| T.R | Title | User | Personal
Name | Date | Lines |
|---|
| 263.1 | No long goodbyes!! | ZEPPO::ROMBERG | Kathy Romberg DTN 276-8189 | Fri Jun 13 1986 02:22 | 16 |
|
Josh and Becky are strictly apartment kitties, and when they buy
their condo, the will continue to remain indoor kitties. For Becky
this is no problem. Being somewhat timid in nature, she has shown an
absolute minimal desire to explore the rest of the world. Josh on
the other hand, could have been named Christopher Columbus!! He is
forever trying to sneak out the door. Right now they have the run of
the apartment, and whenever the front door is opened, we move
quickly, lest he escape. Once we move, they will probably have the
run of the basement while no one's home. That will lessen the chance
of them having to find their way around unfamiliar territory. (I
just hope itr works!!!)
Kathy
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| 263.2 | Cat entertainment | DELNI::CLARISSA | KRIS | Fri Jun 13 1986 05:22 | 13 |
| Harli is almost one year old and has been outside, on a leash, twice.
She is now curious about outside but doesn't try too hard to get
out. I make sure she has everything she needs inside. She, like
Josh and Becky, has the run of the house, with free access to windows.
One of her favorite things is watching birds. She now has her own
birdfeeder which I'm going to put up this weekend near her favorite
window. She also gets grass to eat when she wants and she has company
to keep her occupied when I'm at work, my roommates Golden Retriever.
I think the most important thing is to not let the kitty get bored.
Then she starts thinking that outside must be better.
kris
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| 263.3 | My inside Kitty | TLE::DAVIDSON | | Fri Jun 13 1986 13:38 | 25 |
|
Hi!
For most of Heidi's 5 years she's been an indoor cat with strong
ideas of being an outside cat (in a third floor apartment, she
had little choice). She has LOTS of toys.
Now we're in a house surrounded by forest and all kinds of neat
wild life and she REALLY wants out. Considering all of her years
as a house kitty with outside excursions limited to a leash (not
her idea of fun), I've very reluctant to let her have her way.
She still has her toys, she still plasters herself to windows,
sliding door, and screen doors. We have worked with her so she
knows the area around the house, and now let her have access
to the great outdoors only when we're home and doing yard work.
She loves this little bit of outdoors we've given her! She
comes when called (somewhat reluctantly), appears to be alot
happier, and even chased a squirrel 20 feet up a tree! I won't
take this from her.
You could try this, and see if Bas accepts the "supervision"...
Caroline
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| 263.4 | Our indoor cat story... | KOALA::FAMULARO | | Fri Jun 13 1986 17:46 | 34 |
| We have three cats named Dem, Puggs, and Tigger. Dem and Puggs
are two Persian brothers who since day one have been indoor cats.
They show little interest in going outside. They have always been
content to just lay by the slider and watch the birds near the feeder.
That makes me happy since grooming them daily is enough of a chore
as it is. Tigger was a stray that adopted us one summer afternoon
as I was cooking hamburgers on the grill. It did take her sometime
to get use to the indoor routine, maybe a month or two, but since
then she is quite use to the arrangement.
While we are at work the cats stay in the laundry room, complete
with window, food, litter boxes, sleeping boxes, toys, and each
other. Each morning before I go to work I simply call them and
they come down, sometimes they need a little coaxing with a treat.
We also keep them in the room during the night. This has saved
our furniture, rugs, and curtains, as well as allowed us to sleep
undisturbed. Also if there ever is an emergency and we must get
out of the house quick we know just where they are so we load them
into their carriers and get out, rather than waste time searching
for a frightened cat.
When we are at home they have the run of the house, upstairs and
down and they are not at a loss for finding things to keep themselves
busy with.
One of the best things, we have found, that will keep an indoor
cat happy is another indoor cat. My suggestion...
"Try it, you'll like it."
Let us all know how things work out.
Joe
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| 263.5 | A dry cat is a happy cat! | SCOTCH::TAMIR | | Fri Jun 13 1986 17:53 | 19 |
| I'm sure you've heard of how effective a spray bottle is for kitty
behavior modification...well, let's take it one step further...
When Honey the Himmy was a kitten, he, too, had illusions of his
life outdoors amongst the cars and German Shepards that live next
door. The breeders I got him from told me how they got his biological
Mom not to want to go outdoors. They turned the sprinkler on in
front of the door and when Mom tried to go out, she got very wet
and very displeased. Because they were consistant in this treatment
(every time Mom wanted out, the sprinkler went on), Mom lost interest
after about 2 days. It also worked for Honey (although now he seems
interested in plotting his escape again!). He's always been an
indoor car, but he also wants to explore the Wild Kingdom. I tried
the harness and lead, but he'd have nothing to do with it. This
may not work with a cat who knows they don't get wet everytime they
try to go out, but who knows???
Good luck!
Mary
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| 263.6 | A happy cat makes me happier. | AKOV04::WILLIAMS | | Fri Jun 20 1986 14:14 | 27 |
| We have two cats at present. Suti, who is 12 was an indoor cat
for her first 8 years, and Jasper, a two year old stray I found
when he was 3 1/2 months. Jasper had to live in the garage for
the first month because of fleas, etc. and this has become his
favorite place.
We lost Yoric, a lovely large male tabby, when he was three. Yoric
was an indoor cat for two years and then he found the outdoors!
The joy he experienced in the larger world was not something I could
ever have denied him.
Pandora, another tabby, was also lost to us when she was three.
She was a little bit of an outside cat - going out when we were
sitting outside and following us back in when it was time.
Libby is still a bit guilty about letting Yoric and Pandora go outside
(both their deaths were the direct result of altercations with dogs)
and gets nervous when Japser refuses to come in at night. I respect
Libby's concerns but can't accept confining any animal. I might
sleep sounder when Jasper is asleep on my feet and Suti is snoring
away snuggled against my side but Jasper is too sad when he is denied
the outdoors.
Our cats have always had the complete run of our home (which has
more than a few antiques, silk covered furnishings, etc.) and while
they have left their respective marks here and there they have done
much less damage than our neices and nephews.
|
| 263.7 | ...more "Tales from the OUT Side"... | GALACH::CONLON | Colorado Springs...we summer,too... | Tue Jul 01 1986 09:41 | 51 |
|
On the subject of indoor vs. outdoor cats...and how to keep
them happy indoors...we have 2 purely indoor cats (a 9 year old
male named Woof and a 6 year old female named Tweetie.) They both
have had their front claws removed and and have been happy indoors
all their lives! The older cat has lived with us in 4 states, and
the younger has lived in 3 states. (They are both "fixed" also.)
With all the moving we've done, there's no doubt in my mind that
our cats would have been long gone by now if we had let them roam
outdoors. After all these years, they don't even attempt to get
out (they barely notice if the front door is open.) Woof will go
to it and sniff a bit, but has no real desire to go anywhere.
Woof has good reason to feel that way, tho! When he was little
(and we hadn't decided about the indoor/outdoor thing yet) we used
to take him outside and sit with him on the grass (but not let him
wander off.) One day, a very nice Doberman decided to check us out
while we sat outside. Woof had no idea what "it" was (the creature
smelling his nose) but he decided not to make "it" mad by moving
and just FROZE. We carefully carried Woof back to our house (with
a full Doberman-escort smelling Woof's tail all the way.)
Since then, we've shown Woof and Tweetie what it's like outside
when it rains AND snows. They've also seen nice weather (and they
like to chew on grass lawns) -- but we always stay with them and
hold them. Woof has "escaped" three times in 9 years, but each time
he stayed within 10 feet of the house (usually just stood "grazing"
on the lawn til we found him.)
The clincher (the thing that will keep them both indoors FOREVER)
was last summer when they (and I) saw hail for the first time! After
a total of 5 years in Colorado, I finally saw golfball-sized hail
coming down on our house. The cats thought the world was ending --
the hail makes a terrifying noise when it's that big! I took Woof
out on the porch to look closer and he LEAPED out of my arms to get
back into the house!!!
I think they've decided that if the outside world is THAT WIERD,
then they are better off INSIDE!!
Really, tho, they've been quite happy together all these years...
they chase each other (and stalk each other) and then cuddle up to
sleep. I may not have kept Woof alone inside for 9 years, but with
his "little friend," he's been a very happy cat! Tweetie is a happy
and very affectionate cat, too! I believe very much in keeping kitties
safe indoors!
Suzanne...
(CAT LOVER!)
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| 263.8 | Indoor Cats | PUFFIN::BLODGETT | | Wed Jul 02 1986 13:07 | 10 |
| I have two indoor cats, Brewster a big grey angora, and July my
Calico Cat. They have lived indoors with full run of the house
since I brought them home as kittens. They are curious about the
outside, but are very fearful of venturing outside the house. Brewster
is a little more curious about the garage only because when I have
had to 'bomb' the house for fleas that's where he ends up!
Having watched my neighbor's lose two outdoor cats, one to the traffic
and one to the neighbor's doberman, I'd rather have my two safe
at home. They seem to be purrfectly happy 'owning' the house.
|
| 263.9 | No Question About It... | COMET2::MESSAGE | Instant Karma Gonna Get You | Tue Jul 22 1986 15:12 | 11 |
| Rickie and Stosh are indoor cats, too. They own the entire house,
so how much more could they want? We do, however, put them in
figure-eight harnesses and attach them to long leads on the lawn
once in a while. Rickie lets his "tom cat" side out then, and really
goes bonkers. Stosh, however, does not like being confined by the
harness and lead, and pretty much lies quietly. For the most part,
we do not keep them out without being out, also. However, a couple
weeks ago, we both went in for just a moment to do some K.P., and
when we looked out the window, Rickie was beating the c**p out of
some friendly,curious dog that had made the mistake of wanting to
play. He strutted around like "the great white hunter" all day...
|
| 263.10 | Update, my decision | APACHE::CLEMONS | | Tue Aug 12 1986 16:28 | 43 |
|
Sunday I picked up a new kitten. I have not been able to come up
with a proper name for her yet, especially since being an orange tabby
I had been thinking of male names until the vet informed me he is a
she. The vets had to triple check also, since 80% of all orange cats
are male. It has been some time since my cat Max disappeared, and to
make myself a bit more clear, I hadn't simply planned to replace her,
so much as I wanted to get more cats over time and was trying to
convince my husband before Max left as well. :-)
To get back to the original subject, I have given considerable
thought to keeping my cats indoors since Max's disappearance, with the
help of the responses I have received. All the responses sound like
good alternatives to the outdoors. Bas stayed indoors quite a bit for
a while, but alas, I had a sad cat. He and I have come to a
compromise, he gets to stay out all day, except when it rains, and
come in by 8 pm every night. Bas doesn't like the night part so much,
but soon enough settles on a nice warm lap to watch TV.
New kitty stays indoors, teasing Bas occasionally. My overall
decision, and believe me a lot of thought and sleepless nights went
into this one, is to allow the cats to decide for themselves if they
want the outdoors. I am encouraging kitty to be an indoor cat, lots
and lots of love and attention, but when she is a bit older and
possibly yearning to catch moles and grasshoppers... I can't bear the
their sadness and big eyes looking from me to the door, mew, mew,
meow!
Some day when we have finished off the upstairs in our house and
we have a room where a cat can stay while we are working, with a
window, most importantly, there may be more consideration to keeping a
kitty indoors. It is truly difficult to retrain my husband and myself
to watch doors so often, especially since we do go in and out so
frequently working on outdoor projects and landscaping.
I really appreciate all the responses I received. And who knows
maybe "New Kitty" may work out to be an indoor kitty too.! :-)
( I think I will try "New kitty" with the leash and harness and
see how she reacts also... thanks!!!)
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| 263.11 | it can be done | STUBBI::REINKE | | Tue Aug 12 1986 23:08 | 9 |
| I really feel for you with the problem of being door conscious
in regard to keeping cats in.
For encouragement, one of our cats came to us after three years
of being an apratment cat. For the rest of her life she never wanted
to go out of doors. After living out here for many years she would
sometimes creep out into the fenced garden but never any where un-
protected. I think that if you train a cat early enough it will
avoid the out o doors.
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| 263.12 | | SHOGUN::HEFFEL | Tracey Heffelfinger | Wed Aug 13 1986 16:49 | 22 |
| I'm sure our neighbors think we belong to some strange religious
sect. You see, we always walk in the door bent over with our hands
in front of us... THey must think we worship doors or something.
Actually, nowadays, our cats don't really run for the door.
They run to greet us. Sometimes, if we leave the door open long
enough, one of them will decide to do some unauthorized exploring,
but most of the time, we shoo them away to keep from tripping over
them. (Ever try to bring in the groceries while 6 furry creatures
are trying to look out the door/wrap themselves around your
legs/investigate the bags/climb your legs to get some petting....?)
If you really want to keep a cat in, it can be done. The important
thing is to make sure the cat is happy/occupied inside. Catnip
toys, regular playing sessions, an interesting environment(interesting
means lots of hidey-holes and lots of shelves/different levels where
the cat is allowed), and lots of attention all help to get the cat
adjusted to the indoor life.
tlh
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| 263.13 | | PUZZLE::CORDESJA | | Tue Nov 18 1986 21:22 | 35 |
| We have three (soon to be four, we just bought a Birman kitten)
indoor cats, all recently converted. By recently I mean in the
last two years. Our cats used to be outdoors before our beloved
Harrison was hit and killed by a car. That day the "survivors"
became indoor cats.
Ours have adapted very well. Monroe is five now and had been outside
all his life. Jesse is 13+ and loves it inside (he was a stray).
Winston had only been outside a couple of times before Harrison's
ordeal, so he adapted readily.
We provide our cats with lots of toys to play with, along with a
nine foot tall cat tree with shelves and cubby holes to climb all
over. They are allowed the run of the house when we are home and
when we aren't at home they are limited to three bedrooms, the hall
and two bathrooms. Our hall has a door so that we can keep them
out of the living room, dining room, and kitchen if we want to.
Winston is leash trained and we take him on outdoor excursions with
us. Sometimes we go for walks in the neighborhood and watch all
the looks we get from people. I haven't leash trained the other
two yet. I think that will be more difficult since they are older.
I also plant kitty grass for them to eat.
As long as you make it interesting for them you shouldn't have too
much trouble converting them to the indoors. We did have to resort
to" the garden hose outside the door waiting for them" trick to keep
them from storming us every time we opened the front door, but that
stage only lasted for a few days. Another hint is have at least
two cats if you plan to keep them inside. That way they can keep
each other company.
JoAnn
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