cats should be kept indoors and never allowed to roam around on their own. So when I adopted my cat, back in 1999, I just assumed it was the right thing to do to keep him indoors at all times.

But when I was child, my family had cats, and they were allowed to go outdoors. That was a rural area, however; Los Angeles is another matter.

But I've always had the feeling that my cat is not that happy. When the weather is nice, I allow him out into the yard but I have to supervise him carefully because he will leap the fence and I'll have to go chase after and find him.

What do you all feel about the indoor/outdoor issue? Have I been tormenting my sweet cat? He's probably so habituated to being indoors that he is a danger to himself out in the wilderness.

I would appreciate input. Maybe what I learned at the shelter was wrong. I just don't know.

[XemaSab]

1. Indoor cats live an average of 7 years longer

:shrug:

[Mike03]

7. That's good news.

I was worried that maybe his lifespan would be shorter due to sedentary lifestyle and melancholy.

[flvegan]

2. Companion cats should stay indoors.

They are true predators, and if they can be kept inside they should be so as to not kill other critters.

[Ava]

13. so they should be kept from doing what is natural to them?

:shrug: we have three cats who go in and out of our house as they please. they are not only well trained and well taken care of, but they are also extremely happy cats who enjoying laying on our patio in the sun, or sometimes venturing out into the woods behind our house(and yes, probably doing some hunting). that is in their nature though.

to each their own i guess.


i will say this.. in a very busy area like LA i don't blame anyone for keeping their cat indoors. we live in a rural area so there isn't the danger to our kitties that is in an area like LA. i probably wouldn't let our kitties outside in a busy area like that either.

[flvegan]

23. Yes, if at all possible.

It may be their nature, but it's not needed for them to eat/survive. A cat is an introduced, non-native species. There are enough strays and ferals on the take that an indoor companion cat shouldn't be indulged.

What's natural to them is not natural to the local ecosystem.

[amitten]

28. Animals are animals. Animals want outside. I let them out. n/t

[emilyg]

30. I do.

[greenbriar]

3. hubby insisted we front paw declaw our kitty so he is most definately indoors

only


but he is awesome and doesn't seem to suffer


he does sit in the window and gazes outsside

[Mike03]

9. I couldn't declaw my cat--and you should see how much furniture he has ruined! NT

[greenbriar]

14. I tried to wait it out, but our kitty is wild and we couldn't calm him. He scratched our nephew bad

and hubby said

declaw or humane society.




We have never declawed before, but this cat>....just something about him

he still paws at us like he thinks he is scratching us...

I think he is a wild child

[LaurenG]

4. My cats are indoor cats

I allow them out but only with me outside with them because of the same issues you have.

I would never let mine out to be indoor/outdoor cats.

If you're torturing yours then there are a bunch of us who do the same thing.

:hug:

[Mike03]

12. This is really a relief to read. I'm glad that many others here keep their cats indoors.

I was really getting worried that I had been given bad advice.

[zanne]

5. My cats are indoor/outdoor...

But our vet once put it to me this way; To a cat, an average house is huge and there are plenty of places to keep the cat's interest. It really is a universe to a cat. I wouldn't feel badly about it.

[LynneSin]

6. Both of my cats were originally from the street and now totally indoors

I could toss them out the front door and before the door was slammed they would be back inside.

They love to sit on the windowsill and smell the fresh air but honestly - they know what life on the streets meant and prefer indoor living

[skygazer]

8. There are so many dangers out there for cats

And they aren't containable like dogs. You are doing your cat a favor and I doubt he's actively unhappy - he'd be a lot unhappier (and so would you) if he got squashed by a car or carted off by a fox. :shrug:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

10. My dear Mike03...

We had many cats over the years, and they were always indoor/outdoor animals...

They always seemed super happy with it...

One of them died very young while outdoors...I never did find out what happened...

The rest lived very long lives...

If I had another cat, I would certainly do the same...

YMMV...

:hug:

[Mike03]

15. Aw I'm so sorry about your lost cat. Losing an animal and not

knowing what happened is really painful.

[GreenPartyVoter]

11. Mine have been indoor kittehs for 14 years and they are fine. :^) But, maybe it makes

a difference that we have always had two. We purposely took two litter mates so they could be company for each other when we are not home.

[Mike03]

18. Duh, I should have thought of that.

I have one cat and one dog, and they are just barely learning how to relate. My dog I can take to the dog park and allow him to be with his own kind, but my cat doesn't have that opportunity. He is never with his own kind.

Would getting a second cat be a good thing?

[GreenPartyVoter]

19. Hmmm Maybe. Bringing in another cat might

make your current cat grumpy and stressed out. But I have in the past successfully brought a new cat into our house. When I was a kid we got a kitten and wouldn't you know but our old tomcat adopted the thing? :P

So really, it's not clearcut on what your kitteh would think. :( Could go either way.

[mike_c]

16. OK, putting on my flame suit....

Nothing is more likely to start a flame war among cat lovers than this question, except maybe the gratuitous mutilation declawing issue.

I have lived with cats for thirty years. I've rescued many cats. I love cats more than I love most humans. I usually have four of more cats at any given time. I say these things by way of preface to establish my bona fides as a cat lover and care taker.

I have occasionally lived in situations where my cats could not go outside safely, but only for brief periods. Whenever I move I keep my cats indoors for a couple of weeks at least until they become thoroughly accustomed to the new house. I've had cats that I could not allow outdoors for various reasons (sexual activity, health, etc). That said, my cats have ALWAYS been happier and I think healthier when they can spend time in a safe outdoor environment. I choose my living arrangements largely based on my cat's safety. Still, I have had one cat killed by an automobile on the street in front of my home (not here, and years ago). Despite that tragedy, I'm convinced that even a short happy live is better than a long life in confinement, and with a little attention to the details, there is no reason being allowed outdoors should necessarily shorten a cats life.

There are statistics that suggest indoor/outdoor cats have shorter average lifespans, but I'm not sure how much credence they really have and MY experience includes lots of old cats who spent their days sleeping in the sun on the back porch.

One of my cats is currently recovering from a raccoon bite, ironically received indoors but as a consequence of the cat door that allows the cats out and the wildlife in. Again however, I'm personally convinced that my cats are happier than they would be if I confined them indoors. I just cannot do it unless the danger is extreme.

on edit-- the cats themselves tell me this. When I occasionally confine them indoors they develop all sorts of behavior problems etc. They make it very apparent that they WANT OUTSIDE.

[enigmatic]

17. It's not wrong

I've seen too many outdoor cats "vanish", get feline lukemia, get run over etc to ever let my cats outdoors in the city; as long as yougive windows to look out and toys to play with, they'll live much longer and be just fine.

[Lavender Brown]

20. My cat is nearly 20 years old

she was an outdoor cat the first ten years, indoor the past ten (after my parents moved into a new neighborhood and they were afraid she'd get lost). I think she misses wandering outside, but she has been healthier since. She does sometimes go out on the patio, but doesn't go too far.

[Pithlet]

21. Indoors only is the way to go. Much better for the cat.

When I was a kid we always had indoor/outdoor cats, and something was always happening to them, they got sick a lot, and didn't live nearly as long. One got hit by a car. A couple simply disappeared. I keep mine indoors and they are happy, healthy and longer lived.

[applegrove]

22. I know how you feel. Cats seem so happy when they get outside. I lost

a kitten to the outside street when he was one year old. That hit me hard. The next cat I had was scared of traffic so I trusted that I could let him outside and he would run into the backyards to get away from the noise of the traffic. No worries there. Then I moved again and felt that I really couldn't let my cats out. The lifetime of a cat is cut in half if you let them out. Today both of mine got out - and I let them. They hung out on the porch and didn't go far. When i let them in I promised myself that that would be it. I'd rather my cats have to make their own fun inside (which they do) than loose another one to the streets.

[Duer 157099]

24. I guess the concensus is that it depends on your situation

I don't currently have a cat, but if I did, it would be only indoor. That's just my preference, and I think alot of it has to do with your attitude. If it stresses you out, you need to reconsider (whether indoor or outdoor).

I'd be waaay too stressed out if I had an outdoor cat.

Funny thing is, I grew up with having an indoor/outdoor cat and it was totally natural to me. Yet, as an adult, I only wanted my cat indoors -- and she was thoroughly happy with the arrangement, and she had lived the first 5 years of her life as an indoor/outdoor cat, and she got lost which is how I ended up with her (so, in a way, good thing that her prior owner had let her be outdoors, lol). For as long as I had her, she no longer even wanted to go outside. I'd let her out in the backyard, supervised, so she could roll around on the hot concrete like they love to do, and eat the grass. But she didn't want to stay out very long, and would dash back in to the safety of the house after only a brief time.

She lived a good long life too, 21 years, and I enjoyed every moment and miss her terribly now. But now I have a loyal dog who acts like a cat (which is funny, cuz my cat acted like a dog). I guess I just have that effect on animals :shrug:

Bottom line: do what makes you most comfortable, and what you can tolerate (but I believe cats can be perfectly content as total indoor creatures, and they're safer that way).

[TZ]

25. Much less likely to pick up a disease if they are indoors

Including the horrible Lyme disease we have all over our area.

[Alexander]

26. One of my indoor cats made it to 17, two others are 17 and still going strong.

The only one who didn't make it that long was a big, fat, lovable black cat who sadly died of cancer at 13. I'm sure his weight had something to do with it (although we didn't feed him more than any of the others), and I've had vets tell me black cats typically have shorter lifespans, for whatever reason.

[China_cat]

27. I had one that lived to be 23.

Have 2 now that are 18...littermates. One of them is diabetic and has been for several years.

[haele]

29. A vet told me as they get older, their world gets smaller.

As they start living over 10 years old, they stop roaming as much and their territory gets smaller. In the wild, they usually don't live much more than that as it is.
I can now trust my surviving old boy outside in the back to sit in the sun and go no further than the fence without a harness and 20 ft lead as we used to put him and his brother on for some outside time. Three/four years ago, he would have been off exploritating around the neighborhood if he got out without being on his long lead and harness - which is horribly dangerous due to coyotes and neighborhood dogs, as well as traffic.

It's better for him to remain indoors if he's never spent any time out in his youth with a mom-cat to teach him the ropes.

Haele

[littlebit]

31. My little one

stays inside. The only time she leaves the house is to go to the vet. I don't like the idea of letting her out. There are way to many wild animals around here. I don't want her to get hurt.

[huskerlaw]

32. I was also raised with indoor/outdoor cats

and ALL of them died unnaturally early deaths because of it. Granted, that was due in large part to our location, but there are hazards everywhere (cars, other animals, even poisonous substances).

I now have indoor-only cats. When I had only one he often seemed depressed and I felt horrible about it. So I got him a friend, and he was instantly more happy. I now have three and while all of them enjoy looking out the window, none of them has any need or want for the outdoors.

If your cat seems unhappy, I would seriously consider getting another cat rather than letting him out. If he has been indoors for 8 years, the chances of him happening upon a situation that could hurt or kill him due to his lack of outdoor-savvy are extremely high.

[LeftyMom]

33. They get in fights with cars outside. The cars win.

Not to mention nasty fights with other cats, and viruses spread by other cats...

Mine stay inside. They're very happy.

If you're worried that he's bored, he needs a buddy?

[Robeson]

34. A vet once told me, if you're going to keep you're cat outside, ....

...you don't need to own a cat. She wasn't the only vet I've heard say that.

[Connonym]

35. Maybe if the cat was on a leash like a dog it would be ok

but I think it's a hugely dangerous world out there for a cat running about freely. The one time my cat escaped the house (and as far as I'm aware never made it out of the garage) I was panicked for the entire 2 days it took to get him to come out from behind the woodpile. He was scared shitless by the experience.

And seriously, laying in a sunny window sleeping 20 hours a day and getting to get high on catnip, what's not to love about being an indoor cat?

[astral]

36. My cat goes outside

but I make sure I live where it's pretty safe for a cat to be outside. He is an older cat so he spends most of his time in the house but he loves to just sit out in the fresh and isn't a wanderer, but sometimes he'll walk pretty far from the apartment but he heads down towards the bushes/ocean, not the street on the other side of the building.

I think the fresh air is better for a cat but so many people live in places where a cat is not safe outside, so safety comes first.

They make those little cat enclosure-net thingies, where a cat can go outside but can't roam away; I would consider getting one of those for myself if I had to move to a place where my cat couldn't freely walk out the door.

I bought him a kitty-leash, too, when I first moved here as I was not ready to let him go outside free until / unless I felt safe about it. He and me didn't take to the 'walk the cat' idea too well; but he could safely go outside and do what cats do -- chomp on a clump of green grass or sit and stare off into space, and as soon as I gave up on the idea he could be walked like a dog it worked okay, for an option to get him out into the fresh air anyway.

[badgerpup]

37. Common sense and location are good things to consider.

If you live in a high-traffic area, then yes, you probably want to keep them indoors.

My boys are indoor/outdoor cats, but the traffic is pretty low. Keeping them indoors would be torture for them...and me, since get they get antsy and tend to act out when confined for too long. But then, they're used to having access to the Great Outdoors. They are both 'legacy cats', brought in by cats who are now residing at the Bridge, and they were used to being outdoors when they joined the household.
Esme, my female, has the option and she is mostly an indoor cat by her own preference.

I just make sure they're all current on their shots (including the leukemia vaccine), give them something against worms about 4X a year, (they're all Mighty Hunters) and have flea/tick protection.

They seem quite happy with this arrangement, but YMMV...