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Can/should I occassionally let my cats out?

T

thinbluebrine

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 17, 2009
20
0
We don't have a catflap but do you think I could let my cats out every now and again? They haven't been out since we moved house two years ago but with such fabulous weather, I feel terrible!

But I don't want to let them out every day - only days when I'm home. Do you think the cats would be ok with that?
 
Our cats rule the house inside and out :p we just let them roam free (they have collars though) and nothing has ever happened. I'd let them out cat's aren't meant to be cooped up in the house.
 
I also forgot to mention that in Ontario, if you adopt a pet from the local shelter, you have to sign an agreement that the cats will not be let out. Not only for the reasons mentioned in my first post, but to help keep the population from growing.
 
thinbluebrine said:
We don't have a catflap but do you think I could let my cats out every now and again? They haven't been out since we moved house two years ago but with such fabulous weather, I feel terrible!

But I don't want to let them out every day - only days when I'm home. Do you think the cats would be ok with that?
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There is no harm in letting them out and sniff around a bit. I let my 2 tabby's out in the backyard, the male doesn't leave the concrete patio and my female walks in the grass and rolls around in the dirt. But I am out there with them and herding them back to the house...

Brush them off when they are done, make sure they haven't picked anything up. Please do not let them out just to roam the streets and hope they come back... I have 6 strays that pretty much live in my backyard. They do not interact with my cats...
 
mcavjame said:
I also forgot to mention that in Ontario, if you adopt a pet from the local shelter, you have to sign an agreement that the cats will not be let out. Not only for the reasons mentioned in my first post, but to help keep the population from growing.
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Maybe it's different here in the UK?? Both my cats are neutered so no problem with them mating.
 
garybUK said:
Our cats rule the house inside and out :p we just let them roam free (they have collars though) and nothing has ever happened. I'd let them out cat's aren't meant to be cooped up in the house.
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Do you have a catflap?
 
Of course you should. Unless you live in a stately home your cats aren't likely getting the exercise a domesticated animal needs. Dogs need daily walks, cats need to be let out. You wouldn't keep kids locked indoors just for their own safety or walk a dog on a treadmill :p.
When I look after my aunts or cousins cats I (like they do) let them out for at least a few hours a day. Sometimes they won't come back in at night so by 1am they'll be sat crying on the doorstep, heh.

*though all that said I don't live in a city or anywhere that is particularly busy. Verdant hills ftw!
 
We let our cat in the backyard every now and then. Very tall fence, but convincing him to come back in can be a challenge.
 
Like I said, letting them out with supervision is fine. But why buy a cat if you are just going to let them roam outside and hope they come back. One of the strays that frequent my house used to have a collar until I took it off because it was damn near choking her since she grew. Which tells me that the people who bought the cat had the thinking of "we can let her outside and she'll come back" well, she didn't go back.

I get a bit frustrated with owners who let their cats out and that's that.. Please don't let them out and leave them and think they will come back, if that's your thinking do not buy a cat....
 
raggedjimmi said:
You wouldn't keep kids locked indoors just for their own safety
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Excellent point!

Ok, so I guess I don't want to have them roaming the streets for hours on end, so the question is more: Should I let them out, say, once or twice a week, when I'm not at work? Or will this just make my cats start meeowing to go out all the time and drive me up the wall?!

And, to be totally honest, I ask this because one of my cats (a three year old that used to go out but hasn't dont so for well over a year since he got hit by a car and broke his jaw) has escaped and is out as I type! He obviously WANTS to be out. So I'm beginning to wonder if I should get in his way...
 
jonbravo77 said:
Like I said, letting them out with supervision is fine. But why buy a cat if you are just going to let them roam outside and hope they come back. One of the strays that frequent my house used to have a collar until I took it off because it was damn near choking her since she grew. Which tells me that the people who bought the cat had the thinking of "we can let her outside and she'll come back" well, she didn't go back.

I get a bit frustrated with owners who let their cats out and that's that.. Please don't let them out and leave them and think they will come back, if that's your thinking do not buy a cat....
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That's the most insane view i've ever heard and i feel sorry for your cats. Cats will and do come home, we have a huge field opposite our house and they go play and they love sitting on top of the cars etc, they always come back, we've had cats that we let out for years and NOT ONE has ever gone missing.
 
jonbravo77 said:
I get a bit frustrated with owners who let their cats out and that's that.. Please don't let them out and leave them and think they will come back, if that's your thinking do not buy a cat....
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I think my cat that goes outside and gets to live its life is a lot happier than your prison cat, so save your frustration for something worthy.

Cats are pretty damn smart and know where they live / get food, if they don't come home when you let them out they probably just didn't like you and found a better place to live. :p
 
We have three cats. One of them stays inside because she's a Persian with very long, fine fur and everything gets stuck in it. The other two can go out whenever they want. One's afraid to, and the other is outside most of the day/night. We've had him for at least five years and let him in/out all the time (on two acres of land with no fence), and he's still fine. He occasionally catches a bird or mouse (and one time an armadillo :eek:) but he's never gotten sick or anything. We moved a few years after he found us, just kept him in the new house for a couple weeks and walked around outside with him so he could see the place, then we let him out by himself and he's been fine since then.
 
I think it must be a very British thing to see cats roaming the streets. Where I live it is perfectly common for people to let their cats wander around freely and often they visit and leave presents in the gardens of neighbours.
 
Not sure about the UK, but in US they are exposed to rabies, distemper, feline leukemia, worms, on and on ... So you'll need to keep them vaccinated.
 
I would try and dissuade you from allowing your cats out.

Do you love them? At least inside they're in a controlled environment. Outside, not so much. You'd feel pretty bad if one died be it act of dog, car, fall, whatever. Not to mention the dirge of feline immuno-viruses they could easily contract from meeting other cats in the 'wild'. Now you've got vet bills and constantly sick cats (they have crappy immune systems).

Keep them inside, keep playing with them, keep them safe and they'll be just fine.
 
dizzy13 said:
I think my cat that goes outside and gets to live its life is a lot happier than your prison cat, so save your frustration for something worthy.

Cats are pretty damn smart and know where they live / get food, if they don't come home when you let them out they probably just didn't like you and found a better place to live. :p
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Thank you for being able to reply without being insulting. You have no clue the mental states of my cats are and I would appreciate if you left your narrow minded sarcastic views to yourself..

All I was saying is that if you let your cats out (and I guess it depends on where you live) just be careful. I love my cats and don't want anything to happen to them. I do let them out every now and then but I keep an eye on them since we live on a busy street. It saddens me to see all these cats that people let out and now they live in my backyard because I feed them and take care of them.
 
kastenbrust said:
never read so much bs in my life
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Really?

Before I knew better, our first cat was let out. We were forever trying to rid him of fleas.

He came home once and had obviously been in a fight. His ear was torn and he had a bite on his back. For a week I had to squeeze pus out of the bite and pill him with antibiotics.

He was an avid mouser and would often leave the carcass at the front door. When he died, he had been missing for a few days and I finally tracked him down by his smell. He was only 5. Cats should live well beyond 15.
 
All the cats in our building are condo-bound, and don't know any difference.

A few people let theirs out in the hall for a good run now and then, which is cool too.

And especially with two or more cats, they have each other for company/exercise/play.
 
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