Indoor cats

wrote in message
oups.com...
Well I don't think we should have pets and keep them in prison if they
don't want to stay in. Mine goes out in the summer and its safe, if it
wasn't safe I guess I wouldn't have got a cat, I'd have got a goldfish.


I'm glad it's safe for your cat to go out. So much easier for you. I just
wish the people who have found a way to train their cats to stay away from
traffic would tell the rest of us how to do it. How do you train your cat
not to fight with a neighborhood cat and come home with wounds that can (and
do) abscess and/or spread disease? You are really lucky that ALL of your
neighbors love cats and have no objections to your guys wandering into their
gardens to poop in their flower bed. Oh, you trained them to stay in your
garden exclusively? Please enlighten me to your training method. Like I said
much easier for me if I could let mine out. I would never again have to
scoop a litter tray and would have more room in my living room without the
cat tree. I wouldn't have to wash the curtains as often to get off the cat
hair from them climbing on and off of the window sills etc etc. So if there
is a training method to teach my cats to stay out of trouble outside I'd
like to know about it.

In the meantime I'll keep them inside where they won't tangle with the stray
cats I've seen wandering the neighborhood, where I don't have to worry about
whether they look both ways before crossing the street, don't have to worry
about some of the children who are being raised by cat hating parents and
don't have to worry about ****ing off the neighbors when my cat is in their
garden using it as a litter box.

W

At our vets office there is a chart to track when your cat is obesed. My
Nightshade is about 14 lbs but he is solid as a rock. Mostly "muscle". We
live in a house where they can run up/down the stairs and through the
house,too...So even though they are all over 10 lbs, I have not been told
they were overwt.

"Cheryl" wrote in message
...
On Fri 19 Aug 2005 10:10:57p, wrote in
rec.pets.cats.health+behav
oups.com):

snip

I suppose we're lucky that whatever dangers and risks a cat
faces outside, ours had learned to avoid them before we took him
in. It is just amazing to watch him climb 40 feet up a tree, or
chase a squirrel across the yard (he's only ever caught one
once, that we have seen).

But the best part is, he will only "go to the bathroom" outside,
so we never have to worry about maintaining a litter box! :-)

That really isn't "the best part" because you'll not have an early
warning if something's wrong. Merely convenience for you.


--
Cheryl



Cheryl is exactly right. Outdoor "litter boxes" may be convenient for you,
but you will have no warning if your cat develops a urinary tract
infection -- something that can quickly progress to a very serious (and
possibly fatal) problem. Moreover, you say that your cat has learned to
avoid dangers and risks. That may be true, but it will take only one
incident that your cat can't or doesn't avoid to change this whole
picture -- car accident, encounter with another animal that is larger and
more aggressive than your cat, human cruelty, etc. Your cat sees birds as
prey and probably has killed many of them. Unfortunately, there are also
animals that will see your cat as *their* prey. I sincerely hope none of
those things ever occurs, but there is good reason why the average life span
of an outdoor cat is so much shorter than that of an indoor cat.

MaryL

My cats --
Duffy: http://tinyurl.com/cslwf
Holly: http://tinyurl.com/9t68o
Duffy and Holly together: http://tinyurl.com/8b47e

Phil P. wrote:

How do you know if your cat has a potentially fatal urinary tract
obstruction, UTI , straining or painful urination or defecation or
constipation or diarrhea if you can't physically *observe* your cat's
elimination behavior? Litterbox behavior and products are often warning
signs of internal disease.

You (and Mary and Cheryl) make a good point about the litter box. And
I suppose that one of these days he could very well run into an
accident or larger predator outside. He did disappear for 2 days in
the dead of winter once, and we were all but convinced we had lost him.
He turned out to be hiding in a neighbor's basement.

I do know that when we keep him in (eg., to be sure he fasts overnight
before a visit to the vet), he goes nuts trying to claw his way out at
the door. Perhaps he could eventually get used to staying in if we
forced the issue. But I have also heard that if you remove an
established outdoor-only cat from the outdoors, another outdoor cat
will simply take over the territory. As it is, our neutered male is
holding the territory instead of a cat that could be producing more
feral offspring.

Mark

On 20 Aug 2005 08:52:35 -0700, wrote:

As it is, our neutered male is
holding the territory instead of a cat that could be producing more
feral offspring.


They just have their offspring someplace else. You leaving your cat out does not stop any
others from having young.




http://users.ameritech.net/lestark/

"Phil P." wrote in message

"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...


"Phil P." wrote in message

"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...

For my part, if I were unable to allow a cat
outdoors through risk of predators or any other
reason, I simply wouldn't have a cat.

That's not practical or even realistic in the USA
because that mentality would result in millions upon
millions of homeless cats and a 10 times increase in
shelter killings.

Something else we don't do here.


That's a myth that has been fostered by the government to
promote a sterling image of a 'cat-loving' nation. - The
UK has an overpopulation problem, also, and *certainly*
does use kill-shelters.

Name one. Cats Protection most certainly do *not* kill.

Ivor

"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...


"Phil P." wrote in message

"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...


"Phil P." wrote in message

"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...

For my part, if I were unable to allow a cat
outdoors through risk of predators or any other
reason, I simply wouldn't have a cat.

That's not practical or even realistic in the USA
because that mentality would result in millions upon
millions of homeless cats and a 10 times increase in
shelter killings.

Something else we don't do here.


That's a myth that has been fostered by the government to
promote a sterling image of a 'cat-loving' nation. - The
UK has an overpopulation problem, also, and *certainly*
does use kill-shelters.

Name one. Cats Protection most certainly do *not* kill.

Ivor

FROM:

FERAL CAT CONTROL IN THE UK
Copyright 1993, revised 2002 Sarah Hartwell

"In some years the UK's RSPCA destroy 30-35% of cats taken into their care."

"A number of British animal welfare groups run TNR schemes and numerous
individuals or groups of friends are involved with TNR of individual
colonies. However, an equal number of animal "rescue" societies euthanize
any ferals presented to them, viewing them as an unrewarding drain on their
resources. In addition, some societies or individuals cannot come to terms
with the concept of cats as wild animals and euthanize healthy feral cats
simply "to save them from their predicament" despite the fact that the cats
concerned know no other way of life. Those who support the latter opinion
claim that life in the wild is "short and brutal" and that it's more humane
to kill the cats. This is a clear case of being unable to understand that
not all cats are house-pets since they do not apply the same arguments to
the rest of Britain's wildlife."

Hugs,

CatNipped

"CatNipped" wrote in message
...
"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...


"Phil P." wrote in message

"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...


"Phil P." wrote in message

"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...

For my part, if I were unable to allow a cat
outdoors through risk of predators or any other
reason, I simply wouldn't have a cat.

That's not practical or even realistic in the USA
because that mentality would result in millions upon
millions of homeless cats and a 10 times increase in
shelter killings.

Something else we don't do here.


That's a myth that has been fostered by the government to
promote a sterling image of a 'cat-loving' nation. - The
UK has an overpopulation problem, also, and *certainly*
does use kill-shelters.

Name one. Cats Protection most certainly do *not* kill.

Ivor

FROM:

FERAL CAT CONTROL IN THE UK
Copyright 1993, revised 2002 Sarah Hartwell

"In some years the UK's RSPCA destroy 30-35% of cats taken into their
care."

"A number of British animal welfare groups run TNR schemes and numerous
individuals or groups of friends are involved with TNR of individual
colonies. However, an equal number of animal "rescue" societies euthanize
any ferals presented to them, viewing them as an unrewarding drain on
their
resources. In addition, some societies or individuals cannot come to terms
with the concept of cats as wild animals and euthanize healthy feral cats
simply "to save them from their predicament" despite the fact that the
cats
concerned know no other way of life. Those who support the latter opinion
claim that life in the wild is "short and brutal" and that it's more
humane
to kill the cats. This is a clear case of being unable to understand that
not all cats are house-pets since they do not apply the same arguments to
the rest of Britain's wildlife."

Hugs,

CatNipped



I have no time for the RSPCA.

Tweed

"Christina Websell" wrote in message
...

"CatNipped" wrote in message
...
"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...


"Phil P." wrote in message

"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...


"Phil P." wrote in message

"Ivor Jones" wrote in message
...

For my part, if I were unable to allow a cat
outdoors through risk of predators or any other
reason, I simply wouldn't have a cat.

That's not practical or even realistic in the USA
because that mentality would result in millions upon
millions of homeless cats and a 10 times increase in
shelter killings.

Something else we don't do here.


That's a myth that has been fostered by the government to
promote a sterling image of a 'cat-loving' nation. - The
UK has an overpopulation problem, also, and *certainly*
does use kill-shelters.

Name one. Cats Protection most certainly do *not* kill.

Ivor

FROM:

FERAL CAT CONTROL IN THE UK
Copyright 1993, revised 2002 Sarah Hartwell

"In some years the UK's RSPCA destroy 30-35% of cats taken into their
care."

"A number of British animal welfare groups run TNR schemes and numerous
individuals or groups of friends are involved with TNR of individual
colonies. However, an equal number of animal "rescue" societies
euthanize
any ferals presented to them, viewing them as an unrewarding drain on
their
resources. In addition, some societies or individuals cannot come to
terms
with the concept of cats as wild animals and euthanize healthy feral
cats
simply "to save them from their predicament" despite the fact that the
cats
concerned know no other way of life. Those who support the latter
opinion
claim that life in the wild is "short and brutal" and that it's more
humane
to kill the cats. This is a clear case of being unable to understand
that
not all cats are house-pets since they do not apply the same arguments
to
the rest of Britain's wildlife."

Hugs,

CatNipped



I have no time for the RSPCA.

Tweed

I just thought it was a bit naive, or disingenuous, to imply that the UK did
not *ever* euthanize stray cats (implied in the challenge, "Name one").

We have the equivalent of "Cats Protection" here in the US also - numerous
no-kill shelters (even though that term is, itself, disingenuous since
no-kill shelters have to turn down their over-flow who wind up in kill
shelters), but we are also honest enough to know that cat overpopulation is
a real problem and results in the deaths of millions of cats each year.

You can claim superior politics and I'll refrain from challenging it, you
can claim superior humor and I certainly won't challenge it - but I really
doubt that you guys have the stray cat / cat overpopulation problem solved
without having to euthanize, so please don't allow to go unchallenged claims
of perfect stray cat management. This is a problem that exists everywhere
that there *are* cats and it needs to be acknowledged so it can be
addressed.

Hugs,

CatNipped

"Christina Websell" wrote in message
...




I have no time for the RSPCA.

Tweed




They are exceptionally good at publicity ;-) Luckily we have a lot more
shelters, non-RSPCA, small, private charities, that do not euthanise unless
there is a medical reason to do so. I do not give money to the RSPCA, but I
do to my local small shelter, PACT, which does not euthanise any animal that
comes ito its care unless there is a medical reason for it. It's one of the
things that annoys me about the RSPCA. It is rich, very rich, yet it
euthanises where other organisations will not. It's why the smaller
organisations have armies of volunteers out day-in-day-out raising funds,
and they get by hand-to-mouth where the money goes on the animals, not on
flash new premises such as many an RSPCA place... The RSPCA has its place,
but I'd not willingly take a cat or dog to them.

Cheers, helen s