Indoor cats

It was only when I was working from home before I retired that I discovered how much cats slept! Previously they'd been active around us before work then again when we came home. It never occurred to me that they slept almost all day!

I agree absolutely BlueBelle. So very well expressed.

I think keeping a cat indoors is totally unnatural. Cats are hunting animals and need somewhere to hunt, also they are semi-wild and always will be. In Australia all cats are indoor cats as it is a compulsory rule out there. I would NEVER have an indoor cat. Cruel and abnormal.

My first ( and last ) cat was an outdoor cat by nature. The friend who fitted the cat flap, spent a few minutes showing him how to use it. Saying that Mothers showed babies how to open doors so cat flap fitters should show cats how to use them.

I have 9 cats and 6 of them are indoors. If you're are not used to going outside I wouldn't worry. Just make sure you have plenty of scratching posts!

BlueBelle

I will annoy you all now because I think the idea of indoor cats is a cruel notion it’s changing a cats normal personality to be a human appendage, a playmate, our captive and I feel in my heart it’s wrong
A cat however domesticated should be able to keep its own natural instincts to explore, hunt, and wander it’s territory To keep them inside or even in an enclosure is going against this, it’s changing it to fit our human needs

Most of you would be anti zoo or circus but really no difference however loving you make its home it’s still for you not the cat although you will believe it’s for their safety

Anyway I ve got my hard hat on and expecting an avalanche of crossness but that’s my feelings

I have the exact opposite opinion and believe all cats should be kept indoors, I believe it’s the law now in Australia and I think we should follow suit. They kill birds, poop in other peoples gardens and are at risk of being killed by traffic or being stolen. When I was a teenager living in flats some boys found our cat outside and threw her odd the balcony. Luckily she survived but it must have been traumatic. Our most recent cat was kept indoors and lived until a month before her 20th birthday. In her lifetime my mother lost two cats that were run over, neither reached their fifth birthdays and my neighbours two cats were also killed on the road.

*off the balcony.

My cat is an outdoor cat now. For his first two years he was an indoor cat and the older he got the 'naughtier' he got. Although he was provided with high spaces to sleep, every toy imaginable, scratch posts and me at home all day he still wasn't happy. He ripped wallpaper off the wall, through books off the bookshelves, ate plants, attacked me without warning and generaally wasn't a happy cat. He is now an outdoor cat with a cat flap so comes and goes as he pleases. He is loving and gentle and still spends a lot of time indoors but he no longer destroys my home around my ears.

BlueBelle

I will annoy you all now because I think the idea of indoor cats is a cruel notion it’s changing a cats normal personality to be a human appendage, a playmate, our captive and I feel in my heart it’s wrong
A cat however domesticated should be able to keep its own natural instincts to explore, hunt, and wander it’s territory To keep them inside or even in an enclosure is going against this, it’s changing it to fit our human needs

Most of you would be anti zoo or circus but really no difference however loving you make its home it’s still for you not the cat although you will believe it’s for their safety

Anyway I ve got my hard hat on and expecting an avalanche of crossness but that’s my feelings

Actually, I do mostly agree with you here. There are few things more heart lifting than seeing your cat behave naturally, racing across a lawn, straight up a tree etc. I've always had cats and would never contemplate keeping it confined to indoors. You might as well get a goldfish. Having said that though, my Burmese is now 15 and mostly only goes out to dig holes in the garden, or, if it's sunny, to sleep on the garden table in a patch of sunlight.

I have had cats all my life and am devoted to my current ragdolls. I have had a mixture of outdoor and indoor cats over the years, and all have been happy and settled. I think a lot of it depends on the individual personality of the cat, they really can differ. We have invested in some fabulous Cat proof fencing for our garden and it works brilliantly, my cats can play outside and not escape, and neighbouring cats can not come in, the squirrels however manage to get in and out quite happily, but that's squirrels for you. The fence I used was called Purrfect fencing ...other brands are available

Beanutz2115

Cats kill many birds and are responsible for the decimation.

Rooks and magpies and squirrels do an awful lot of it too, far more than cats. It's very facile just to blame cats.

I have a semi indoor cat. We have a catio 3mtrs by 3mtrs a long log and high shelves for him to climb (and sit on high), toys, and in fine weather we sit in it with him, or put a harness and long lead attached to the washing line - but we have to be outside untangle him from plant pots! He tries to make a break for it when we go out and on a couple of occasions has hidden outside for a few hours while we are frantically searching for him. We keep him restricted because he is a small breed, and wouldn’t stand a chance if attacked by neighbouring cats. The breeder told us she kept her cats indoors because they feel the cold. It is always in the back of our minds that he could be stolen. We’ve taken him out on a lead but his curiosity means that there is slow progress! Indoors we have a ceiling high cat stand for him to climb and various toys.

I've got 2 indoor rescue cats. Both were strays. I've lost too many outdoor cats in the past to go through that again. I would love a catio but don't have the funds for one yet.

Aveline

It was only when I was working from home before I retired that I discovered how much cats slept! Previously they'd been active around us before work then again when we came home. It never occurred to me that they slept almost all day!

That made me laugh! Lazy little beggars, aren’t they?

I have 3 cats, all rescues.
The two girls {17 year old sisters} rarely if ever go out (their choice) and boy aged about 6, although we'll never know for sure, used to go out but has now decided that his 'sisters' have the right idea and stays indoors with them.
Lots of running around, up and down stairs, toys etc. and happy. So who knows. In or Out? their choice really.

The cat next door has become an indoor cat, just as well as it was scaring the birds. Wish the big old tom 2 doors down would stay home too, it scares the birds and eats their food. Apologies in advance to cat lovers!

I have a catio for 3 indoor cats. They don't get the chance to kill birds but they get to watch the world, climb and get shelter!

I have a cat that's mother was left alone after her owners moved. A neighbor took her in. I got her when she was a kitten now shevus 5 years old. She will do anything to get outside. She bolts if you open the door. She has also pushed out window screens to get out. I have tried to keep her inside as I have done with other cats I have had over the years. She is an escape artist.

I wish that cats would stay in their own gardens like my dog does. I'm really fed up with cats pooping in our flowerbeds and under the hedges

In the part of Canada my daughter lived in, cats had to be kept indoors because of predators. All cats also had to be microchipped. She used to take the cat for a walk on a cat harness. Indoors she had plenty of cat play stations.

If a person was confined indoors from birth they may appear happy but it would be because they did not know any different.

If you do not live in an area where a cat can go outside I don't think you should have one, give a cat the choice if it really is happy indoors it will stay there.

Older rescues that have never had freedom may prefer the safety of home, if that is the case then a catio is a great idea.

Your cat was clearly suffering from stress missdeke as demonstrated by his destructive behaviour, so far better for him to be able to go outside.

It's amazing just how much they sleep isn't it Aveline, that said our dogs are just as bad.

I had two lovely Tonkinese female sisters who didn’t go out but sometimes they slipped out an open door but were always a bit distressed if they wandered too far into the garden. The reason I kept them in was due to a lot of foxes in my area and for health reasons. Fleas are an off putting reason for letting cats roam and sometimes the resultant infection with worms. I had previous cats I did let out and there were always problems. If I get more cats I would keep them indoors also.

Logically speaking if cats realy are outdoor creatures and keeping them inside is cruel isn't the final extension of that, that they should all be permitted to become feral? After all if keeping them indoors is against nature should it happen at all?

I think it’s unnatural to keep cats cooped up indoors.

Although I have had many cats in my time, several of which have been killed on the road, I would still not wish to keep them indoors. Their natural instinct is to roam and explore.