indoor vs outdoor cats?

Question

i have two adult cats, one female one male. my male cat is nine and has been an outdoor/indoor cat all his life. my female cat is 1 year old and was an outdoor/indoor cat until we decided to breed her (she is siamese)and i just want to make sure she is indoors to ake care of the kittens. i feel that if you take proper care of your cat, get it vacinated, check ups, dewormed and proper flea medicine, then there is no reason not to let them outside. i live on a farm that is a good ten acres and they never go far so why does that make me a bad cat owner? its not like i make them stay outside all the time, they come inside whenever they want to, we have a cat door for them even. everyone raises there animals differently and yes some cat owners are bad ones but that dosen't mean al outdoor cats are going to die or get sick. its not even cruel if you take care of them properly. ms catloverme123 i think is going a little to far in her comments and i just wanted to see what you think?

also i am moving overseas to go help in iraq with the air force and i can't take my cats with so i have to find them new homes, does this make me a bad cat owner, i go in six months and i refuse to take them to a shelter because i don't want them in cages. ms cat lover also said that i should never have children becuase im breaking up my cat family what would i do with a real family. that was rude and uncalled for, i have a loving husband and we plan on having children when i get home and for you to say that was just wrong.

i breeded her with another siamese cat, our male cat is fixed. we decided to breed her under much supervision and concent from our vet. she only had three kitties and she is fixed now. the kittens are doing wonderful and they get there first shot this weekend.

wait you breed dogs and i'm irresponsible, i'm breeding full breed siamese cats not mixed breeds.

she and the male cat we breeded with were both registered purebreds, and we have papers for them both.

MS APRIL READ THE FACTS PLEASE...

C- my vet is very active in my attempt to find homes for my cat and she is helping me pre screen people. i'm not just handing them out.

Answer 1

I must agree with you. All living things appreciate the outdoors and should be allowed to enjoy temperate weather. It sounds like you give your pets every option and provide for them in inclement weather.

When I moved to our new house after I got married, I considered keeping my cats inside. But I couldn't bear the thought that they would never feel the grass under their paws again, so out and in they go!

Answer 2

I think your situation sounds just great for cats and I know you take good care of them and take care of their welfare.

When I moved to my present home with a nice garden I got cat fence-in so my cats can be outside and remain on my property. From my shelter experience I had learned how many people lost their cats to cars, some had been shot with pellet guns and such. I had also learned how annoyed people can be (rightly) when they like to feed birds or work in their gardens and don't want someone else's cats around.

Since I had six cats at the time I decided to confine them to my property. Three had been "outdoor" cats and took a little adjusting to the fact that they couldn't go over the fence to explore or whatnot. It's a pretty sterile environment as there are no critters for them to chase and the birds absolutely know that my garden is not a safe place for them to be.

We do have open space across the street and every outdoor cat along my block has "disappeared" in the last two years. There is a coyote there that knows it's a free lunch situation.

Also, with six, I knew that they wouldn't always be back at night and I would have the anxiety of wondering if they were safe. I have avoided a lot of sleepness nights because they are always in the house when the sun goes down.

Good luck to you in Iraq and I hope you can find a good place for your cats to be while you are gone.

Answer 3

I think breeding cats is a very interesting idea. You only hear about breeding dogs but hardly ever cats especially a breed like Siamese. I think you should be very proud of your efforts with your cats. You appear to love them very much. As long as your cat doesn't cause problems for whatever neighbors you have(although you do seem to have quite an expanse of land at your disposal) you needn't worry. I advise that when the time to officially sell your cats comes you should try not to split up a young family, but I don't know how old the kittens are and you've probably taken that into account already. But you should specify if you want them back when you return, because then you should say you are looking for boarding not someone to take ownership.

Answer 4

First, I am not sure if you are aware of this but there are several foster programs for people in the military going overseas so that they can keep their pets. One such organization is netpets.org . Perhaps you could look into this if you’d like to try and keep your cats? I know many people aren’t even aware these programs exist.

And now to answer your questions…

I do not think keeping a cat indoors is cruel, but probably one of the most responsible choices an owner can make. This is why many shelters and rescues will not adopt to homes that let their cats outside. As pet owners we are responsible for keeping our animals safe, and to me letting them even chance getting mauled by a predator, shot at, hit by cars or exposed to disease (not all can be vaccinated against or are 100% effective). Additionally allowing a cat outside reflects negatively on cat owners in general, as people complain about the cats wandering in their yard, causing damage or killing wildlife. Then there are always the things people don’t consider- we took in many cats with their legs crushed in steal leg traps and the lucky ones had to have their legs amputated. The unlucky ones I assume are the ones that starves to death because no one finds them in time. It is the owners choice to let them out, I personally just don’t want to hear their sob story and who they want to blame when something bad happens.

As for being an irresponsible owner, it is hard to judge on an internet forum because people need more information and can only go off your words. There are many things such as getting a pet in the military with no back up plan when you are at risk of being sent overseas or breeding cats that might not have worked for their champions (a nice test to see if they are exceptional examples of the breed- more goes into being a responsible breeder than sticking two purebreds together. Way too many Siamese cats and kittens in shelters and rescues) that ARE considered classic examples of being an irresponsible owner and reckless breeder. But remember that people only know as much about a situation as you write, and if you are concerned about how you come off you might want to either give more details so people know you aren’t those things or avoid posting in general.

Answer 5

I also lived on a farm with many cats, although none of them were allowed inside. They all seemed very happy, we would have given them the option to come inside but my father was terribly allergic. The cats kind of came with the farm when we bought it.
I think what people that have never had outdoor animals are so worried about are the dangers that the animals face when they live outside. We never had a problem with cats getting hurt or dying of natural causes besides getting old. The problem we had were the neighbors shooting them because the cats would wander onto other farms and eat their chickens. So if you as the owner are willing to face those types of situations then my feeling is that animals were born outdoors, so they were meant to live outdoors. You do what you want with your pets, and as long as you are not being physically abusive, or locking them up somewhere where they cannot get food or water, then you are doing just fine. A cat will always take care of itself. They only stay with us for the attention and the easy life we provide them.

Answer 6

I always thought of myself as the worlds biggest cat lover. My older cat just passed away a month ago. He was strictly indoors. He had a neurological deterioration problem. I also have a 2 year old female. She is also strictly indoors. The reason I choose this is because I live in a heavily wooded area with wild animals. I would never want to put my animals in a shelter to be caged either. Cats were meant to roam free. Some cats are ok with being inside only. You are doing nothing wrong. We should all be thankful you're making the sacrifice to go to Iraq for us. Check out your local foster homes for pets for while you are deployed. That way you can reunite with them upon your return home. Don't be discouraged by other peoples opinions. You know in your heart you'll do whats best for your cats.

Answer 7

I don't think you're a bad cat owner for letting your cats out, but the less they go out the safer they'll be, especially at night when so many nasty nocturnal predators are on the prowl.

My thought is that we'd all be safer if we never left the house, but most of us wouldn't want to live that way and neither do some cats. I do draw the line though, and I draw it at dusk. Coyotes, fishers, raccoons, owls, bobcats, even possums can all make short work of a cat, and they're all on the prowl at night. And they're all common in pretty near any rural area.

Answer 8

It is just that indoor cats live longer, healthier lives. Outdoor dangers can include being hit by a car, poisoned by people, or poisons left out for rats, snails, ants, gophers, etc., getting in cat fights resulting in abscesses or disease, getting attacked or eaten by a predator. Cats are also hunters so can kill lots of migratory birds, this is a huge problem lately as many migratory passerine numbers are declining across america. If you can keep your outdoor cats from ALL of these dangers, and get them not to kill birds....then it would be okay for them to go outside.

Answer 9

I havent seen the comments that you refer to, but I do have an opinion on this. I have a cat who is totally indoor. I feel like she is better protected from predators, like coyotes and dangers like cars. The second reason that I keep her in is to protect birds. Cats are born hunters. Its their nature. It doesnt make them bad, its just the way they are. Even a very well fed cat will hunt and kill birds. Literally millions of birds are killed each year by cats. In my mind its worth it to keep my cat in. I think you are a very caring cat owner and not trying to slam you. Its just something to think about.

Answer 10

ok I live on a 10 acre farm too...

when I lived in the city I kept my cats indoors but had a fenced in cat run for them so they could also go outside
farm cats face risks too - coyotes, disease from mice, cars, stray pets... etc so letting them out is always a risk.. I keep my cats inside at night.

ok about breeding your cat - did she go to cat shows to prove she was an Excellent example of the breed worthy of passing on her genetics?? if not then you are a bad owner since THOUSANDS of kittens are euthanized EVERY DAY becuase of lack of homes.. every home your kittens took was one kitten who didnt get a home (unless yours were registered purebreds of quality as mentioned above) ANYONE who allows cats to breed otherwise is not a good owner...

I didnt see catlovers comments, just because everybody raises their animals differently doesnt mean they are right.. I know some of the things I do with my pets is wrong.. but I still do it...( I dont breed though - I mean letting them out)

ADDITIONAL INFO

about giving your cats away- they have a better chance at finding a good home through a shelter since shelters can screen potential new owners - very few "free to good home" cats ever get good homes - the people who want to sell them to research labs know how to look, talk, and act in order to get you to give them your pet.. only 20 % of "free to good home" pets are still in the 'good home' 1 year after the day they were got... many wander off and the new owner just goes and gets another free pet - some are used to bait fighting dogs to teach them to kill