Cat roams for up 14 hrs before returning home Is this normal cat behaviour?

Question

I recently adopted a rescue cat, he's neutered, vaccinated, de flead and gorgeous! He has settled well and is very friendly.
I have recently started to let him go outside but he only returns after 14 hrs usual. He doesn't seem that hungry too after such a
long time out. Is this normal cat behaviour as I have never owned a cat before. Is it possible he's going elsewhere for his food? or filling up on mice. I am thinking of keeping him indoors just so we can see him once in a while! because he takes so long to come back any advice?

forgot to mention he is 3 years old. I would love to put a webcam on him to see where he goes lol!

Answer 1

That's not unusual. Cats like to roam.

But I think it's more likely that he's finding a comfortable spot and napping for a good part of that time. Cats will spend a lot of the day sleeping if they can - assuming that they are fed, and that they're someplace they feel safe enough to nap, that is. He could be out under a bush somewhere dozing for most of that time.

Try this - when I feed canned food to our cats, I tap the spoon on the edge of the saucer, to get them to associate that sound with being fed. If you want your cat to come in earlier, try standing at the back door and tapping a saucer with a spoon. It sounds funny, but ours will come running more often than not.

Answer 2

He most likely is getting food elsewhere, probably from another person(s). A good way to tell is if when he gets home he doesn't eat much food. You really should get him a collar with tags so people don't think he's a stray and take him in.

Some cats will roam about for hours on end, so him doing so isn't really unusual. But someone might be letting him into their house, also. So he might be confined there until they are finally letting him back out.

Answer 3

For a Tom its pretty normal, also, he is a rescue cat and may have been used to fending for himself all day, as long as he comes back, I wouldn't worry about his wandering, but sure, keep him in sometimes so that he gets used to being with you and socialising, as he may be a bit undersocialised. Give him food at regular times, say 8am and 6pm, on the dot for a few days while you keep him in and only let him out after the evening meal when you start to let him out. They have fabulous time clocks and he will get used to the idea that he doesn't have to look elsewhere for his meals and that they will be regularly provided. Also, while he is indoors make sure he has the occasional treat, cheese, a bit of biscuit, whatever he seems to like. He may just be a hunter, some cats are, and he may like it that way, they are creatures of habbit, so unless you give them new habbits to stick to, they will stick to the ones they have adopted for themselves. He just needs time to adapt and to socialise with you. Don't let him out at the same time all the time, you control when but do make sure he has plenty of toys to chase around with, little balls and anything with catnip in will give him a really good play time.

A non neutered Tom can cover 20 miles a night, not sure how much a neutered Tom can travel, but it is probably quite some distance, which takes some time as they tend to saunter around. Enjoy your cat, fantastic creatures.

Answer 4

He's just enjoying his freedom & good fortune.
He should roam less as time passes.
Some cats become destructive, aggressive, and depressed if not allowed outside....just a warning.
Hopefully he's 2 years or older?
Kittens up to that age should NOT be allowed out unsupervised.
You can keep him in at night, which is what I've always done with my 3.

Answer 5

People have a hard time letting the things they love go but it is very natural for your cat to go out -explore-eat a few mice if their lucky-give em a break after all he is giving you the other 10 hours.PS This only applies to cats that have claws. Cats that some idiot declawed must be protected.

Answer 6

i will purely talk from adventure. I have not have been given any scientfic motives in the back of this, however the few male cats I even have had in the previous all look to pass on the prowl for some weeks at a time then come abode for a meal then pass away back. I even have had the two fastened and organic adult males.regardless of the undeniable fact that it kind of feels they by no ability lose their urge to seek, stake turf, and discover women human beings.

Answer 7

We had the same with the cat we got, a very cute ginger mog that we found when she was a kitten. Turned out she war doing the tour of the local sheltered housing, and was being fed by multiple OAP's.

Like the saying goes "Dogs have masters cat's have staff"!

Answer 8

It's normal. I have an outdoor cat and sometimes, I don't see her for days at a time. Cats are independent by nature and very self-sufficient, meaning that he's most likely feeding himself occasionally. Just make sure that everybody in the neighborhood knows that he's your cat.

Oh, and by the way, don't keep him in doors too much. If he's a wanderer like you say he is, he probably won't like that very much at all.

Answer 9

Congratulations, he sounds like a wonderful pet. And yes, this is perfectly normal; in fact, with cats anything is possible.

You should seriously consider keeping him indoors, not just so you'll know where he is but also to keep him from getting a new infestation of fleas and intestinal parasites.

Answer 10

I've had cats disappear for a couple of days at a time (when in my stupidity, I used to let my cats go outdoors).

If someone else is feeding your cat, or he is getting food from another source he has learned, then he is apt to keep making those trips, now that he considers it a part of his terrority. You have to be really concerned about this, because a cat making long trips like that is apt to get hit by a vehicle.