Thinking about a new kittybuddy

Hello everybody. I am still devastated over the death of my best buddy Harry. I'm sobbing less today and am able to at least write about him without breaking down too badly. But on to the new topic....I am slowly realizing that I probably need to go rescue another kitten like Harry was and have something to transfer my affection to. There's a very healthy SPCA here and adopting a little cat no one wants is no problem...there are hundreds. I have two questions right off. My Harry was a small cat. The most he ever weighed was 10 pounds and he was blind in one eye. Harry was not a big leaper. He could not jump to the top of the kitchen counter for example, thus, letting him roam in our fenced in backyard was no problem. The fence is four feet high and he could not jump it. Question is....would a normal sized cat with normal vision be able to jump that fence? The fence is critical because I live on a farm where other family members own big hunting dogs. A cat might not have much of a chance roaming free here. Along those lines, I'd appreciate opinons on which makes the best indoor cat, male or female. Thanks everybody. JT

 

Hi JT,

I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your dear Harry. Kudos to you for wanting to give another kitty a home. I think that many cats would be able to leap the 4-foot fence without too much difficulty. I have a 6 foot fence around my yard and the neighbourhood cats manage to get in with a combination of jumping and climbing. I have an outdoor enclosure for my cat who was an outdoor cat before I got him and wasn't adapting well to being solely indoors. He's much happier now that he can sit outside and I take him out on the harness. As for male vs female, in my experience females are more content to be indoors, especially if they are spayed and are indoors from the time they are kittens. My two girls were indoor cats from a young age and are fine, whereas my boy was un-neutered and an outdoor cat until he was about 2, and like I said he has a hard time staying inside. But probably if you get a male young enough, he will adjust to being indoors. Good luck!

 

Getting a new cat will ease some pain of losing Harry. I got Rene after Vene was gone and it helped us deal with the grief tremendously. We have 4 cats and 3 can go under fences and weave between fence gates. If you get a cat that never has a taste of the outdoors whether it's male or female, it'll be fine indoors. Rene is purely an indoor only cat. She does not crave to go outdoors but will become jealous if she sees Milo go out. Pumpkin + Monty likes to go out, but only for 5 min. because they only want to chew grass and smell the fresh air. Milo has strong, dominant hunting genes in him and demands to go out everyday. We let him out 1-2 hours in the mornings and he always comes home unlike his sister Vene who got run over by a car and who never wanted to come home on a regular basis. We used to search for her all times of the day and night. Whether or not to let a cat out depends on the cat's personality. They are all different. You can train your new kitty on a leash if you wish. Or, you can build an enclosure like Dolly has, or consult with Chessmind who's planning on building an elaborate outdoor enclosure on his treeded lot. I think that's your safest route. Personally, I have a sunroom and it keeps all my furbabies very happy without going outdoors. Please keep your new cat indoors if possible. I used to work at an 24 hr emergency clinic and I saw 2 loose hunting dogs roam around and a decapitated cat.

Some lucky furbaby will get to have you guys as its parents! Please submit pics of Harry and the new baby!

 

I have a 6ft. fence and saw a cat climbing over it the other night so I'd say jumping over a 4ft. fence would probably be pretty easy for most active, healthy cats. Maybe you can just harness train your new kitty or build a small cat enclosure?

 

oh my god harry died i am soooooo sorry, which i kno will make no difference watsoeva 2 do, but my condolences 2 u i cnt imagine ur pain. i dont think you should get a kitten so soon. i kno i cnt advise u rlly as im 14 years old lol but i think maybe u want a new kitty 2 rid of the pain ur suffering since u lost harry. u shud b sure u want a new kitty and u rnt just considering it due to losing him

 

hi jt. dont know how i missed this post. i am glad to see that you are considering a kitty. i have always had indoor cats. they only go outside to go into the car. max travels in the car with me at least twice a week, sometimes more. he is always in the cat carrier. he is really good in the car now...just racks out in the carrier and plays with his toys. my experience with cats that have a taste of the outdoors (other than the car), even limited like a couple times a week, is that they start to cry to go out, and sometimes that is tedious....my cats have all been very happy indoors. what they dont know about, they cant miss...

my cats have never cried to go out. before otis died, he would sit at the back door waiting for me to come in when he heard the garage door opener. max now does that. neither one tries to go out in the garage. they look out the sliding glass doors and the windows, but dont cry to go out. i grew up with a siamese that constantly cried to go out in the garage, then shortly after she would come inside, she would want to go out again. :shock:

of course, here in phoenix...not a good idea to have kitties roaming outside. we have coyotes that come into our neighborhoods like they own the place. then....not good....plus...i am such an obsessive...i worry about max in my own house. i would be a basket case if he went outside....

the cat enclosures...that is a great idea...safe, and happy.