Indoor or Outdoor?
Written by Forever Beckums
I have a male cat who's almost 2 years old now. My parents wouldn't let me get him unless we had him declawed, so we did. He now only has claws on is back two paws, just like my old cat did. We planned on keeping him as an indoor cat, but he doesn't seem happy with it. He spends most of his time either on the porch or up against the windows, crying to be outside or to get to birds. We live in a relatively quiet suburban area and there are other outdoor cats, but I'm not sure if I should let him outside because he doesn't have front claws. Is there anything I can do for him?
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Unfortunately I really can't afford to get him microchiped or get a pen for him. I wouldn't mind letting him out for only short periods of time, but how do I get him to come back in when it starts to get dark? I've never had an outdoor cat before, so I never really found out how that works. As for indoor toys, we have so many its getting kind of pathetic.
What I did with my cats when I started letting them out is call them around suppertime and when them came in, reward them with a little bit of can cat food. In a few days they started coming in on thier own at the same time every afternoon. It is just a matter of conditioning, most cats are creatures of habit.
I also made an in only door by removing a basement window, making a panel the same size as the window out of plywood (2 layers with insulation in between) and installing a cat door that can be latched to only open one way. This way if I am not home they can let themselves in. The cost of the cat door is about $35 and you can usually find the other materials at a recylcle center for free. If you would like more information, let me know.
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Thank you for your help! I talked it over with my parents and they decided that as long as I paid for it, we could get him a pen. Of course, I'm a college student so that'll take a while, but still at least there's some hope for him getting some alone time outside. In the mean time we're taking him out for walks on a harness more frequently. Thank you for your advice
That's a tough one, cats cannot ignore the hard wired hunting urges they feel when they look out the window. It is really hard to know if letting your cat out would be safe. Cats who have been declawed have less defenses than those who have not. However, I have known many cats who still went out after being declawed and learned to climb trees and catch prey. Staying in is a safer but going out fulfills that natural urge to hunt, gather and chase things that move.
You can keep your kitty occupied and entertained with some inside toys that he can chase, capture and wrestle with. Different balls, toy mice, climbing towers and sometimes just a large cardboard box with a toy in it will be fun for kitty. Rotating the toys every so often will help keep him from getting bored with them.
If you do let your kitty out, you could set some rules like only goes out for short periods of time, maybe when people are home and only in the daylight. This will increase the safety factor. Another thing to consider would be a microchip to identify your cat if he gets lost and turns up at the shelter or a vet.
Some people have invested in a Safe Kitty Pen. Basically an outdoor, fenced in area with a small shelter that cats can get fresh air and exercise in but are safe from predators and cars.
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