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Putting the cat out

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    #2
    bette
    Registered Users Posts: 496 ✭✭bette


    Sh1t, I thought the cat was on fire! Me bad!


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    #3
    Heroditas
    Registered Users Posts: 9,449 ✭✭✭Heroditas


    It's a nice article but leaves me cold, simply because he throws the cat out every night, even in this cold weather. How mean is that?
    I'd never even contemplate that.
    I know the cat has its own den to sleep in and he puts a hot water bottle out but if it's getting older, wouldn't it be kinder to let it stay in on these harsh nights?


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    #4
    Qualitymark
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,824 ✭✭✭Qualitymark


    I just can't understand why anyone would put a cat out at night. Deadly for the birds, apart from the poor cat being miserable.


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    #5
    wolfpawnat
    Registered Users Posts: 6,124 ✭✭✭wolfpawnat


    Cats are an outdoors animal naturally. Their fur is made to withstand such drastic temperature changes. Also a cat is a remarkably self centred animal and is capable of finding the warmest and most cosy spot to snooze.

    It is the same with other animals. People think they need to keep their labrador near the fire these nights, they like it, but they are made to withstand harsher climates.


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    #6
    Qualitymark
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,824 ✭✭✭Qualitymark


    wolfpawnat wrote: »
    Cats are an outdoors animal naturally. Their fur is made to withstand such drastic temperature changes.

    You normally run naked on the fell ridges to bring down a deer for your breakfast yourself, then?


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    #7
    wolfpawnat
    Registered Users Posts: 6,124 ✭✭✭wolfpawnat


    Qualitymark wrote: »
    You normally run naked on the fell ridges to bring down a deer for your breakfast yourself, then?

    Cats have fur, we did too for a while! You are putting human thoughts into an animal. It was never meant to be an indoor animal. It is a nocturnal hunter. To keep it in a house at night is somewhat unnatural to its instincts!

    I agree that it is definitely not what Irish animals are used to seeing but they are made of stronger stuff than we think they are.

    Horses fur can withstand temperatures of -15 before even feeling the cold.

    Cats are natural survivors, if it really was too cold for the animal, it would be against the nearest window pane screeching to get back in!


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    #8
    angelfire9
    Registered Users Posts: 2,226 ✭✭✭angelfire9


    Our cat has refused to leave the house for the last week
    Normally he's the first to the door in the mornings when mini me is going to school he tries to sneak out with her or when I am going out the back to bring in coal and the back door is open he's gone like a flash
    Even leaving the kitchen window open while cooking is seen as an escape route in normal weather
    But this week..... He was at the back door yesterday looking out at the snow and I opened the door thinking he wanted out and I got nothing but a dirty look for my trouble and he ran into the sitting room! :D


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    #9
    wolfpawnat
    Registered Users Posts: 6,124 ✭✭✭wolfpawnat


    angelfire9 wrote: »
    Our cat has refused to leave the house for the last week
    Normally he's the first to the door in the mornings when mini me is going to school he tries to sneak out with her or when I am going out the back to bring in coal and the back door is open he's gone like a flash
    Even leaving the kitchen window open while cooking is seen as an escape route in normal weather
    But this week..... He was at the back door yesterday looking out at the snow and I opened the door thinking he wanted out and I got nothing but a dirty look for my trouble and he ran into the sitting room! :D

    Exactly, that is a cat that does not want to go outside! They are an intelligent animal and are more than able to drop a hint at what they want!


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    #10
    boatbuilder
    Registered Users Posts: 624 ✭✭✭boatbuilder


    Cats belong outside IMO. We started with one cat, got pregnant, had five kittens, now have three cats after rehoming the other three. We fitted a catflap but quickly got fed up with them bringing in LIVE mice and shrews and releasing them in the house, where they obviously ran away from the cats into various spaces to die of fright. Then we have a nice rotting corpse smell in our house for a few weeks..nice! We ended up microchipping one cat (the oldest quietest one) so she can get in the catflap but the others can't. They are well fit to withstand the cold outside. Just look at the amount of stray cats surviving out there...


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    #11
    Qualitymark
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,824 ✭✭✭Qualitymark


    boatbuilder wrote: »
    Cats belong outside IMO.

    <snip>

    They are well fit to withstand the cold outside. Just look at the amount of stray cats surviving out there...

    Unfortunately, this is a commonly held opinion. But feral cats have a short life span, and usually die of starvation, cold, parasites, dog attacks or by being run over within two years.


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    #12
    wolfpawnat
    Registered Users Posts: 6,124 ✭✭✭wolfpawnat


    Qualitymark wrote: »
    Unfortunately, this is a commonly held opinion. But feral cats have a short life span, and usually die of starvation, cold, parasites, dog attacks or by being run over within two years.

    These are what they die of, not the cold. If that is the case, there will not be a single feral cat left in Ireland! They are extremely inbred so they are prone to many diseases and are very territorial so they fight a lot! I have just consulted this with my Veterinary housemate and he has confirmed, cats seldom die of the cold.


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    #13
    Qualitymark
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,824 ✭✭✭Qualitymark


    Doesn't matter whether it's the cold or the teeth of dogs that kill it - being outdoors at night is dangerous for cats! And for the birds they hunt.


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    #14
    Susannahmia
    Registered Users Posts: 1,229 ✭✭✭Susannahmia


    boatbuilder wrote: »
    Just look at the amount of stray cats surviving out there...

    I think the key word in this post is surviving.....

    Imo that article just makes me feel very sad. I just don't understand why he feels it so necessary to kick the poor thing out after it getting used to being in the heat all day. I'd almost rather it be left out full time rather than that.

    My two have hardly been out at all this week. One (an ex fully outdoor rescue) has refused point blank and the other goes running out and suddenly remembers that it probably wasn't such a good idea and runs straight back in. :D

    I never let my cats out at night, too dangerous imo and I would be worrying about them all night. They go out for a while during the day if they want to and seem quite content with the arrangement.


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    #15
    Whispered
    Registered Users Posts: 14,772 ✭✭✭✭Whispered


    My cats have refused to leave the house for any longer than it takes to go to the toilet and bury it in the snow!

    On the plus side, my 10 year old cats seem to have finally learned the meaning of "go toilet" when I open the door. Dash to the back of the garden, quick pee, dash back in mewling like I'd just tortured them.

    Although yesterday one of them hopped the fence and vanished for 10 hours. :eek: Not like him at the best of times, never mind weather like that. I wandered around at 11 o'clock last night, smothering with a cold calling him, only to find him back on the windowsill when I got home. :rolleyes:


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    #16
    angelfire9
    Registered Users Posts: 2,226 ✭✭✭angelfire9


    Whispered wrote: »
    Although yesterday one of them hopped the fence and vanished for 10 hours. :eek: Not like him at the best of times, never mind weather like that. I wandered around at 11 o'clock last night, smothering with a cold calling him, only to find him back on the windowsill when I got home. :rolleyes:

    Been there done that :D


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    #17
    Acoshla
    Closed Accounts Posts: 5,729 ✭✭✭Acoshla


    I'll never forget one cat that came into the surgery when I was a Vet's Assistant in Canada. It was February, -15 (not far off the temps we've seen here in the last few days) and someone found a half dead cat on a snowbank at the side of the road and brought him into us. He was so, so cold, and so weak, and had any eye infection so bad that we thought he would lose his eye.

    He had to be quarantined for weeks to avoid spreading his infection to other animals, took him days to eat anything, we had to force him to take water even. He was so miserable, because everyone else had their own cats they couldn't go near him without gloves gown etc in case their own cats got sick, I used to sit with him every afternoon and let him snuggle up to me, he would rub all over my face just for some sort of contact, poor little guy.

    So yes cats can "survive" this weather, but why should they have to try so hard to when they their owners have lovely warm homes for them to stay in? I am the first person to say that animals should spend time outside being animals, but not when it's so cold that my dog starts to visibly shiver after more than 15 minutes.


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    #18
    Zapperzy
    Registered Users Posts: 2,524 ✭✭✭Zapperzy


    I wouldn't think putting a hot water bottle in the cat's bed is going to make any difference in this weather, it'l be frozen solid in no length so will quickly turn into an ice pack. :(


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    #19
    looksee
    Registered Users Posts: 28,190 ✭✭✭✭looksee


    My cats (2 of them) have the option of staying in at night - including sleeping on the bed if they wish! - the last two nights they have demanded to go out and in spite of me waiting up to see did they return (:rolleyes:) have stayed out all night and come back perfectly fine in the morning.


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    #20
    ISDW
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,378 ✭✭✭ISDW


    We have a cat flap at the front of the house, so the cats can come and go without going near the dogs. For the last week or two, the cats have gone outside to go to the toilet, and thats about it. They have both been sleeping on a cushion on the floor of the hot press, which means we have to leave the door open slightly for them:rolleyes: But they're happy, and I know they're safe and warm, so no bother.


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    #21
    planetX
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,441 ✭✭✭planetX


    We have no catflap, so I've been leaving a window open all night for mine. They've hardly used it though, any cats I've ever had have preferred to be out, they come alive at night.
    my house is cold, rotten cats.:mad:


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    #22
    Whispered
    Registered Users Posts: 14,772 ✭✭✭✭Whispered


    planetX wrote: »
    We have no catflap, so I've been leaving a window open all night for mine. They've hardly used it though, any cats I've ever had have preferred to be out, they come alive at night.
    my house is cold, rotten cats.:mad:

    Ha my two come alive as well - but it's much more fun tearing up and down the stairs, climbing into the top of the hot press and crying to be lifted down and getting into the box of decorations I took down from the attic yesterday, than it is being outside. :rolleyes:


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    #23
    BengaLover
    Registered Users Posts: 2,090 ✭✭✭BengaLover


    Dont feel bad for the cat..
    Mine INSIST on going out for half the night, even in this cold.
    Im the one freezing my ass off standing at the back door in minus 2 screeching for them to come in....:)


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    #24
    irelandspurs
    Registered Users Posts: 2,081 ✭✭✭irelandspurs


    My cat loves playing in the snow but i still wouldn't leave it outside in this weather.How do we know what cats like they can't tell us.If i had a big fur coat on i'd still be freezing in this weather.All cats like the warmth thats why they'll pck the warmest place in the house to sleep.


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    #25
    wolfpawnat
    Registered Users Posts: 6,124 ✭✭✭wolfpawnat


    For a bit of light humour!!! :)

    This is not meant in any way to be nasty!!!! I found it and thought of this thread :)

    cat%20humor%20snow%20blizzard.jpeg


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    #26
    tallus
    Registered Users Posts: 6,324 ✭✭✭tallus


    Mine are usually out at night but I have kept them in every night since the beginning of this cold snap. They might be hardy, but show me a cat that doesn't love the heat. Mine go over and stand beside the radiators when I let them in.


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    #27
    looksee
    Registered Users Posts: 28,190 ✭✭✭✭looksee


    Mine opted to stay in last night, but they nearly got thrown out (as against being let out :D) as they were raring to go and started world war III all over the house. They settled down eventually and were quiet all night till they started walking all over us about 7am. How did they know it was going to freeze as hard as it did?


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    #28
    biko
    Registered Users Posts: 81,223 ✭✭✭✭biko


    I let my cat out but he usually wants to come back in at 11pm or so, even if it's not cold. Guess he's just used to sleep in the house.

    Have left the shed door ajar and plenty of empty flatted sacks on the floor for the stray cats around the area to sleep on.


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    #29
    Posy
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators Posts: 27,539 Mod ✭✭✭✭Posy


    I would give my cat the option of going out or not. But he sleeps indoors at night- I don't want to risk anything happening to him. In the summer, he'll stay out nearly all day though, sometimes.
    He refuses to even leave the house in this weather though! He'll leave the room even if the back door is opened a crack. He likes his home comforts too much, like me!

    I think the thing is- people know their own cats and should give them the option of staying indoors or outdoors. Cat flaps are a great idea for such independent animals.
    Someone just chucking the cat out every night, regardless of whether their pet would rather stay indoors, baffles me, especially in such bitter conditions.


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    #30
    angelfire9
    Registered Users Posts: 2,226 ✭✭✭angelfire9


    biko wrote: »
    I let my cat out but he usually wants to come back in at 11pm or so, even if it's not cold. Guess he's just used to sleep in the house.

    Have left the shed door ajar and plenty of empty flatted sacks on the floor for the stray cats around the area to sleep on.

    Our cat has a lovely cat house outside the back door
    Insulated & filled with blankets & straw and the spoilt brat has never even spent one night in it in the 18 months he has been here :D

    For the last few mornings though I've noticed it is inhabited by 2 strays that will NOT come near the house though god knows I have tried
    Guess I should be glad they have some shelter
    Feel really bad for them though


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    #31
    Mayo Miss
    Registered Users Posts: 585 ✭✭✭Mayo Miss


    My cat sleeps out in the shed at night. She has made a nest for herself in a half used round hay bale. All that peeps out is her head if she hears me coming.

    She sleeps on a chair in the house during the day if she isn't off rambling around.


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