Indoor or outdoor cat?

[dollie]

my kitten is 10months old and she has always been an indoor cat apart from in the nice weather i put her on a leash to go out into the garden...is it cruel to keep a cat indoors and not let it out on her own to roam around? i would like to hear your views on this..

[Kay]

All 15 of mine are indoor cats and they don't suffer in anyway. As long as she has plenty of things to keep her occupied and something to scratch on she will be fine.

IMO they are much safer indoors. Can't get run over, stolen or in a cat fight and thus at risk some awful diseases many of which can be fatal.

[dandysmom]

All mine have been indoors only with walks outside on harnesses. As Kay said, they can be perfectly happy indoors. I live in the City on a heavily trafficed street and am near the woods where there are foxes, raccoons and other wildlife I wouldn't want them to meet. Fortunately the free roaming dogs aren't a problem as they used to be since our leash law was passed.

[angieh]

I have one cat who has her outdoor pass and a young chap, Pip who is nearly 8 months. He has his outdoor pass, but doesn't know how to use it yet! The last couple of days have been nice enough to leave door and window open, so he has been out on his own. We live in a semi-rural area with a lane with sporadic resident and farm traffic.

Although of course I appreciate all the reasons that people keep indoor cats, IMO my cats benefit from being able to lead a free life. It is a matter of choice and circumstance I believe.

[Tanya]

I have three cats, all of which live indoors. The eldest cat (who is 3 1/2 years old) likes to go outside about once a week to have a sniff. He doesn't like me leaving his sight though! They all have lots of toys, three scratch posts, litter trays in their own area of the house and free run of our house ... they are happy! ;)

[pookyandjo]

I certainly depends on your individual circumstances..no one can argue that an indoor cat is removed from the risks of cars, dogs, feral cats and/or feral humans who dont like cats... but there are so a lot to be said for the many things to explore outside and the stimulation that it offers.
That said i have two cats both of which are indoor cats.. my previous cat was an indoor cat as well... I live in a built up suburb of Melbourne and we have a school at the end of our court.. so there are LOTS of kids and cars...i would be a nervous wreck if my cats were outdoors... not that they are allowed to be technically anyway as we live in an area where cats are supposed to be kept indoors... not that the majority of people adhere to that rule and i do see local cats around for a while and then they just disappear... so you can draw your own conclusions from that...I am seriously looking at having a cat run installed in my back yard once the weather cools down a bit as i know that whilst my two dont try to escape when the door is open... they do like to sit beside open windows and sniff the breeze

[angieh]

I think the idea of an outdoor run is an excellent compromise Jo. Guess you could build in a nice shady area too and a nice climbing frame. Perfect solution.

[Kay]

A cat run is an ideal alternative. It allows a selected area of freedom.

My cats a all, barring Rosie, Persians and not at all suited to outdoor 'freedom'. Their coats would get dirty and matted so quickly, they have very little common sense so are high risk of being run over, hurt by other cats/dogs/humans etc. There is also the high risk of them being stolen due to the fact that they are so obviously pedigree even to a non-cat person. Their laid back nature means must would allow anyone to pick them up.

All this said if I had non-pedigree cats, which I have had in the past and they did go out, I would now still keep them inside with supervised outings. Having gone through both the heartache of a RTA, a cat dragging herself home with a broken back and paralysed back legs due to being hit on her back by a heavy object (this was confirmed by the vet who had to put her to sleep) and several kittens/cats disappearing I would not want to go through that again or put a beloved pet through he risk.

[Stephan]

All of mine have had unlimited access outside-the late Conker used to walk in front of buses to get to my allotments in Leeds!!

Now we have a large garden with no route to the road-not that Cleo goes far anyway.

I have no problem with `indoor` cats though--grow them a bit of grass-just a bit in a seed tray will do

[angieh]

As you know, my two are in/outers, but I have bought some seed to grow for them - with all the snow and frost we've had this winter I wanted to ensure they get their greens! When Kizzy first came to us and was kept in for acclimatisation, she suffered from terrible "windy trousers" which went as soon as she was allowed out and started to eat grass. So, yes - Steph's idea of growing grass for indoor cats is spot on.

[Mags]

I have been growing indoor grass for Cassie for years ...... as you can see she loves it!:lol:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v205/Mags40/Cassie/catgrass0306003.jpg

[dandysmom]

Leia insists on outside (wild) grass! With all this snow who knows when I'll be able to pick some for her!

[Shelley123]

Like people have said it all depends on circumstances, individual Cats and their owners.
Years ago i lived on a main road and all the Cats lived indoors but had a cat run in the yard.
We live in a semi rural area now and Tom and Jerry are come and go as you please Cats. They enjoy the freedom and are mostly ok. We have had a problem with a roaming Tom who ours have fought with over territory. He sometimes comes in through the cat flap in the middle of the night which is quite shocking as we are awoken by terrible catawauling. We have tried shutting the cat flap but then our two play up and scratch at the bedroom door to be let out.

[pcspik]

As you can see my cats have FIV, and they are indoors only, because of that. My male spent about 10 years on the streets and he loves being indoors (I live in a block of flats and he got out into the corridor a couple of weeks ago. He then panicked and ran straight back into the flat because he decided he no longer liked the outdoors). My female does miss it, as last year I had to rescue her from the windowsill (otherwise she would have been out good and proper) more than once. But I think it is a lot easier once they are kittens to stop them from being outdoor cats.

Like some people said - there is no right or wrong answer. Some people say that in some circumstances (low cat population area) that FIV cats can be let out - however with my location it is not an possibilty.

Like other people say, the best solution (if possible - I cant do it because I am in rented acommodation) is to cat proof your garden. A pen is an option, though there are various other ways. In reality it depends on the budget - there are "roller" type things which rotate if the cat jumps so high, to cat friendly spikes which you put on the top of the fence, to a giant net type thing which you hang from various poles attached to the garden post. A cat pen can be built (provided you are or know someone who is reasonably competent at DIY) for £500, whereas some solutions can cost over a £1000. Also price will vary depending on the size too.

Here are a few links, you can do some research on which is the best solution for your situation.

http://www.woodycoon.com/html/cat-proof_fencing.html

http://www.katzecure.com/

http://www.beestonfencingcompany.co.uk/how-to-cat-proof-garden-fence.htm

http://www.purrfectfence.co.uk/

[Aquatic]

Even though felix is still really young atm he's mostly an indoor cat and only goes outside about once every two weeks.

[yola]

Like Kay, I have persians and they're not the sharpest tools in the box ;) My youngest particularly is extremely trusting and will go to anyone for fussing. Living in the town centre we have plenty of undesirables who will either hurt an animal out of spite or try and sell it for the price of a fix.

Hence, they will only go outside under careful supervision . . . the 2 oldies now prefer to stay indoors and sleep though.