Advice for Indoor Only Cats?

Question:  Hi, I am a sweet little kitten, sometimes I look outside and see other cats playing and cannot wait to get out there myself, when will my new owner will let me go outside to play?
From Anxious Kitten

Dear Anxious Kitten
Do not be surprised if your new owner decides to keep you indoors a little longer, or if they decide to keep you indoors for the rest of your life.  Many new cat owners ask "When can my kitten go outside?"  and learn that their new kitten should not go outside until it is fully vaccinated and spayed or neutered.  Kittens who are not spayed have many risks, cat sexually transmitted diseases are common and pregnancy in a kitten (if you are female you might go into heat as early as 5 months of age) is very dangerous - cats in heat should never go outside.  You should have also been kept indoors for at least a month so you are familiar with your home. 

New kitten owners are usually told not to let their kitten outside, there are lots of risks to kittens who go outside, including bigger cats, eagles, foxes, traffic, and neighbors who hate cats.  I know the outside looks fun, but it can be a dangerous place for a little kitten.

Question:  I am a big cat, big because I am getting fatter everyday. I like being indoors but have nothing to do except eat.  What can I do to keep thin and trim as an indoor only cat?
From Fat Kitty

Dear Fat Kitty
Do be aware that your size might not be related to being indoors, some outside cats are fat too, in fact obesity is a common problem in cats and is often related to being fed a poor quality food (one with very little meat and lots of filler and fat to add flavor). You might need to be put on a kitty diet.

Of course your weight could be due to lack of exercise as you said you do not really do much other than eat.  This is your owner's fault.  They should try to give you more cat toys and spend more time playing with you to keep you active.  Cats like toys they have not seen for a while so your owner should have a lot of toys but should keep some hidden from you and switch them around regularly.  Your owner can even move your cat furniture around too and should try to engage you in playing more often.

There are many ways to keep an indoor only cat happy and healthy.

Question:  Hello, cats are suppose to be outdoors right, so why does my stupid owner keep me inside all the time?
From Frustrated Cat

Dear Frustrated Cat
Cats were domesticated thousands of years ago, nobody wrote any rules up saying they had to be outside.  In most areas domestic cats are healthier, and safer, if kept indoors only.  Some people hate cats and have found ways to hurt them if the cat comes into their yard.  There are risks of diseases from other cats (even if you are vaccinated) as well as fights.  Plus many cats who go outside become lost, or are stolen.  Many cities actually have laws saying that cats must be kept on their owners property, but problems occur because cats do not follow rules too well.  Sadly when they stray some cats end up in shelters and if not adopted they are euthanized.  Cats are often hit and killed by cars, even if they have gone outside and crossed the road safely hundreds of times before.

Maybe your owner is not so stupid after all, maybe they are keeping you indoors because they love you.

If you can manage to convince your owner to let you outside they would be best to build you a catio or cat enclosure first so that you can remain safely enclosed.  Or they can train you to walk on a leash and as such can take you out safely.

Advice for Cats Concerned about Vaccinations

Question

Please answer my question, I am a tiny kitten, only eight weeks old, so really do not know much, but recently I was taken to the veterinarians office, while there the vet did a bunch of stuff to me but the only thing I am worried about is that they poked me in my back, they said it was “needles”. What the heck was that about?

Signed Poked Kitten

Dear Kitten

There are a couple of things that could have happened to you at the veterinarian's, and neither are bad. Your owner may have had the veterinarian implant a microchip identification under your skin, this is usually done along your back and is harmless. The benefits of having a microchip are that if you get lost, shelter workers, or another veterinarian, can scan the chip and it will give them a code number which they can use to find out who owns you.

Another thing that veterinarians do to kittens (and cats) is they give them needles that are vaccinations against diseases. A needle is a thin metal stick with a hole in it to put in medicine. Usually the vet will try to pinch the skin so it does not cause you much pain, but sometimes you do feel it. In Canada, and many other places, such as the United States, cats are given what is called a 5-way vaccination, as well as a rabies shot. Rabies is not a problem in some areas, such as the United Kingdom.

A 5-way feline vaccination includes vaccinations against Panleukopenia, Rhinotracheitis, Calicivirus, Chlamydia, and Feline Leukemia Virus. You will have to go back to the veterinarian to get these shots boostered in about a month, and they really are not effective until a few days after the booster shot. Even still vaccination is not a 100% guarantee that you will not get sick, but they do help lower the risk.

Question

I am a beautiful Persian cat, and my owner has decided to keep me indoors. We are wondering if I still need to be vaccinated?

Signed Don't Stick me with that Needle

Dear Stick me

Your owner really should consider getting you vaccinated with your first set of shots, booster shots, as well as your rabies vaccination, if needed in your area, even if you are to be an indoor only cat. These vaccinations are especially important while you are young and are required if you are going to be attending any cat shows, or going to a boarding kennel. Other cat owners who visit you could spread disease too you, and if your owner works where there are other cats they could also bring diseases home on their clothing.

If rabies is a risk in your area, even if you are indoors only, you should get your rabies shot too, because if you do happen to bite somebody and are not vaccinated, you will be placed on a 10 days rabies hold, which is no fun.

So, I do suggest you at least get your owner takes you for your first set of feline vaccinations, and boosters, as well as your rabies vaccine. Your owner can decide if they want to continue with vaccination boosters in the following years, even if you are to remain as an indoor only house cat.  Most veterinarians are gentle and it should not hurt at all, plus the vet can check you over to make sure you are healthy and doing well in general.

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Advice for Cats that Want to Go Outside

Dear Animal's Advice:

My owner is a prison warden holding me prisoner. I am a male cat and it is spring, I would really like to be outside now. There is so much to do outside. Why is my owner so cruel to keep me indoors, how can I escape?

Signed Jailcat

Dear Jailcat

It may seem to you that your owner is being mean by keeping you indoors, but your owner is actually doing you a favor, and is being a responsible cat owner. It is recommended by nearly every animal welfare group, including the SPCA, and humane society, that cats be kept indoors only and not allowed to roam freely even if laws allow it.

Cats who go outside face many risks. Being hit by a car is probably the most common risk, but cats who are outdoors are also at risk of being poisoned by neighbors (either intentionally, or accidentally). Cats who go outside are often taken and dumped in other parts of town because other people don't like them being out (pooping in the yard, spraying, meowing, digging). You are at risk for diseases from other cats, cat fights, and even other animals – depending where you live.

Cats who go outdoors are said to have much shorter lifespans, on average, than cats who are indoors only. On farms the average outdoor only cat only lives to one year of age (although certainly many live longer, most die while young). In most cities the average lifespan for a cat that goes outdoors is two years, cats who are kept indoors only often live well into their teens.

If you are not neutered this could also be a reason your owner has you confined indoors only. Male cats who are not neutered tend to roam further, and can get lost, as they look for female cats. They also tend to get into more fights and will “spray” to mark territory – which lots of people do not like. Cats who are not fixed (spayed or neutered) should not go outside at all.

As well a cat who is not vaccinated should not go outside.  Cats who are declawed should not go outside either!   It is just too risky, what if you are attacked?  You cannot climb a tree.  Some declawed cats try to look tough by fighting back but that is a bad idea too as you have no weapons. 

What I am saying is that your owner is not being cruel, they are being responsible.

An other idea is a “catio” or cat enclosure. This would be an area that is built so you can go outside without leaving your owners property. Some people go so far as to put up a cat fence around their yard to contain their feline, or have it leash trained. Leash training a cat takes time and you should not be tied up outdoors or you could be at risk from cat thieves, wandering dogs, and so forth.