Conference misery::feline_v1

You make the cat stay inside by making sure he can't get out. Don't leave
doors standing open with your back turned for even an instant.

Yes two cats will entertain each other, but they will still take advantage
of an open door or window.

I've had only a short experience with 'indoor' cats but I can offer a few
suggestions. When you pick out a cat don't pick the most adventurous of the
lot. I unfortunately did this and the cat was never really content inside.
After two years I moved to a place where I thought it was safe for her to
go out and she was killed three months later.

I now have a kitten who will always be an indoor cat. This time I chose a
kitten who wanted to cuddle instead of explore. SO far it's worked. She
likes to look outside but isn't too interested in open doors.

If you do not have someone home during the day and have no other animals
I would suggest getting two. They need the company and a bored cat will
be all the more interested in outside where there are birds and other 
things to play with. (my cat has a golden retriever)

Good luck.    kris

Our Gray Lady has always been an indoor cat (and a happy one). She goes
out infrequently during the warm weather to gnaw on the grass and lie in
the sun for a while, but only under direct supervision by my wife or my-
self. She doesn't seem terribly secure while she's out, and if she loses
sight of us she makes a beeline for the door.

Since we're out of the house during the day, we've gotten her a German
Shepherd to play with......

By all means, try again - the rewards far outweigh the inconveniences or
risks. My condolences for your loss.

	/Harry

re.1
We did not leave doors and windows open for Jake to come and go as he pleased.
That would certainly have encouraged him.  He would often wait for us to
return from work, or from the store.  Then, as we were opening the door to go
in, he would streak out.  When your hands are full you just can't stop a
determined cat.  Sometimes he would just stay in the front yard for a while. 
Other times he would 'disapear' for an hour or overnight. 

Thanks for the other comments.  We will try again - soon.

Bruce

Per your other question: YES!! Get more than one cat.  Two cats keep each
other occupied.  It's particularly easy if you get both at about the same 
time, as kittens (while they're still naturally social).  It works very
well, and I'd hate to have an only-one-cat household again.

Steve Kallis, Jr.

We have four indoor cats.  The first two cats I ever owned, Freebie and
Tanstaafl, survived about 8 months at our house.  (Tanstaafl was run over,
Freebie apparently ran away when we got Empress Star and Oscar Gordon as a
"replacement" for Tanstaafl.)  Then Oscar died of an unknown central nervous
disorder before he was old enough to go outside.  All of this in about two
months.
                                                                               
This was extremely sad - but we still had the Empress.  So we got her a
replacement, Oscar Gordon II, from an animal shelter, and resolved not to lose
anymore cats.  They've been indoors cats from day one.  The adjustment to that
has been EXTREMELY difficult on my part.  I still believe that cats would MUCH
rather be outside creatures, and your furniture doesn't suffer as much.  But my
previous experience taught me that I live too close to a major highway to let
them out without supervision. 

There have been several escape attempts (one successful for fifteen very scary
minutes), but they were chastised severely for it, and they don't even really
try anymore.  Of course, the additions of Rufo and Muri, two young kittens that
my mother couldn't keep, have made the inside of the house an entertaining
place, so they may not feel the need to go anywhere else. 

Lynne and I still get choked up when we look in the picture album and run
across pictures of Tanstaafl, Freebie and Oscar I.  But our "family" is
bigger and healthier than ever before, and we are very glad that we decided
to get our new kids.  And while I don't necessarily recommend four inside-only
cats, two is certainly a good start.

- CW

Chorniy and Koshka have always been indoor cats, since I lost a cat to
road-kill when I was a child.  Chorniy hangs around the door sometimes
and wails to go out (we take them out under supervision) but Koshka
doesn't usually do this.  She has occasionally taken over from Chorniy,
when he gets tired of complaining at the door, but she does't last too
long.  Chorniy also makes escape attempts when we're going in and out.
We've had to modify our habits so that when we have packages to carry
into the house, someone goes in first to either hold the cats or put
them in the bedroom.

One of the major reasons that Chorniy wants to go out is to eat grass.
He hasn't been so bad since we started including greens (cooked peas or
beans) in their diet.  He seems to be eating better, also.

--Louise

My cat (a Siamese) has been an indoor cat for 13 years now. She does go 
out, but mostly on a leash (yes - a cat will be relatively happy on a 
leash if it is brought up that way. I've known many.). If we let her out 
without the leash (extremely rarely - and only when we are right 
there!), she is very subdued and unsure of herself (no security blanket, 
I guess). If you do this, get a harness. They are hard to find, but a 
collar is not only dangerous, but a lot of cats can easily slip out of 
a collar!


Also, definitely get TWO!

        /s/     Bob

While my guys (two) do get to go out into the front yard occasionally, 
they are always supervised, and they sometimes get stepped on if they 
try to run out the door.  They are pretty good about this.

Cats do like the stimulation of the outdoors, but unless you live where 
there are no cars, dogs, etc., you are risking their lives.  They can 
and do live comfortably indoors, and to a greater age.

Once they are used to being indoors, they won't be a problem.  If there 
won't be people around at all times to entertain them, get at least two, 
more if you like.  (A cat/people ratio of about 1 to 2 is good.)

Tom

 Re: .9:

 A cat-to-people ratio = 1:2?  Seems like we qualify; three cats, six 
 people (including children).  

 We were very pleased with the results of replacing a departed feline with
 two (litter mates).  What's more fun than a clowder (clutter) of 
 kitties (as the World Almanac calls such a group)?

 Neil
  

I have to agree with .2 in at least one respect.   I have one adventurous one
(Josh) and one shrinking violet (Becky). Becky would be perfectly happy if she
never went outside. Josh, on the other hand, constantly tries my patience by
slipping out the apartment door into the hallway.

The one problem that I have had with owning a shy kitty is that she is very
insecure when there are unfamiliar people around, or a crowd of more than
3. You don't want a kitty who is going to spend all it's time in a closet
hiding from your family!!  


Definitely get 2 kitties!!!!

Kathy

	Our kitty was told that she is an indoor cat.  In the summer, we
have leash and she can go outside.  Also, she only claw the box spring, and we
allow that.
						Dan

   Well, we have 6 indoor cats.  (Talk about litter box blues!!)  

   I don't realy think you can tell from the kitten how well they will do
inside.  The most adventurous kitten I have ever seen (Nazzie) is terrified
of the outside.  (Has to do with the fact that he was dumped on our doorstep
and the tender age of 4 1/2 weeks and I think the many dogs in our neighborhood
terrorized him.)  I think any cat can adjust to being inside if you provide
the proper environment.  The younger the better, but even cats who have been
outside for a while can adjust.  THis doesn't mean that they wouldn't like
to go outside it means they are content inside.  Our cats only go outside
under supervision.  Taking your cat outside only on leash can provide several
benefits.  1) They do go outside, eat grass, get stimulated by the different
environment, all under a controlled situation. 2)They think of the leash
as a treat and not as a punishment.  (Most cats are only on leash when they
go to the vets.  Thus they associate the leash with Bad Things.  Our cats
beg to be put on leash becasue 9 times out of 10 that means they are going
outside to play.  They will come running from all corners of the house when
they hear me pull the leashes come off the pegs.  The purring can be heard
rooms away.  Sammy will try to climb up my body.  (me first! me first!) Gandalf
will junp on my shoulders when I lean down to put the leash on another cat.
Roger Goun has seen this and can verify it.) 
    
    What do I mean by the proper environment?  Definately more than one cat.
I started with 2 8-week old kittens and added another 8 week old about a month
later.  I had intended to stop there but to make a long story short, we added
another 10 week old a 1 1/2 months later and added a 4-5 month old cat another
month later.  We held steady till this summer (2 years later) we added the
4 1/2 week old.  6 can be a bit much but 3 or 4 is great, if one cat doesn't
feel like playing, the others cna always find at least one cat who is "in
the mood".   2 is a must if they will be left alone for hours at a time.
(You haven't seen vengeance until you see what one 8 pound cat can wreak if
he thinks he's being ignored!!)  A tall (tall enouigh for the cat to strecth
out against) sturdy (sturdy enough for the cat to put all his weight against)
scratching post is a must.  NOt only do cats remove the dead resicude from
their claws on the post but the act of scratching is excerise for the cat.
(You should see Gandalf go at his post!  If he were a human, his shoulders
would look like Arnold Schwartza-you-know-who-I-mean.)  Unlike dogs, cats
are not coursing animals.  They don't need long periods of excercise.  They
move in spurts between naps.  So it is possible for a cat to get adequate
excercise inside without having wide open spaces to run in.  What is necessary
is compexity in the environment.  Cats can get bored easily and when they
get bored they can be destructive (Just livening things up, dontcha know?)
This is where a companion helps.  Having many levels that are accesible *and
permissible* to the cat also helps.  Our cats have a combination kitty tower
scratching post that has hidey holes in it, in the living room.  In the den,
they have a kitty playgournd that we built from them from a buch of unfished
lumber.  It has shelves at different levels, at 2 1/2 feet, 3 feet, 4 feet,
and one that is more than 6 feet up(their favorite, they are within reach
of the ceiling on this one.). One of the shelves sticks out in front of a
window that looks out onto the back patio where I feed the birds and squirrels.
They cats love to watch the birds and I don't have to worry about the cats
getting the birds.  We spend time with all the cats.  Catnip toys are great
for those cats that react to catnip.  (Don't worry if your cat does not react
to catnip, only about half do.)  We have many toys for the cats.  The best
cat toys are those they find for themselves.  Sam goes berserk over bottle
caps. (I only let him have plastic ones.)  They all love crumpled paper.
String can be played with only under supervision. 
    Don't be afraid to rough house with your cats if they want it.  (this
of course depends on the cat.  I would never do anything but gently pet gentle
Cinnamon.  Gandalf however begs for abuse.  Honest!  When he wants to play,
you know it!  His favorite games are chase (we chase him), spin-me-around-in-
the-laundry-basket, throw-me-at-the-kitty-tower (I toss him in the direction
of the tower he contrives to land on it, jumps off runs back to me and screams
at my feet til I do it again!), and the ride of the valkerie (I have no idea
how this one started.  We pick up the cat like a judge at a cat show would
(It makes the cat look like he's flying over your head) and zoom him around
the room while singing "Ride of the Valkerie").  The other cats stick more
conventional play.  The point is that we give Gandalf the stimulation and
roughhousing that he evidently needs to be happy inside.  

   I'll have enter more stuff after I get a chnace to read "the indoor cat"
a book I got from my husband for Christmas.

tlh

    Please excuse all the typos in that last response.   Didn't proof read
and I should have!

tlh

    There is a very good and effective way to train your cats not to
    run outside when the door is open.  Stand outside the open door
    with a garden hose and when they attempt to come outside let them
    have it with a shot of water from the hose.  This method has been
    very successful for a friend of mine whose cats would dash out at
    every chance.  It might take several sessions, but should work for
    you.  If you get your kittens young and only keep them inside they
    may end up being too intimidated by the outdoors to try and go out.
    
    Jo Ann
    

    Our cat to people ratio is 2:1!
    
    How about a clowder of four cats in your house.

    Re .0
    Your sad experience sounds very similar to what happened last night
    to Bud, our 6 month old half siamese moggie. 
    
    Bud was knocked down last night as he ran across the road to greet
    us as we arrived home.  The driver didn't stop although he must
    have known what he'd done and we didn't manage to get his number.
    
    Unfortunately, Bud died on the way to vets.  My only comfort being
    that he couldn't have suffered very long and that he died in my
    arms.  Bud will be sorely missed.  He had such a character and would
    'chatter' away angrily if he felt his dinner was late or we were
    ignoring him.
    
    We still have Soukie, his other brother.  Souks must have known
    something was wrong last night cos he was very quiet and came and
    slept next to us.
    
    I don' t want to have to keep Souks in.  Besides, he's too used
    to going outside now that it wouldn't be right.  When we've got
    over it, I'm sure we'll get another to keep Souks company, which
    was why we got two in the first place as we were out all day.  Would
    he take to another?  It won't be for a long time yet though.  Is
    there any age which cats get used to being on their own and resent
    another?
    
    In remberance...
    
    
    

    
    
    - .1
    
    Sorry to here of the loss of your kitten Bud.  It's hard enough
    to lose a friend, let alone to have witnessed it.  My thoughts
    are with you.
    
    Carole