A tracker on a cat

I can't persuade her to wear a collar so I just have to trust that she keeps safe. She's a sweet little girl and I love her.

We’ve had cats who wouldn’t tolerate a collar, others who did but would come home regularly without them, one who disappeared for several weeks then reappeared in the kitchen one day as though he’d never been away. One of our neighbour’s cats was found after wandering into someone else’s cellar and being locked in for a few days. When we “adopted” our last kittens, we were given a stern speech about how we should never let them out - we lasted two or three days of their pitiful pacing before we unlocked the cat flap. We’ve been lucky - all but one of ours were explorers, but never came to harm on the roads.

I do agree that cats need freedom, but of course understand our need to try to keep them safe. If we had another who’d accept one, I think we’d go down the cheap tracker route, to give us some peace of mind (and get him/her out of that cellar quickly if need be). It seems your girl’s given you no choice in the matter, Sparklefizz, so can only hope she stays safe and wish her a long and happy life.

Here is my rescue - Roo Roo - minus collar of course.

A free spirit who simply won’t tolerate a collar of any sort.

Catio/indoor cat. Car (yes car not cat) numbers are sadly increasing and also many are now almost silent. Cats have the odds stacked against them if they leave the garden unfortunately. Keep the netting for when she does go into the garden/escapes. Keep her safe 🤞

Flippinheck : We have a cat flap that can be set to lock and also in only, however my little girl is the reincarnation of Harry Houdini as she has taught herself and her brother that if she bounces the locked flap with her nose she can ‘pick the lock’ with her nails and get out that way 🐈🐈‍⬛

Used to let my cats out then lost one to a car. Since then all my cats have been indoor cats. Plenty of toys etc & all happy. My latest boy when I adopted him had never been out & was considered an older cat. No one wanted him! He is the loveliest gentle boy who walks away as soon as the front or back doors are opened. Hides under his chair that he decided is his! Could not stand losing another cat to a car so we are both happy now!

I’m getting a tracker for my cat too as we are about to move to a new address. I love that he gets to wander. Yes roads are a worry but he has a great quality of life compared with a house cat. I do worry about his getting shut in to a shed or getting stuck somewhere so a tracker will give me some peace of mind. It’s not about being overprotective- it’s about doing everything one can to keep them safe but free.

have you tried one of those complete cattery type enclosure? they can be as big as you wish usually attach to something like french windows or patio doors so they can be left open if you want. the enclosure has sides but also a netting roof too so they are enclosed but they are safe. people usually put a nice hammock or similar in for the cats to lie in, a scratching post anything you think the cat will enjoy. there is a special name of ones you can buy but if you get chicken wire and some wood cannot see why you cannot make yourself.

Someone who lives locally put a tracker on their cat and watched it for a week on an app. Apparently the map showed the cat's favourite places in a darker colour so that you'd have a pretty good idea of where to find her. However if there is a main road a tracker won't really help much, we've also lost a much loved cat on the road.

I don't think that the cat we lost would have taken kindly to being an indoor cat or to having an enclosure, some cats are just naturally wanderers, sadly,

We've had lots of cats, several hated a collar and managed to get rid of them, so we don't bother now -- they are chipped of course.

For the OP (& others if in doubt), most female cats don't wander very far, so if you've got a real Houdini that's unlucky? Most of ours have retained excellent hearing, and even if turning a deaf ear to their name being called will zoom back on the rattle of a treat bag?

Oh, and we've never had a cat flap. We've had a couple of cats who - in their younger couple of years - liked to bring back little 'presents' (mouse, frog, etc) and if you've a flap they can bring them IN.

We once carelessly opened the back door for one of ours, and it was the one time she'd caught a mouse, (a very clumsy cat), she triumphantly dropped it in the kitchen, really pleased with herself and her present for us (it's how they see it). We spent 2 hours trying to trap the mouse as it scuttled under various cupboards and behind sofas, to the vast entertainment of the then 2 cats in residence.

There was a cat in the village, a dedicated wanderer, used to get in assorted houses, or on roofs, happily strolling around on his lengthy patrols. Another in a nearby town famously visits the local shopping centre, settles down on shelves or chairs until teatime! If you have a wanderer, it's luck of the draw, but they gradually do less as they get older . . .may not be much consolation?!

I have an active 8 year old black cat who roams free , hunts occasionally but does not go too far. I live in an area of light traffic - but enough to worry about.

A few years ago I trained him to come back home when I whistled. I just gave him a cat treat every time he came back when I whistled.

I haven’t needed to whistle him home for a while but I still give him a treat whenever he comes home.

Our cat has used Weenect trackers since he was four months old. We have two so that one is on charge whilst he's wearing the other (one charge lasts about two days). They are GPS trackers so in theory work anywhere outdoors. They are not cheap and you have to pay a subscription for the app, but it does give us a bit of piece of mind.

I am in agreement with Bluebelle. Cats should be allowed to roam at will. It's in their nature. The idea of a house cat horrified me. My cats have always been free to do their own thing. They always came home, I saw them all ever y day, even if they didn't always come to bed in the house.

If you take on cats as pets then you have to accept that there might be heartbreak. It has to be about the cat and not about you. I know I am fortunate living in a rural valley with very little danger for cats. my last elderly cat died some months ago. However when I soon move into a little town I will not have another car if I think my new home is too close to a road. If I think it is a risk worth taking them I will find another rescue cat. I love my animals but will only have them if conditions are right for both me and my pet.

Hi Cat lovers, Although I’m not really clued up on trackers, I wonder if anyone can help. I have a stray that I have sort of adopted, he’s now got a chip and he lives in the garage. We’ve had a cat flap put in, he’s very happy and according to the vet, very healthy , about 6 years old. However, he wanders and doesn’t really like the house but he comes in for mealtime , my question is this. When we go away we’ve had to let him wander and fend for himself, this he has done, we have got CCTV and he’s nowhere around, he knows we’re not there and probably gets fed elsewhere. He’s survived for 3 years doing this. He’s now ‘ours’ and a bit older, has anyone used a 7 day feeder which operates by recognising the chip the cat has? Not the 3 meals a day feeder but say ‘once a day’ feeder? I can see lots on amazon but not the ones I want. Reason being we have a local ‘owned’ cat who is always in our garage and likes to eat his food!!!

DD had a cat which wore a collar. It arrived home with a message attached saying “ Please feed me” It was sent out next day with a note saying” We do”.
It came in handy at holiday time as it had a note saying “ my other owners are going away on holiday, Please feed me” It seemed to work.

We have 2 cats, a grumpy. Old lady and a stray young boy. We live on a busy road, the grumpy one doesn’t go anywhere near the road. Just sits on the steps watching. But our young boy is a roamer and is always crossing the road. We have accepted this as part of his lovely nature. We have put a an Apple tag on him that links to my phone but he got it off after two days, but it did work well .

To Cupidindoors - can you not find a neighbour to feed him just once a day, or a cat-sitter who will obviously charge a fee but for once a day could be a reasonable sum? Our DD uses the latter for her cat and it is far cheaper than a cattery.

We've had 8 cats and pur DDs 8 between them. Not one of them has accepted a collar. A neighbour once found the collar of one of ours hung on their spiked fence and returned it to the address thereon - ours! A few weeks later another neighbour returned it to us after finding it in a tree.

We just had to let them wander at will and hope for the best. The cat above was sadly run over on a country lane over a mile away - and the miracle was that a lady driving by saw her and moved her to the side of the road and on telling her mum (whom she was staying with for just three days) the mum recognised the description and notified us, so we were able to bring her home and bury her in the garden with her predecessors.

We live on a cul-de-sac but the estate is fairly busy so being hit by a car was always possible if the cat wandered off the road, but this cat had headed up the hill and over the fields. Tracker or not, it would have been too late for us to save her. Driving there was over winding country lanes whereas she had gone direct up the hill.

I have had an Apple AirTag on my wanderer for 2 years. He roams about a mile radius and invites himself into many of the student households across the railway line. The AirTag is brilliant! I cover the AirTag logo with a bright yellow spice jar sticker which has my mobile number on it, in case the students are tempted to remove it. I get phone calls several times a week when term starts asking if I've lost my cat. They are very surprised when I can quote the address they are calling from - not that I often do that. Moggie has cast his collar twice, once in a graveyard and once in a garden, and I have been able to use the "Find my ... " guidance to retrieve it. I keep a spare AirTag, and I have one on my keys. There is no subscription, and the batteries last a year. You do need an iPhone, however, and it relies on bouncing off other Apple devices (so people walking past with an iPhone in their pocket, for example, or someone's laptop or pods) It is peace of mind for me. Once, before the AirTag days, my cat disappeared for 10 weeks. He is microchipped, and I registered him as missing, but heard nothing, so no-one had cause to scan him. He eventually turned up with a leg injury. Where had he been? Now I can see where he is anytime on my phone or laptop. Recommended!

We have a catio for ours. It is a very large cage with metal mesh roof on. Within that space, there is a paved area, a soft area and there are bushes with large branches for them to climb up should they wish to. I've also put a bench in there so we can go into see them and sit if we wish. We lost 2 cats on the road in 6 weeks ad that was enough for me.

Many years ago, my grandmother had 10 cats (!), all rescues. She also had 3 dogs, also rescues. She could never resist an unwanted cat or dog and was given hers by various people who heard about her. It was lucky that this was years ago when houses had sculleries where the cats were fed etc. They had the run of the house and would come and sit with us when they felt like it. As they spent most of their time outdoors, it never seemed that there were so many of them. Luckily the cats and dogs all got on famously and would cuddle up together on the hearth rug. As a child, I loved all this!

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My little Mia escaping - she's my Ninja cat.

Mia is adorable!

Thank you Crossstitchfan - she's a little sweetie (with a wanderlust!)

Oh my goodness. What a pretty cat
and a clear intention to have her freedom!