Indoor V outdoor cat

tedpan · 18-07-2019 10:08pm

DBB wrote:

Fantastic tedpan, seriously impressive bit of DIY there Your cats are absolutely beautiful too

Thanks very much, very proud of it! The cats are great big balls of fluff

sdp · 19-07-2019 5:31am

A credit to you Tedpan! and great video of your lovely cats:)

Stratvs · 19-07-2019 8:27am

Tedpan fantastic job. Looks like they will get great use out of that. Methinks the weekend will now be spent trying to figure out how to do something like that for our indoors ones !

( ok I just YouTube'd Catio....this could be a long weekend ! )

Mollyb60 · 19-07-2019 8:32am

Amazing job ted, the kittys obviously love it too. I really like the clear plastic roof, it's a great idea. Lets the sun in for them but keeps them dry too. Have you thought of how you're gonna clean the outside of your window now? Is there a hatch that you can open to get in at them?

tedpan · 19-07-2019 11:13am

Stratvs wrote:

Tedpan fantastic job. Looks like they will get great use out of that. Methinks the weekend will now be spent trying to figure out how to do something like that for our indoors ones !

Stratvs wrote:

( ok I just YouTube'd Catio....this could be a long weekend ! )

Yes, planning and figuring out what to do took most of the time, once you find your rhythm you'll be flying!

sdp wrote:

A credit to you Tedpan! and great video of your lovely cats

Cheers!

Mollyb60 wrote:

Amazing job ted, the kittys obviously love it too. I really like the clear plastic roof, it's a great idea. Lets the sun in for them but keeps them dry too. Have you thought of how you're gonna clean the outside of your window now? Is there a hatch that you can open to get in at them?

Thanks! Yes the front panel on the front middle is removable so plenty of room for cleaning and hoovering! Didn't install a hatch though, they're pretty fond of their food so they come running in through the window when called. I don't think they're normal cats

FYI
When I built the back frame(next to the wall) I measured around the frame of the window and sill.

I built the left, top and bottom, then stood it up over the window frame, made sure it was level and in line with the existing window, then drilled and screwed the right side of the frame and used the cement window sill to secure the wooden frame, it is extremely sturdy and basically now attached to the cement window sill.(no drilling to the wall)

Once the back frame was secured, i built an identical frame for the front and then went from there.

Don't forget to measure twice and always use a level

I am about 100kgs, it can easily hold my weight and does not move at all.

I hope that makes sense!

19-07-2019 12:26pm

That's amazing Tedpan! Well done. I can't believe how quick and eager your cats were to go out and explore! They're loving it!!

My two are indoor cats and they have no interest in that big bad world. I'm sitting here now with the window behind me wide open and neither of them even look at it.

I still hope to build an enclosure for them and just slowly let them get used to it. But I am tempted by that now though. You made it seem so easy!

tedpan · 19-07-2019 12:45pm

Deleted User wrote: »

That's amazing Tedpan! Well done. I can't believe how quick and eager your cats were to go out and explore! They're loving it!!

My two are indoor cats and they have no interest in that big bad world. I'm sitting here now with the window behind me wide open and neither of them even look at it.

I still hope to build an enclosure for them and just slowly let them get used to it. But I am tempted by that now though. You made it seem so easy!

Haha, thanks! Yes, they watch the dogs go outside and are always sad when they are left inside, they always wanted to explore, could be down to their age!(Boots and Moon are 1 year old, Cosmo is almost 2 and Biggie's 6)

You'll need some patience, but I'd say you'd be grand. Start building this evening!!! lol!

19-07-2019 12:56pm

tedpan wrote: »

Haha, thanks! Yes, they watch the dogs go outside and are always sad when they are left inside, they always wanted to explore, could be down to their age!(Boots and Moon are 1 year old, Cosmo is almost 2 and Biggie's 6)

You'll need some patience, but I'd say you'd be grand. Start building this evening!!! lol!

Ah well when I said I'm tempted what I really meant was I'm tempted to coerce my partner into doing it! I'll start putting the pressure on this evening for sure!

Mine watch the dogs go out and are waiting at the door to greet them when they come back in but don't try to go out with them.

Ms2011 · 19-07-2019 1:28pm

We have one cat who spends most of her time inside in the winter & outside in the summer.
She spent the first 15.5 years in a housing estate & the last 2 years rurally. Only in the last year has she started to slow down otherwise she has been the healthiest, low maintenance pets I've had.
I don't think I would keep a cat indoors, even a nice fish bowl is a fish bowl no less.
Would I rather spend 50 years free or 100 years in a safe, secure jail? I'd choose 50 years of freedom everytime.

tedpan · 19-07-2019 1:58pm

Ms2011 wrote: »

We have one cat who spends most of her time inside in the winter & outside in the summer.
She spent the first 15.5 years in a housing estate & the last 2 years rurally. Only in the last year has she started to slow down otherwise she has been the healthiest, low maintenance pets I've had.
I don't think I would keep a cat indoors, even a nice fish bowl is a fish bowl no less.
Would I rather spend 50 years free or 100 years in a safe, secure jail? I'd choose 50 years of freedom everytime.

My wife has had cats all her life. She used to let them roam in the town she grew up in and the amount of cats killed on the road is not worth talking about. I wouldn't want to take the risk, especially with my scaredy cats, they're definitely happy indoors!

Graces7 · 19-07-2019 2:15pm

tedpan wrote: »

My wife has had cats all her life. She used to let them roam in the town she grew up in and the amount of cats killed on the road is not worth talking about. I wouldn't want to take the risk, especially with my scaredy cats, they're definitely happy indoors!

Here if six vehicles ( same one 4 times!) pass in a day it is a traffic jam ..

kylith · 19-07-2019 10:28pm

Graces7 wrote: »

Here if six vehicles ( same one 4 times!) pass in a day it is a traffic jam ..

Unfortunately most people live in urban areas where there are lots of cars and seeing animals killed on roads is not an uncommon sight, not on semi-deserted islands.

Sheepdish1 · 20-07-2019 12:24am

I had an indoor cat and I used to do the same with her letting her in and out under close supervision. It worked really well for a few months and then she was let out one morning and didn’t come back. Found her after four extremely upsetting and stressful weeks which involved me looking for her during any free time I had. She was very distressed and dropped nearly 2kg so I’m too nervous to let her out again as she’s way too skittish. Vet reckons she had another few days left max as she was so underweight.

She’s feral with everyone apart from me and who she lives with and scared of wind, rain, anything that moves really so cars and bin trucks etc would scare her a lot.

Im starting to find it very stressful as I have open plan and live in a relatively small space and any time anyone opens the doors she needs to be locked away. It is really starting to frustrate me and I can’t build a catio as I don’t own the land outside of my house. Really don’t know what to do. Have a tracking collar on her but don’t trust it fully. It’s a back up.

My other cat is also semi feral. She wants to go outside and doesn’t like being around people but she loves being outside. She has some road sense but it is a risk. The other cat described above will never be able to go out. I don’t know what to do and if anyone has any solutions I would really welcome them as I was going to start a thread on it. How do people manage the stress of them not getting out all the time

Graces7 · 20-07-2019 6:05am

kylith wrote: »

Unfortunately most people live in urban areas where there are lots of cars and seeing animals killed on roads is not an uncommon sight, not on semi-deserted islands.

I know, I know. I rejoice in their freedom here and mine. We pay in other ways for it here. Nothing comes free except our caring for our pets.

Graces7 · 20-07-2019 6:15am

Sheepdish1 wrote: »

I had an indoor cat and I used to do the same with her letting her in and out under close supervision. It worked really well for a few months and then she was let out one morning and didn’t come back. Found her after four extremely upsetting and stressful weeks which involved me looking for her during any free time I had. She was very distressed and dropped nearly 2kg so I’m too nervous to let her out again as she’s way too skittish. Vet reckons she had another few days left max as she was so underweight.

She’s feral with everyone apart from me and who she lives with and scared of wind, rain, anything that moves really so cars and bin trucks etc would scare her a lot.

Im starting to find it very stressful as I have open plan and live in a relatively small space and any time anyone opens the doors she needs to be locked away. It is really starting to frustrate me and I can’t build a catio as I don’t own the land outside of my house. Really don’t know what to do. Have a tracking collar on her but don’t trust it fully. It’s a back up.

My other cat is also semi feral. She wants to go outside and doesn’t like being around people but she loves being outside. She has some road sense but it is a risk. The other cat described above will never be able to go out. I don’t know what to do and if anyone has any solutions I would really welcome them as I was going to start a thread on it. How do people manage the stress of them not getting out all the time

I had a feral who I knew would vanish if she got out so I kept her in. I used the dog crate, and a room that was not by the main door. she loved the crate. covered it with a blanket and it was her safe place.

Even in wild Kerry there were risks. One of my perfectly tame cats vanished for weeks; I was pretty sure she had been taken in by holiday makers as some had written online that they did this then left the cat when they went home. She finally dragged herself home after I had emailed all the local holiday lets asking them to check .. she had clearly somehow been shut in when they closed for the winter. She was emaciated and distressed and after that was kept in totally.

Caring is a hard road. My other feral was streetwise and came for food and petting only.

Blondie919 · 22-07-2019 1:05am

Our cat is nearly one years old and we've been letting her out for the last 3 (ish) months. We used live in a small town and we had a nice back garden with plenty of neighboring trees and high grass. Perfect for stalking birds. She loved it! She stayed mostly out the back as I never saw her roaming out front much. She always came home, especially whenever I turned on some music. I would always keep her in at night once she came back.

But we had to move to the city suburbs in the last 2 or 3 weeks. It's an estate a bit in from a major junction. But there's lots of bushes and trees out front. We did our research and tried to keep her indoor for the recommended 3/4 weeks. But because she loves it outside, and was practically begging us to be let out, we relented. We couldn't keep her in! Didn't seem fair on her.

Now, I know there are risks out there. I dread the day she doesn't come back. But, there is no way we can't not let her out, is there? She's young, she is experiencing outdoors, she absolutely loves it. Who are we to put a stop to that? It's not even possible, unless I build a catio but I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon. So, we have to let her be free to move about and hope nothing bad happens to her. She's a smart little cat, is Neo.

Rubberchikken · 22-07-2019 1:22am

ours are always outdoor due to a family member eith severe cat allergy.
our first cat was a kitten we were given. he lived to a year and was to our horror killed by a car even though we live in a quiet cul de sac.
after visiting family shortly after we discovered a little stoaway had come home with us presumably under the bonnet.

we had her for 13 years and she gave us four kittens which in time gave us two kittens and one if them is still with us and is 13 years old. she had kittens, 2 if which. at 12 are still with us.
thst little family of 3 live in our back garden which is big and they have their own garden shed (very cosy).
we also have a 13 yo stray. she showed up about 12 years ago and lives in our front garden.

all hail and hearty. a couole of doses of cat flu over the years but theyre in great shape and health. currently enjoying our summer and happy out

acequion · 22-07-2019 1:28pm

Sheepdish1 wrote: »

I had an indoor cat and I used to do the same with her letting her in and out under close supervision. It worked really well for a few months and then she was let out one morning and didn’t come back. Found her after four extremely upsetting and stressful weeks which involved me looking for her during any free time I had. She was very distressed and dropped nearly 2kg so I’m too nervous to let her out again as she’s way too skittish. Vet reckons she had another few days left max as she was so underweight.

She’s feral with everyone apart from me and who she lives with and scared of wind, rain, anything that moves really so cars and bin trucks etc would scare her a lot.

Im starting to find it very stressful as I have open plan and live in a relatively small space and any time anyone opens the doors she needs to be locked away. It is really starting to frustrate me and I can’t build a catio as I don’t own the land outside of my house. Really don’t know what to do. Have a tracking collar on her but don’t trust it fully. It’s a back up.

My other cat is also semi feral. She wants to go outside and doesn’t like being around people but she loves being outside. She has some road sense but it is a risk. The other cat described above will never be able to go out. I don’t know what to do and if anyone has any solutions I would really welcome them as I was going to start a thread on it. How do people manage the stress of them not getting out all the time

Hi Sheepdish1, I well remember your thread about that little kitty and the huge excitement that everyone felt when you eventually found her. So glad to hear that she's well,even if still a little furry handful

Have you tried her on a lead? That can work great with some cats but with others not at all. Where it works it's the perfect solution as they get to go out in the fresh air in total security. Vets or large pet stores give good advice on this.

ibarelycare · 22-07-2019 1:48pm

I'm glad I came across this thread. I have two one-year-old tom cats, who were originally (by my choice) indoor cats that we would let outdoors supervised as much as we could. But it was clear that they (well one in particular) didn't want to be indoor cats. I feel like it's no up to us to make that decision for them. I'm such a worrier and I dread to think what could happen to them but they're much happier being able to roam. They've only been allowed out freely for the last couple of months, and always "check in" every few hours, we always make sure they're in before we go anywhere, and they're always in at night. One of them doesn't wander far, often only around the garden for a bit, then comes back in to sleep the day away. The other fella is much more of an adventurer, and both of them are getting braver as the days go by.

I've read so many conflicting opinions, but I do feel less guilty now knowing they're out enjoying themselves and having happier lives. They're eating better, sleeping right through the night in our bed, and much less vocal since we've been letting them out. We toyed with the idea of a catio but it just isn't an option for us right now. I worry every day about cars, dogs, etc, but I have to trust that they're wise and cautious and just hope that nothing will happen them

acequion · 22-07-2019 2:17pm

A very interesting thread which I've only just discovered as I've been away.

@tedpan, congrats on that fabulous state of the art catio you built!! There could be a new career in that line if you were so inclined

But re the OP's original question, I would be a big advocate for allowing cats out to explore the great big world out there. Cats are naturally curious little explorers and I'd prefer a cat with a shorter life span but living life to the full.

But I also get that owners have very genuine fears for the safety of their beloved pets.

In my own case, I've had two dearly loved kitties over the past 30 years. 30 years ago I was very young and living alone in Brussels when I happened to take in a little abandoned kitty. She was an outdoor cat and adored prowling the city roof tops so I'd leave the windows open on warm summer nights in my top floor appartment. Never a bother until I moved some years later and wanted to continue allowing the night time prowls but something really frightened her, as literally overnight she became a house cat and adapted without the slightest problem. Fast forward more years and I returned to Ireland and no question that she wasn't coming with me. She alternated between my mother's home in Kerry and my rented accommodation in Dublin. In Kerry she would happily enjoy the garden on a longish lead which was firmly secured while in Dublin she was indoor.Never a bother, she was just very adaptable and she lived to a ripe old age.

Nowadays I live in a very quiet suburb of a large town and my present cat who is 7 has always been outdoor /indoor. Spooked by stories of the dangers outside I tried to train her to the lead like the previous cat, but not a hope.I also tried keeping her in but not a hope there either. She went mental and eventually escaped through an upstairs window. So I resigned myself to letting her come and go as she pleases so that she can enjoy her life and touch wood, no problems. She never wanders far and loves her indoor comforts too, always sleeping in a cosy bed

and it's nice to see her running and rolling around in the grass and chasing all sorts of creatures great and small and snoozing outside on warm days. And she doesn't bother the neighbours,though she is a very friendly cat.

So it really is down to each individual case imo.

Graces7 · 22-07-2019 2:54pm

If they want out they are determined.

My oldest, 15, has driven me to distraction with every house move. keeping him in to travel as he can open most windows and will flee... loves inside and out but HIS choice.

The last move to the island! I was waiting on the quay for the ferry and unloaded the three cats and one dog ready. ( not taking the car over.) secure crates, well secured.. On one journey he had escaped early on and spent the 6 hour drive under my feet. Made things interesting at the Limerick Toll Plaza at 3 am as I dared not open the window..

This time he got out.. Fled under the car and I was crawling under as tourists s arrived and the dog was loose.. panic ..grabbed him!

Told him he could be free all the time once we got here BUT NOT NOW. he had never seen the ocean and that settled him!

As soon as we got here, crates open and cats loose . Best place we have ever lived. and he is healthy and active and a great ratter.

and I gather he visits an old man up the lane...

acequion · 22-07-2019 3:40pm

Graces7 wrote: »

If they want out they are determined.

My oldest, 15, has driven me to distraction with every house move. keeping him in to travel as he can open most windows and will flee... loves inside and out but HIS choice.

The last move to the island! I was waiting on the quay for the ferry and unloaded the three cats and one dog ready. ( not taking the car over.) secure crates, well secured.. On one journey he had escaped early on and spent the 6 hour drive under my feet. Made things interesting at the Limerick Toll Plaza at 3 am as I dared not open the window..

This time he got out.. Fled under the car and I was crawling under as tourists s arrived and the dog was loose.. panic ..grabbed him!

Told him he could be free all the time once we got here BUT NOT NOW. he had never seen the ocean and that settled him!

As soon as we got here, crates open and cats loose . Best place we have ever lived. and he is healthy and active and a great ratter.

and I gather he visits an old man up the lane...

lol

Graces7 · 22-07-2019 3:49pm

acequion wrote: »

lol

yep! I sat there ( disability badge in prominent place with cat licking my ankles) watching the sign change to ABORT then a rather blurry eyed wee man came out and took my money etc. There was no way I was going to risk losing Boycat in Limerick! I drove with legs crossed also and without a real break! OUCH!

That was the Kerry t o Connemara move not the Connemara to Mayo move...

Indoor V outdoor cat

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