Re-homing a cat

misc2013

Looking for a cat and thinking of the local shelter. Would prefer cat to live outdoors/ sleep in cat house, not keen on indoor cat.

Having a quick browse and all cats are listed as "domestic " cats. Does that mean they are indoor cats? Don't want to be a right eejit when looking for one. Do the shelters prefer you to take indoor cats? Could I say I want it for outdoors?

volchitsa

Unless you live on a farm or similar, IMO an outdoor cat just means a feral one that someone feeds. Probably one that's either going to annoy neighbours by killng birds, catching any pond-fish etc. Or else one that leads a miserable life being changed by dogs and possibly run over. Or both.

Why do you want a cat, exactly?

Graces7

[QUOTE=volchitsa;107407761
Why do you want a cat, exactly?[/QUOTE]

Good question..

misc2013

Graces7 wrote: »

Good question..

Why would anyone? A pet! I like cats. I grew up with cats. They were pets. They lived outside and slept in the shed. I didn't think they were at all miserable! Was just wondering if this is considered acceptable by the shelters or do they want the cats kept inside or does "domestic" mean house cat? Have been renting for years and pets were not an option and I often thought I'd like a cat again in the future. Now it is an option and I have young kids who might enjoy a pet as well.

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misc2013

We live in the country. I thought of getting 2 for company for each other.

Never mind.

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o1s1n

misc2013 wrote: »

Why would anyone? A pet! I like cats. I grew up with cats. They were pets. They lived outside and slept in the shed. I didn't think they were at all miserable! .

You sure they weren't actually small dogs? :pac:

Any reason why you wouldn't want the cat indoors? They're super clean and are great fun around the house. Only issue I've ever had is the scratching furniture, good scratching post sorted that out.

Zapperzy

Domestic short-hair is just another name for moggie or mixed breed, nothing to do with indoor or outdoor cat. Contact rescues and explain what your looking for, there's nearly always older kittens/ young cats looking for homes that are used of outdoors. A rescue near me only a few days ago had two 9 month old mostly outdoor, sleep inside cats for rehoming.

Be prepared that nearly all rescues will require an initial indoor period of a few weeks just so they settle in and know where home is. Otherwise they'll wander, get lost or try to return to their previous home. A suitable set up in a big shed might suffice for some rescues depending on the personality of the cat.

Just be aware most cats get knocked down on the road at night, cats are most active at dawn and dusk. Neutering will slightly curtail wandering too.

Graces7

misc2013 wrote: »

Why would anyone? A pet! I like cats. I grew up with cats. They were pets. They lived outside and slept in the shed. I didn't think they were at all miserable! Was just wondering if this is considered acceptable by the shelters or do they want the cats kept inside or does "domestic" mean house cat? Have been renting for years and pets were not an option and I often thought I'd like a cat again in the future. Now it is an option and I have young kids who might enjoy a pet as well.

Access to the house and living in the house can be two different things. A pet lives with you, not outside. Mine have the choice of in or out but would never be left out..

draiochtanois

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volchitsa

misc2013 wrote: »

We live in the country. I thought of getting 2 for company for each other.

Never mind.

OK, it would be more of a problem if you live in a housing estate or even a village with other houses close by.

If you live in the country, then I suppose it's possible for cats to hang around the place without ending up dead (worst case) or adopted by neighbours (best case) - but TBH I still wouldn't really call those pets.

Our cats always had free access to the outdoors, and spent plenty of time outside, but importantly also had free access to indoors as well. (We're in the countryside too) But cats aren't like dogs, they don't really need anyone else to keep each other company, not even another cat, and if they don't have regular contact with you, eg if they live and sleep outside, basically they won't have much of a bond with you.

I don't mean they'd be unhappy, the farm cats I know are perfectly happy, but I just don't see the point of having them, other than to keep the mice down. Which is a fair enough reason, on a farm.

Anyway, up to you of course.

aonb

misc2013 wrote: »

We live in the country. I thought of getting 2 for company for each other.

Never mind.

A lot of cat rescues look for homes for feral cats - cats that will always be outside cats, the 'owner' just feeds them, the cats will become somewhat comfortable in the presence of the owners.

Im not sure when the cats arrive at your house, how you will get them to stay at your property rather than just wander away. It would be necessary to keep them in a shed or barn etc for a couple of weeks, feeding them every day, you could use that time to get them familiar with you/your family, then when they are released, keep their bed/access to that shed/barn, and keep their food bowls/water there.

Graces7

Some useful info

http://feralcatsireland.org/Feral_Cats/Relocating_Feral_Cats.html

This will apply if you are taking an outdoor cat from a shelter..

google has a lot of excellent articles..