is there such thing as a house cat?

willmunny1990

M cat is two years old,at the start we kept him inside all the time because of safety issues.

This was fine starting off but after say 6-8months inside he became very aggresive attacking me and other family members when you walked pass him!He would look for windows all the time and bolt for the door if he got a chance.

I decided to let him outside because i couldnt deal with the aggression and to be honest it seemed cruel to me to force a semi-wild animal to live indoors all the time.Hes like a different cat now,he never strays to far and comes home at night to sleep(i dont let him out at night)

has anyone had success with keeping a cat indoors full time and how did you do it.My cat is a tom and is neutered.

Tieko

I think it is impossible to keep a cat inside all the time. They need their freedom just like humans, their very nature is to be curious about things.

willmunny1990

Tieko wrote: »

I think it is impossible to keep a cat inside all the time. They need their freedom just like humans, their very nature is to be curious about things.

agreed.He was going crazy to be honest!I no there at risk to dogs,foxes etc..but its a risk you just have to accept if you have a cat IMO.

Irish-Lass

Tieko wrote: »

I think it is impossible to keep a cat inside all the time. They need their freedom just like humans, their very nature is to be curious about things.

Actually thats not true..................I have 4 indoor only cats

2 are 10 years old and have been indoor only cats since they were 4 weeks old the boy runs the other way if he sees an open door the female is a little curious but likes her comforts too much.

1 cat is 8/9 years old and she has been an indoor only cat for the last 7/8 years of her life (sorry only have a rough guess at her age) she was abused by her previous owner.

1 cat is 3 and has been an indoor only cat since he was about 3 months old has absolutely no interest in going out

I had an ex-feral cat who I trapped when he was about 12 weeks old he lived as an indoor only cat for 5 years up until 3 weeks ago when he had to be pts cause he had a clot on his spine. I always thought he would make a bolt for the door the first chance he got - no had no interest in the outside world he had everything he needed inside his fellow felines, his dogs which he adored and warm beds and lots of food.

I will be adding to our family next week with another cat who is about 1 year old and another abuse case and he also will be an indoor only cat.

My cats have floor to ceiling scratch posts they have wicker caves around the house they interact with us constantly and they also have the dogs to annoy and use as pillows. Like everything in life it comes down to the individual cats - I know alot of people who have indoor only cats.

I know where my cats are at all times, I don't have to worry about them getting knocked down on the road or poisoned. Also there are people who are terrified of cats and cats can get into more areas then dogs can and while I love my cats I certainly don't think its fair to inflict them on my neighborus - one of whom I know is terrified of cats.

I fostered and cat sit people's cats and when the cats come to me they are indoor only cats and its amazing how quickly they cope and adapt with things

seamus

My sister in law keeps 3 cats in her apartment, and currently has a kitten in foster with her.

There's never been an issue with them bolting for the door or whinging or otherwise acting up, they're 3 perfectly happy little cats. Although one fell out of a 3rd storey window one day into a bush, but we suspect that she was pushed by her brother

They're indoor, but the effectively have the run of the entire apartment. They can and do also go out onto the balcony and laze around, but they never make any crazy escape attempts.

As long as the cat is adequately stimulated, there's no reason why they would need to be let outside.

willmunny1990

seamus wrote: »

My sister in law keeps 3 cats in her apartment, and currently has a kitten in foster with her.

There's never been an issue with them bolting for the door or whinging or otherwise acting up, they're 3 perfectly happy little cats. Although one fell out of a 3rd storey window one day into a bush, but we suspect that she was pushed by her brother

They're indoor, but the effectively have the run of the entire apartment. They can and do also go out onto the balcony and laze around, but they never make any crazy escape attempts.

As long as the cat is adequately stimulated, there's no reason why they would need to be let outside.

Well my cat had the run of the house to and it didnt seem enough,all the toys in the world and artificial stimulants didnt match his desire to be outside.

It makes sense realy a cats nature is wild the hunt is part of there make-up and they cant do that if there indoors all the time.

Kash

It really depends on the cat, and the environment.

My cat comes and goes as he pleases, but for his first 2-3 years he was an inside only cat. But even as a young kitten he was curious about the world outside the window, and once he was old enough to escape, we had to be on our toes to make sure that he didn't.

I wouldn't agree that it is all about stimuli either - they may not 'need' to go outside, but occasionally they just want to.

Benny_Cake

We had the same issue OP.The plan was to keep our cat indoors full time, but we started letting him out when he was about 9 months old,after he had been neutered and he has been a much happier cat since then.I leave the back door open a crack and he comes in and out as he pleases to use the litter tray and stays in at night. It really depends where you live, we're lucky enough to live at the end of a cul-de-sac in a quiet estate so it's pretty safe really,plus he doesn't venture too far.

Heroditas

We have three cats - two have been indoors all their lives (bar when they were babies and were rescued from the side of the road). They're very curious and love trotting out into the garden for an hour or so of supervised play. The boy always tries to go roaming but his sister is quite content to sniff plants in the garden and then sits near the back door.
The third cat adopted us last year and was wild when she came to us. She used to panic when she came into the house but when the snow arrived last late November, she moved in permanently and used to leg it whenever we opened a door or window. Even now, she is reluctant to go outside and runs back in if she thinks we're going to shut the back door. She must think we're trying to get rid of her. Either that or she loves her comforts!

MaryK666

We have four indoor cats who are perfectly happy to be indoor cats. The older two (aged about 4-5 years) are both ex-feral cats who adjusted to indoor life (at about 14-16 months old) once they realised that they had a constant supply of food, had the run of the house and two slaves to tend to their every whim.

The younger two are also rescues who came to us at about 6 weeks old and and are now almost a year old. They also seem to have taken to indoor living like a duck to water.

We have a huge box of toys for them which we rotate to stop them getting bored, we have two giant cat trees and several scratching posts. We have 5 litter trays, several cat beds, we free feed and have three water fountains for them. We have an assortment of cat dens and cardboard boxes for them to hide out in or use to pounce on one another. They all have their own favourite snoozing places and they all sleep on our bed, both when we're in it and when we're not.

We cat-fenced the garden recently so that they could have access to the outside but yet remain safe, especially as our oldest boy has FIV but they can take or leave the garden, depending on what's happening in the house. Sometimes they'll go out and play and chase flies and if we're out there doing some work on the plants or sitting out on the one sunny day we get every year, they come and join us. As soon as we head inside, they just get up and follow us in - in case they'd be missing out on something more interesting.
It's a big enough garden and there's loads of places for them to play and climb and chase and hide and chill but they don't seem too bothered staying out there if we're not around.

I think that if cats are kept stimulated and entertained indoors, they don't seem to particularly concerned about going outside. It probably helps that we have four of them and they keep each other amused too but I definitely think that, under the right circumstances, there's a lot to be said for keeping cats as indoor only pets.
The safety issue would be the biggest concern for me. There have been a spate of poisoning's around the country, then there is the traffic issue and also the fact the a lot of people seem to think that it's ok to mistreat a cat if it's seen outdoors.

That's just my sixpence worth as I have four very happy, mostly indoor, cats. I know that sometimes a cat will get an idea into it's head and just want to do something but distraction is the key and they're easily distracted with treats or games.

kildare.17hmr

Cat proofing your garden is the way to go if you can, the cat gets to go outside but cant leave the garden so you always know where it is and that its safe and not bothering your neighbours!

angeline

Cats can be and are often kept indoors. It is unusual that he would become aggressive as he was neutered. Having said that, I leave my cat out but she only stays in the garden so I'm lucky to have a cat who is a homebird! They generally say that indoor cats have a much longer life span than indoor cats due to roadkill, etc.

sambuka41

MaryK666 wrote: »

I think that if cats are kept stimulated and entertained indoors, they don't seem to particularly concerned about going outside.

There are some cats where it is just not in their disposition to be restricted. My guy was a stray who was outdoors for 4 years until about 5/6 months ago. I've been keeping him in for safety reasons, he was fighting a lot. But he makes a run for the door/ window EVERY time it is open. I got a net to cover the back door so I could have it open and he wouldnt escape, he spent the day trying to find away out!!!!!!!!!!!!

OP I would say that its worth trying to persevere with the indoor life, its best for the cat himself. My fella is aggressive most of the time but thankfully I have a dog who is well able for him when he starts with the grumpiness!:p:p