How would someone "retire" a cat? (And should they?)

touchy issue...around here..in southwest florida near the Everglades the problem is solved by the aggressive coyote population...ooops don't block the pet door!
Cheers

a reply to: ketsuko

I've sketched up some outdoor enclosures over the years. I have the skill to build but when we move, we will have a mortgage for the first time so, for a while at first, I won't have the means.

Just to get some fresh air, I do have a large dog crate that I could put in the hard without the bottom so she can feel the grass. I think that might just make her more crazy though. When she goes out now, she doesn't just hang around the yard... she goes OUT. When I get home from work each day I never know where she is going to be running to greet me from. Climbing down a tree. Climbing down from on top of the detached garage. Or just running from down the block.

a reply to: eeyipes

I'm shocked that I never knew this product existed. I can't help but think she would find a way to get past it, but it is definitely something that I will keep in mind in general.

a reply to: crazyewok

We've got a Maine Coon. Such amazing, regal creatures.

As for my little warrior princess, I don't think she would like the pre-killed mice. She likes to do it on her own.

a reply to: butcherguy

Sorry about that. Retirement is just what me and my circle have always called it. I guess I could have phrased it differently though.

a reply to: peppycat
She does spend a fair amount of time inside our current apartment, so she is used to the inside world.

We have other cats so we have scratchers all over the place (but of course furniture seems to be their favorite thing to scratch up).

I've used a leash on some of my other cats, but for them it is an adventure just going in the back yard. (And I admit that, yes, we actually have one of those enclosed pet strollers).

She absolutely knows her name. If she is in earshot when I call her, she comes running.

You know, now that you mention it I just realized she never had catnip before. You just gave me something extra to do this weekend.

Thanks.

a reply to: dogstar23
Its tough to say. I see what you're saying but what gives me reason to pause is that I can imagine a situation where we let her out on her own... and she doesn't return. That would drive me crazy with worry FOREVER.

Thanks for the good wishes.

a reply to: Justso

In conclusion, it depends on the cat. Of the four I have now that one still cries sometimes at night for her freedom but there are many enemies of cats, especially in the woods. So we try to pacify her; she has a big screened back porch but still wants outside.

That's kinda/sorta the thing. I'm trying to balance the cat's quality of life with her safety.

a reply to: watchitburn

I'll just say for her sake and for ours, we won't be leaving her behind. Her familiar territory at this point is the few square blocks surrounding our place PLUS the inside of our house PLUS "us"... "us" meaning the humans (and other indoor cats) that she socializes with. So is "home" a geographic location or is it with those other people/cats that she lives with? I suspect, in as much as her little cat mind can process... if posed with the question she might be torn as well.

a reply to: LadyTrick

I've never heard of the butter thing....? What's the rationale?

a reply to: ketsuko

I consider her "ours" but I'm also fairly certain she considers us "hers."

Whenever I'm outside with her, and a potential threat (in her eyes) comes walking by... whether it is a person or another cat or that remarkable (and HUGE) German Shepherd that lives on our block walks by.... she ALWAYS and IMMEDIATLEY positions herself between me and the potential threat. She is incredibly overprotective of her "Dad" (and to a lesser extent... her Mom and human brother).

Also, when we have a quiet BBQ in the back yard and she comes over and notices we are eating... she dashes off and returns in a few short minutes with a kill in her mouth (which I feel awful about). Its as if she doesn't want to show up to a party empty handed.

As I mentioned in a previous reply, in her cat mind she may have some interior conflict as to where "home" is. Is it "her territory" or is it "with her family"...?

I'm not sure if this is me caring for her best interest or if it is me being selfish.... but all I can say is if we move to the new place, and hastily let her out... and never see her again... and never know what happened to her.... it would haunt me FOREVER.

a reply to: eluryh22

There seems to be lots of different reasons but most sites regard it as a myth that could stress out a cat more.

My cat spent a good 10 minutes licking it's paws outside it's new front door and seemed to be an immediate distraction.
Maybe this stopped him from just going straight off and made him focus on grooming around his new home.
It could help him pick up the new scent of home
Cats love real butter so maybe they want to stay close
Maybe it helps them find their way back as they could pick up the scent of the butter.

a reply to: eluryh22

Your cat will be fine outside in her new environment. Kitty is not stupid. She will gradually expand her range only as she becomes familiar with the territory.

Kudos for keeping her with your family.

a reply to: eluryh22

I can offer some advice based on experience.

When we moved to the Caribbean 20+ years ago, we had a cat, who was mostly an indoor cat. She came from a shelter and previous owner had her front-declawed. It was our plan to drive our stuff in a U-haul truck with our car in tow behind, from California to Florida. We also planned (and did) to make several out of the way excursions to various points of interest, such as visiting friends/relatives, Socorro, NM, and other spots.

Three months prior to our adventure, we trained our cat to walk on a leash and do her business on a leash. We bought a good quality harness and cat rodeo #1 was just getting her to wear it. We'd put it on her a few hours every day. After a week she would reluctantly wear the harness without going all Tazmanian Devil on us.

Cat Rodeo #2 was hooking the leash to the harness and attempting to walk her on it in the back yard. We rewarded her with cat treats whenever she would walk instead of going boneless, and when she finally did her biz in the back yard, we lavished her with fresh fish and cat treats.

We then started getting her used to being in the car. That was Cat Rodeo #3 and almost was our undoing. Many scratches were given, and much caterwauling. The cat made some noises also.

At the end of two months, we could put the harness on her, drive for an hour or so, and walk her, where she'd do her business and then drive home. Along the way, my Bride got the bright idea of bringing the cat's fluffy bed with us, and the cat would sit in the bed and pout with slit eyes of evil, but at least she was contained as we drove.

When we made our trek across the nation, we set up the U-Haul truck such that our bed and nightstands were in the back of the truck, with all the boxes packed in a running bond toward the front of the truck. We fixed the back rolling door such that we could block it with a one-foot opening, and nobody could raise it or lower it. We became KOA members and slept in the truck most of the time.

The cat was a trouper. She sat in her cat bed with slitted angry eyes and when we stopped at rest areas, she dutifully did her biz. On the last day, as we were pulling into Tampa, she pissed in her bed. I don't know how she knew that we were moving on from there, but she did. After we loaded the stuff into the shipping container, we gave her kitty downers and were shortly on an airplane to home with a woozy, moaning cat. She was 11 at the time, and lived another five years.

I hope this novella has some use to you.

a reply to: eluryh22

I'm not sure if this is me caring for her best interest or if it is me being selfish.... but all I can say is if we move to the new place, and hastily let her out... and never see her again... and never know what happened to her.... it would haunt me FOREVER.

I understand that fear. Dogs go to YOU when they're confused or afraid. Cats sometimes tend to just go. Is it possible for you to acquaint the cat with the new abode before moving?

Also........ and there's really no subtle way to say this............ over the years I have come to really really appreciate the use of kitty downers during transition periods.

ETA: As to your original question of whether you "should" retire your cat? Yes, mon, you should. Cats seem aloof and it's clear to me that they are far closer to the wild than other domesticated animals, but they truly love you and bond with YOU. Cats may make a fuss with moving, because they are resistant to change, but they would MUCH rather move with you than stay without you. Cats are resistant to change, and yet they are adaptable. Sorta like people. I'd be wanting to have your cat on a leash for quite a while just in case before allowing to roam in your new digs.

My cat got run down and killed last weekend..He used to hold my hand...
Not allowed another now .

originally posted by: Unresponsible
Super tough; cats that have tasted the great outdoors will always want more. Maybe invest in some pheromone collars to relax her while she settles into an indoor life. They tend to make cats go googly eyed and reminisce about their childhood or something.

We had two outside cats and one died. We had three in the house. We couldn't let the female outside cat stay outside so we gave it a bath and brought it in. She excaped and got all muddy and we brought her in and gave her another bath. She escaped again and we brought her in and gave her a rinse in the sink. She won't even go near the door if it opens, she is a loving and appreciative cat, she thinks she went to heaven.

She is a little bossy, she wants canned cat food in her dish about every hour or two. She is laying on my shoulder most of the time I am on the computer, she is there right now. She got much stronger when she moved inside, the shed was where they spent their nights and they loved to be outside. She is nineteen years old now. Her son was an inside cat and he had one of those bloodclots happen in his back about three months ago and died. But she moves around more than the rest of the cats combined, she is active and healthy now. She licked all the white mold off the wall at the bottom of the basement and she kept getting stronger and stronger. She was pretty weak when she came in, now she is in better shape than the other two cats that are eight to ten years younger than her.

I wonder what was in that mold that healed her all up, I thought of hiding an area from her so I could test it on myself if I got sick.

a reply to: TheKnightofDoom

Thing is he used his 9 lives maybe many more I knew deep down that he would get killed by a car on that road...but I could never have locked him up he was a wild one and a proper lad cat, people used to see him on his travels as far as Southowram, only found out in the last few days he visited many other houses just to say hello (he was the most vocal cat ever) so many up n down me street cried and have been around to say how much they loved him....

Jakie the cat....never a better cat before or after...

a reply to: TheKnightofDoom

Very sorry for your loss. I too, have lost two to the road.

I was lamenting to my Dad about one of the killed cats. He said to me, "Son, cats live life on their own terms. You can't truly control them, nor should you. You have to at one point or another let them be. You can know that you gave that cat a life and something he didn't have before you -- you gave him love and you gave him choices."

I hope that helps some. It did for me.

a reply to: argentus

Just made me cry lol.
So true that so true a wise Dad you have there .
He will be with his Ginger pal Alfie (two doors down died of old age last month) his partner in crime.
Times like this I hope for some kind of heaven so he can hold my hand and bring me headless rats again.
Cheers