First time letting a cat out
Discussion
I remember our first time, 20 mins of worry and a huge sigh of relief when she came back.
We went out into the garden with her and stayed there ensuring we were talking so she atleast had some reference point to find her way back.
After that if we was gone for more than 30 mins we went out and shouted her, not for her to come back necessarily more to give an idea of the direction of home
Ours never went more than half a day before coming back but my boss had one which regularly disappeared for days and came back
We went out into the garden with her and stayed there ensuring we were talking so she atleast had some reference point to find her way back.
After that if we was gone for more than 30 mins we went out and shouted her, not for her to come back necessarily more to give an idea of the direction of home
Ours never went more than half a day before coming back but my boss had one which regularly disappeared for days and came back
When a cat goes out it has the whole world in front of it and a mind of its own. Cats are domesticated but never wholly tame.
As an ex cat owner it always seemed to be that when a cat comes home to you of its own free will it is paying you the biggest compliment one species can bestow on another.
As an ex cat owner it always seemed to be that when a cat comes home to you of its own free will it is paying you the biggest compliment one species can bestow on another.
The above advice is all good stuff.
I would add:
Get a cat flap. Best thing you'll ever do. Makes owning a cat almost hassle free. No smelly litter tray in the house, and the cat just pleases itself as to what it does. You can go on holiday and as long as there's plenty of dry food, water, and someone calls in to check and put wet food down once or twice, it's fine.
Make sure you get a microchip one so that only your cat can get in the house, and not everyone else's, because they will try, believe me. I massively recommend one by Sure. Had 2 of them now and they never failed. Last one was still working perfectly at 9 years old when we left the house:
https://www.surepetcare.com/en-gb/pet-doors/microc...
When we came to let our cat out for the first time as a 5 month kitten, I don't think he really wanted to go, but we encouraged him out and that was it. Just watched him when he went out for the first few times and he was fine.
You would be absolutely amazed when you see how quickly they can learn an area. We moved to temporary accommodation for 10 months at the end of last year, while our new house was finished, and where we moved to was a really rural area. We had come from the city. Once we arrived at the temporary house, the cat was a bit clingy and didn't want to go out (he was 10 years old at that point) but after a couple of weeks he ventured out, and each day went a bit further. This went on for 1-2 weeks as he went further in the new garden, then all of a sudden he went out for several hours before returning, so I looked at the map on his GPS and incredibly he had been all round the roads looking fr other houses, going round their gardens, moving to the next house then he found a housing estate in the village, so went all round the back gardens of each house, then eventually back home via the roads. It was absolutely amazing. How do they know where they are?
Along with a cat flap, I would also recommend the following items if you plan on leaving the cat to their own devices while away, or just want to reduce your 'cat duties':
Automatic dry food hopper with timer:
https://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/cat_bowls_feed...
Cat drinking fountain with 3 litre capacity. Cats love running water as they don't trust still water and think it might be stagnant. This one is good because it holds enough for a couple of weeks.
https://smartpetdevices.co.uk/collections/cat-mate...
I would add:
Get a cat flap. Best thing you'll ever do. Makes owning a cat almost hassle free. No smelly litter tray in the house, and the cat just pleases itself as to what it does. You can go on holiday and as long as there's plenty of dry food, water, and someone calls in to check and put wet food down once or twice, it's fine.
Make sure you get a microchip one so that only your cat can get in the house, and not everyone else's, because they will try, believe me. I massively recommend one by Sure. Had 2 of them now and they never failed. Last one was still working perfectly at 9 years old when we left the house:
https://www.surepetcare.com/en-gb/pet-doors/microc...
When we came to let our cat out for the first time as a 5 month kitten, I don't think he really wanted to go, but we encouraged him out and that was it. Just watched him when he went out for the first few times and he was fine.
You would be absolutely amazed when you see how quickly they can learn an area. We moved to temporary accommodation for 10 months at the end of last year, while our new house was finished, and where we moved to was a really rural area. We had come from the city. Once we arrived at the temporary house, the cat was a bit clingy and didn't want to go out (he was 10 years old at that point) but after a couple of weeks he ventured out, and each day went a bit further. This went on for 1-2 weeks as he went further in the new garden, then all of a sudden he went out for several hours before returning, so I looked at the map on his GPS and incredibly he had been all round the roads looking fr other houses, going round their gardens, moving to the next house then he found a housing estate in the village, so went all round the back gardens of each house, then eventually back home via the roads. It was absolutely amazing. How do they know where they are?
Along with a cat flap, I would also recommend the following items if you plan on leaving the cat to their own devices while away, or just want to reduce your 'cat duties':
Automatic dry food hopper with timer:
https://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/cat_bowls_feed...
Cat drinking fountain with 3 litre capacity. Cats love running water as they don't trust still water and think it might be stagnant. This one is good because it holds enough for a couple of weeks.
https://smartpetdevices.co.uk/collections/cat-mate...
Edited by anonymous-user on Thursday 16th December 10:02
Always a nervous time, my kitten Bob escaped at 4 months old in the afternoon.
I left the back door patio slightly open as he hadn't mastered the cat flap at that time hoping he would find his way back.
Strolls in 4 hours later without a care in the world.
In the meantime I was beside myself with worry.
I kept him in until he'd worked out the cat flap, after that I didn't have a lot of choice
I left the back door patio slightly open as he hadn't mastered the cat flap at that time hoping he would find his way back.
Strolls in 4 hours later without a care in the world.
In the meantime I was beside myself with worry.
I kept him in until he'd worked out the cat flap, after that I didn't have a lot of choice
digimeistter said:
Always a nervous time, my kitten Bob escaped at 4 months old in the afternoon.
I left the back door patio slightly open as he hadn't mastered the cat flap at that time hoping he would find his way back.
Strolls in 4 hours later without a care in the world.
In the meantime I was beside myself with worry.
I kept him in until he'd worked out the cat flap, after that I didn't have a lot of choice
Part of the issue is she's female and we haven't had her done yet so she'd come back with kittensI left the back door patio slightly open as he hadn't mastered the cat flap at that time hoping he would find his way back.
Strolls in 4 hours later without a care in the world.
In the meantime I was beside myself with worry.
I kept him in until he'd worked out the cat flap, after that I didn't have a lot of choice
Hugo Stiglitz said:
Ah no wonder she likes drinking from the tap!
My wife has started dressing her up, talking to her in bany voices and had bought a harness and lead.
So it's imperative the cat becomes a worldly cat asap before she's bought a pram next
My wife has started dressing her up, talking to her in bany voices and had bought a harness and lead.
So it's imperative the cat becomes a worldly cat asap before she's bought a pram next
Yep, sounds like you need to get that cat out into the world where it will murder wildlife and start fighting with other cats. Thats what they are born to do, not carried in a handbag or walked on a lead!
More seriously, cats are nocturnal predators. Well, technically they are crepuscular which means they are most active after dusk and in the hours before dawn... the point is that they naturally have a desire and instinct to be in and out of the house at all hours, and I would always want them to have this option, hence the cat flap.
Hugo Stiglitz said:
Part of the issue is she's female and we haven't had her done yet so she'd come back with kittens
Definitely wise to keep her in until she's been spayed, I waited until Bob was 6 months old before his knackers came off, not sure when it's safe for lady cats to be done?Probably about the same age I would guess.
Our old cat used to be gone for days, it was verging on feral I think, as we rescued it as a kitten which my Dad had found abandoned (long story).
It used to come back with all kinds of scrapes and bruises on it, I think she was pretty fearless and would take on anything, it used to kill daily without fail.
They're pretty hardy really and definitely free spirits, so if it wants to go out, it'd be cruel not to let it do so imo.
It used to come back with all kinds of scrapes and bruises on it, I think she was pretty fearless and would take on anything, it used to kill daily without fail.
They're pretty hardy really and definitely free spirits, so if it wants to go out, it'd be cruel not to let it do so imo.
The last few cats I've had, I built a catio which they had access to, and the older cats had a way to get out of it. This gave them experience in how to use a cat flap, until I decided they were old enough to go out of the catio (apart from two of them who learnt how to escape!)
I've also got microchip-based cat flaps, so my neighbour's cats can't come in (I had a case of one of their cats eating my cat's food - when I was sitting in the same room!)
I've also got microchip-based cat flaps, so my neighbour's cats can't come in (I had a case of one of their cats eating my cat's food - when I was sitting in the same room!)
Mercdriver said:
Why do cat owners think it is acceptable to let cats out and kill birds and use their neighbors garden as a toilet?
I gave mine a good talking to, and it understood the problem, and promised to modify its behaviour. It's been a model citizen ever since. I really don't know why more cat owners don't have this conversation with their cats. Same with unwanted pregnancy - if the owners had sat down and explained the problem beforehand, I'm sure this would be much less of a proble.Vasco said:
Fine, I'll have a long talk to her......
Typical response from cat owner, expected flak from my post but why should neighbours have to put up with cats using garden like a toilet? It contains disease which can cause blindness in young children. Lazy people who do not want the dirty job of cleaning up after their cats.Are they happy if a neighbour allows their dog to use pavement outside their house to perform without clearing it up?
My garden is full of bird nests and the feral cats try to kill them for food, fair enough but the household cats are well fed, some too fat to catch a bird
For the record I like cats, our neighbours have a cat, kept indoors, when we visit I make a fuss of the cat and can easily make it purr, very friendly just do not want it in garden
Mercdriver said:
Typical response from cat owner, expected flak from my post but why should neighbours have to put up with cats using garden like a toilet? It contains disease which can cause blindness in young children. Lazy people who do not want the dirty job of cleaning up after their cats.
Are they happy if a neighbour allows their dog to use pavement outside their house to perform without clearing it up?
My garden is full of bird nests and the feral cats try to kill them for food, fair enough but the household cats are well fed, some too fat to catch a bird
For the record I like cats, our neighbours have a cat, kept indoors, when we visit I make a fuss of the cat and can easily make it purr, very friendly just do not want it in garden
So how does an owner stop a cat going in yours or someone else's garden? Keeping a cat indoors is cruel in my opinion. Are they happy if a neighbour allows their dog to use pavement outside their house to perform without clearing it up?
My garden is full of bird nests and the feral cats try to kill them for food, fair enough but the household cats are well fed, some too fat to catch a bird
For the record I like cats, our neighbours have a cat, kept indoors, when we visit I make a fuss of the cat and can easily make it purr, very friendly just do not want it in garden
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