Cat Owners - outdoor time?

[chaps89]

I have two cats - 1 is a stray who adopted me/my ex, the other was a kitten we had from a breeder.
The ex-stray would love to be an outdoor cat, the kitten (now an adult) doesn’t really do going outside unless it’s super warm and sunny.
They had an enclosed courtyard at my flat which was perfect, they could be nosey and see out over the top, there was a shed, motorbike and tree for them to climb as well as bridges/posts we put up for them.
At my new house I have a purpose built catio over a patio area (apparently enclosing the whole garden would have been ‘excessive’) it’s quite boring by comparison although we have put shelves up and I intend to work out what else I can put out there come spring.
The ex-stray seems to struggle with staying in when he can see so much more of the world, I’ll be honest. Currently too cold for the other one - he pokes his nose out then goes back to bed!
Can add photos of both setups of it helps.
So yes, absolutely do-able with the right cat and a bit of time to make the right set up.
I’ve seen too many squished cats to let mine out- plus as the ex-stray proves, they can go missing and that’s my worst fear ever. I do everything I can to make sure they have an active and enriched life inside instead.

 

[magicmoments]

Another cat question!
Male or Female? (They’d be neutered/spayed either way!)

I was told females tend to wonder less, by cats protection, so we've only had females

 

[Ratface]

As usual, atm, I didn't answer the question! Kevin Kat, a thug stray, was kept in for about a month and spent the time eating and sleeping. A couple of weeks later, I let him out for an hour, making sure it was before feed time.
Now, he goes out for a couple of hours and wanders round the boat yard, but comes back at the rattle of a Dreamies bag!
I think he is still food fixated, and, accustomed to four meals a day, will always turn up for them.
Previous rescue cats tended to do the same. If I lived in an urban area, I would keep cats indoors or provide a catio.

 

[HollyWoozle]

In your situation I would get a timid female cat from a rescue centre and, after a period of settling in, allow her to roam either 24/7 or all day. I completely understand the decisions of those who don’t allow this but that is certainly my preferred choice in a rural setting especially.

My parents live down a longish driveway off a pretty busy road in a village. They have garden, horse field, stables etc behind the house and open farmland beyond that. They’ve lived there for 22 years and had in the region of 15 cats live there in that time, 1 of those was lost to the road and he was always a very adventurous, mischievous boy (and none of the others died from anything else relating to going outside). Most of our family cats have preferred to go the other direction into the fields or simply not to wander too far, but in my experience the males definitely go further and get into more trouble than the females. I know this is not always the case and I think there are many factors at play… luck, temperament of the cat and much more.

My partner and I currently live in a quiet village and right by the road but with a very long, thin garden down a shared path. Our nervy rescue cat will go all the way down our garden but has never gone down the side of the house to the road… I think being a shy sort really helps with that too. When first going outside here we accompanied him and he seems to have a very good understanding of what is our property and he doesn’t seem to go elsewhere, I guess because he is worried, but in his case we do lock him in overnight as he has a penchant for punch-ups with any others who come on our property.

Having said all of that, I have fostered cats for a charity before and I believe some studies have shown that the happiest cats are those who have free access to an enclosed/secure outdoor space, presumably because they have no territorial concerns but can experience the best aspects of being outside. Therefore a spacious catio is certainly another good option. Personally I wouldn’t have an indoor only cat but I understand why people make that choice.

Let us know if you do get a cat and please post a photo!

 

[SpotsandBays]

@FinnishLapphund thank you for your extensive reply and pictures of your enclosure! I’ll definitely refer back to these when making one of our own!!

 

[SpotsandBays]

In your situation I would get a timid female cat from a rescue centre and, after a period of settling in, allow her to roam either 24/7 or all day. I completely understand the decisions of those who don’t allow this but that is certainly my preferred choice in a rural setting especially.

My parents live down a longish driveway off a pretty busy road in a village. They have garden, horse field, stables etc behind the house and open farmland beyond that. They’ve lived there for 22 years and had in the region of 15 cats live there in that time, 1 of those was lost to the road and he was always a very adventurous, mischievous boy (and none of the others died from anything else relating to going outside). Most of our family cats have preferred to go the other direction into the fields or simply not to wander too far, but in my experience the males definitely go further and get into more trouble than the females. I know this is not always the case and I think there are many factors at play… luck, temperament of the cat and much more.

My partner and I currently live in a quiet village and right by the road but with a very long, thin garden down a shared path. Our nervy rescue cat will go all the way down our garden but has never gone down the side of the house to the road… I think being a shy sort really helps with that too. When first going outside here we accompanied him and he seems to have a very good understanding of what is our property and he doesn’t seem to go elsewhere, I guess because he is worried, but in his case we do lock him in overnight as he has a penchant for punch-ups with any others who come on our property.

Having said all of that, I have fostered cats for a charity before and I believe some studies have shown that the happiest cats are those who have free access to an enclosed/secure outdoor space, presumably because they have no territorial concerns but can experience the best aspects of being outside. Therefore a spacious catio is certainly another good option. Personally I wouldn’t have an indoor only cat but I understand why people make that choice.

Let us know if you do get a cat and please post a photo!

Thank you for this! I’m definitely thinking of going down the catio route. I’d love if kitty would explore the farm but I really do worry about the road. Although our garden will be hopefully being sorted properly this year which might help with that (replacing the hedging out front) but the farm gate will still be open.

 

[fetlock]

I’d go down the very timid female rescue too.

my current one was a totally non-socialised kitten. Not what you’re supposed to go for generally but it couldn’t have worked out better as she’s a total wimp who never strays from the garden.

I’d definitely go down the Catio route with my next one, if there is a next one as believe in them having outside time where possible but too precious to roam and risk road accidents and them never coming home one day.

 

[FinnishLapphund]

@FinnishLapphund thank you for your extensive reply and pictures of your enclosure! I’ll definitely refer back to these when making one of our own!!

I'm sure there's better looking examples of cat enclosures/catios, but the cats doesn't care, so as long as you figure out a fencing that works for you, and keeps your future cat/cats safe, go for it.

 

[mini_b]

No.

we are rural but have a road which tourists seem to think 60 is mandatory on.
gamekeepers that shoot and trap

One of ours we found half starved to death and the other as a kitten. Both feral as we have a problem with that here.
Both never went outside again and very happy, cuddly cats. They have a catio, toys, ridiculous OTT cat tree and are allowed everywhere in the house. Nothing off limits other than the counter top and everything is wrecked but they are happy.

 

[SpotsandBays]

No.

we are rural but have a road which tourists seem to think 60 is mandatory on.
gamekeepers that shoot and trap

One of ours we found half starved to death and the other as a kitten. Both feral as we have a problem with that here.
Both never went outside again and very happy, cuddly cats. They have a catio, toys, ridiculous OTT cat tree and are allowed everywhere in the house. Nothing off limits other than the counter top and everything is wrecked but they are happy.

Yep, our road is the same! It’s a 60, and people seem to think they must drive down it as fast as they possibly can!

 

[mini_b]

Yep, our road is the same! It’s a 60, and people seem to think they must drive down it as fast as they possibly can!

thing is it shouldn’t be a 60, there’s blind corners you can only get one car down. Junctions you can’t see that aren’t marked.
might make myself some speed signs

 

[SpotsandBays]

thing is it shouldn’t be a 60, there’s blind corners you can only get one car down. Junctions you can’t see that aren’t marked.
might make myself some speed signs

Oh same here. Ours has narrowed parts only suitable for one car at a time, and the end turns to a 30 but then almost immediately afterwards is a crossroads. There’s been multiple occasions where people have missed/ignored the speed change and flown across the crossroads and caused an accident. It’s terrifying, and one of the main reasons I don’t hack around here!

 

[cjwchez]

we have a couple of indoor cats and we also live right next to a main road. when they were younger we introduced them to 'the outside world' (the garden) on harnesses and leads during the summer months. as time went on, they didn't need the harnesses on anymore as they've learned to stay within the parameters of the garden and not jump over the fence.

now, they will sit at the back door and meow for the door to be opened, they'll go out for a little while but they will just stay in the garden then come back inside! we do supervise them at all times when they're out just incase they ever did randomly decide to take off but they're good boys.

 

[daneferrari]

If you get a kitten, it will get used to her main place of residence (home) and will know where she gets her food at certain times. I feed my cat late at night when I go to bed and she knows she can expect a meal at that time, so she always waits for me at a certain time, after which I simply close the front door

 

[FinnishLapphund]

@FinnishLapphund thank you for your extensive reply and pictures of your enclosure! I’ll definitely refer back to these when making one of our own!!

Since the thread popped up again, I thought I might as well take the opportunity to post a photo I took earlier this year showing the unsophisticated solution we used to make the bent inwards part at the top of the fence in our Summer cabin's cat enclosure stable.
Simple painted metal angled brackets.

Considering that it was meant to be used to hold up a garage/wardrobe shelf indoors, and instead have been sitting outdoors for around 12, 13 years, I don't think it is looking to be in too bad shape. I have plans on trying to give them a new layer of outdoor suitable metal paint this year, to see if that can prolong their lifespan, but even if that doesn't work, I still think it will be a few more years before we need to replace them.
Either way, it might not look that pretty, but it keeps the cats inside the fence, and that's what matters to me.


By the way, can others still see the photos I posted in reply #30? In my phone they're just small squares with red x's.

 

[splashgirl45]

The ones on this post are small box with a Red Cross for me , would love to see them as I enjoyed seeing them before, the ones on your other post 30 are the same

 

[Ratface]

When the late King Kevin Kat arrived, he was a manky, half-starved semi-feral council estate wanderer.
I kept him in for a month, during which he was solely occupied in eating, drinking, peeing, pooing and sleeping. He hardly left the wheelhouse, where he could eye up the territory with a cold stare, and never attempted to go outside, even when I did.
As the weather became warmer, he accompanied me off the barge, but soon scuttled back. He was never allowed out after dark.
As the months went by, he occasionally strolled up to the little shoreside car park, to rendezvous with his sleek black girlfriend, but was never away for more than half an hour.
Food was the centre point of his existence and he never went far from it.
If he had asked to go out in the daytime, I would have let him. It's a low vehicle area, people are rarely in a rush, and everyone was aware of his Important Large Presence.
I think that his early, traffic-infested milieu had taught him that vehicles were dangerous and to be avoided.

 

[FinnishLapphund]

The ones on this post are small box with a Red Cross for me , would love to see them as I enjoyed seeing them before, the ones on your other post 30 are the same

Thanks for letting me know, I will try to figure out what have happened, maybe it's something with my image hosting site that HHO doesn't like, or the image size...

 

[ycbm]

I had it happen when I had a photo on another site that was over 5gb. I reduced it in size a bit , still way too big to load directly to the forum, and then it displayed on the post fine.

 

[FinnishLapphund]

The ones on this post are small box with a Red Cross for me , would love to see them as I enjoyed seeing them before, the ones on your other post 30 are the same

I had it happen when I had a photo on another site that was over 5gb. I reduced it in size a bit , still way too big to load directly to the forum, and then it displayed on the post fine.

Something must've changed with the last forum upgrade, I've used the same image hosting site the last few years, the same image size, and suddenly they're not working.
I'm going to try, and upload thumbnail sized images.
From the Summer cabin's cat enclosure

From my city home's small cat enclosure

I can see them, also when I preview my post. The trouble is that was also the case with my reply #45, I could see the photo in my reply just after I posted, but next time I opened the thread, the photo was gone. So now I don't know what to trust.

Besides, even if they don't disappear this time, I then have another problem, because the image hosting site I use is free, and very simple. Sharing the thumbnail sized photos are as far as I can tell only possible just when I upload my photos to that site, which means if I want to share the same photo again on HHO, I might've to re-upload each time, and once this phone dies, will I even have access to the photos, if I do manage to magically transfer them, how far back will I have to scroll... Argh, and they say technology makes our lives easier.

 

[ycbm]

5 pictures on that post for me FL.

 

[splashgirl45]

I can see the latest lot of photos

 

[SEL]

When the late King Kevin Kat arrived, he was a manky, half-starved semi-feral council estate wanderer.
I kept him in for a month, during which he was solely occupied in eating, drinking, peeing, pooing and sleeping. He hardly left the wheelhouse, where he could eye up the territory with a cold stare, and never attempted to go outside, even when I did.
As the weather became warmer, he accompanied me off the barge, but soon scuttled back. He was never allowed out after dark.
As the months went by, he occasionally strolled up to the little shoreside car park, to rendezvous with his sleek black girlfriend, but was never away for more than half an hour.
Food was the centre point of his existence and he never went far from it.
If he had asked to go out in the daytime, I would have let him. It's a low vehicle area, people are rarely in a rush, and everyone was aware of his Important Large Presence.
I think that his early, traffic-infested milieu had taught him that vehicles were dangerous and to be avoided.

My tiny little cat at home was a stray kitten that turned up in my back garden when I lived in Birmingham. Given she'd survived without me I never kept her in - she'd clocked I had food, sofas and radiators and that was sufficient to keep her coming home.

I did come back one day to a selection of our local moth eaten ferals all asleep in the sun on my potting bench so I guess she knew the gang even though she'd found herself a human.

She'll be 13 this year, we've moved twice and she's never allowed herself to be confined for more than 24 hours. There's a tough Brummy streetcat under the fluff