veronica jayne

Mine were house cats, I miss them so much. I threw away a big basket of toys today that I have been ignoring for the last almost two months as it was out of sight!!

Most of my friends in London who have outdoor cats seem to lose them to traffic! One person I chat to on a British site just had a neighbour kill hers accidentaly as it had gone into his house and was about to have a fight with his snake so he threw her cat and it (she) died. Even my friend who is in the country has lost a few cats who were killed by cars in the UK.

My friend in Texas had he two for many years, one is still alive I think, they were indoor/outdoor.

Terminal

Coyotes?!!
I guess that settles it for me too, not sure he'll like it much though

TimFountain

We bought our 3 over, all three were outdoors in UK so we let them out here. Only one went outside the yard, and she disappeared on night and was never seen again. The other two can't be arsed to jump the 6ft fence (too old & fat!). The night she disappeared we heard some noise outside aound 3:00, and the dog was barking, next morning just a bit of fur. We think it was coyotes as neighbors had seen them and we had heard them.

- Tim

snorkmaiden

Keep your cat in, definitely. Get him some cat trees, and lots of toys to keep him entertained. (I can tell you where to get some amazing cat trees in Texas)

I volunteer for a local cat rescue and I have also been involved in looking after feral colonies of cats.

I live in a fairly suburban area and yet we regularly see coyote, just down the road my friend has had bobcats, and coyote picking off her feral colony one by one. If you get into the more rural areas you'll see cougars as well. I get possums and raccoons on my porch, I've never seen them attack the feral cats but that doesn't mean they don't, particularly if they are sick.

If you add to that the fact that an awful lot of people don't provide proper medical care for their pets, and you'll find that when you allow your cat out he is being exposed to FIV (feline aids) and FeLV (feline leukemia) also there is a new and deadly strain of Calici Virus going around at the moment, it is highly contagious and has wiped out complete catteries and shelters.

I have noticed while I have been doing rescue that the cats here seem to get sicker than I ever noticed back home, none of the cats we ever had when I was growing up got sick with things like FHV-1 (feline herpes virus) but I see cats here all the time with it, and it's a real pain to keep on top of.

The fleas and ticks are also rampant in Texas so you'll be dealing with a lot of them if you let your cat out and the mosquitoes carry heartworm so you'll need to have your cat on heartworm prevention as well.

Finally, where I live at least, the drivers are completely bonkers and there is a lot of roadkill, oh and don't forget the horrid kids, we regularly get cats that have been set on fire or mutilated. Tying some kind of rope around the tail and then setting fire to it seems to be immensely popular.

Really, keep your pet in. If you give him lots of trees, and plenty of toys he'll be much safer. Alternatively you could build an outdoor enclosure that he can get to from the house, I have several friends who have built lovely looking enclosures, or they have cat proofed the garden so the cats can go out in their own garden, but not beyond that.

Mandana

Snorkmaiden, thanks for your stark warnings

Quick question for you .. do catteries (or kennels as we've been told they are called) require cats to be up-to-date with their injections? I'm quite concerned after reading your post that our cat could be exposed to all kinds. He is fully inoculated with the UK requirements and as soon as I've found a local vet next week I'll take him in for the Texas jabs, plus rabies. We'll be boarding him when we go on holiday (hopefully in July) as we don't have any family living close by to do that for us anymore!

My husband was told by a work colleague that generally all cats in the area who don't have claws (hate the idea of de-clawing) are indoor cats, and those with them intact go outside as they can defend themselves.

I think I'll take all your advice and keep him in.

He was a rescue cat and was badly abused. He's already had his tail chopped off (we think by kids as he is absolutely terrified of small people)

My baby

Terminal

He never played with a scratching post as a kittie and rarely plays with toys (unless you count ties )

I'd be interested to know about cat trees though. I think he'd like those, being a very cheeky chap who likes to explore!.

For Mandana

snorkmaiden

Yes, the boarding kennels do require they be up to date on shots. The main one you want to get is FVRCP - that will cover you for Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis, Calici Virus and Panleukopenia.

The vet might tell you to give him the shot for FeLV as well, (feline leukemia) but I don't give my cats that as they stay indoors and there are risks associated with the shot that I don't like.

Your cat may well have had the FVRCP as a kitten in the UK anyway (it's often known as the distemper combo) but you might want to boost.

I had all mine have the series of three as kittens, then one booster shot at a year old and now they are good for three years.

Your cat is lovely!! If you find a good boarding place he should be okay - make sure you go in and look around before you choose which one you will use.

Terminal, cat trees are great, and tunnels, and you might find as he isn't going outside that he might get interested in scratching posts again, especially if you add cat nip!! (Maxx is very cute)

This is a pic of one of my trees with three of the cats on it, they love lounging on it or when they are having a mad half hour, they chase each other up and down them. I got it from a great company in Waco who sell them at cat shows or make them to order - much better quality than the ones you get in the shops.

Petsmart has scratchers made from cardboard called Turbo Scratchers, you sprinkle cat nip on them and my cats go wild for it.

There is a fantastic toy called Da Bird, I've yet to see a cat that doesn't go crazy for it, its feathers on a wand (like a fishing rod) and it rotates as it spins through the air making a sound like bird wings flapping - you can order them online here - http://www.thecatconnection.com/page.../BEST/TYS-4990

Mandana

Terminal, Maxx is sooo cute! And I love your photoshop skills (laptop pic)!

Snorkmaiden, I bought our cat a tree, but he didn't use it Petsmart were really good as they said if he didn't like it to take it back, so I did and they exchanged for a scratch post and a bed. He loves the post but hasn't touched the bed apart from give it a good sniff when I sprayed it with catnip! And he's loving the toys - never used to. Especially the ones with bells on!

Just quickly (before I get shot for being on here rather than packing ), how do your cats play with their toys? Tippy really kills his! If it were a mouse it would have been in shreds! He kicks it with his back paws while holding with his mouth and front paws. Does a fantastic impression of a kangeroo! And I have to say it looks a bit erm .. kinky?! He didn't play before when he was allowed out, even though he did have toys.

And cat litter Yuk. Stinky, awful stuff.

snorkmaiden

Yep, our cats kill their toys

You don't have to have stinky cat litter either! I use something called Nature's Miracle - it's very good at keeping smells down, but I scoop twice a day as well and that helps also.

The Nature's Miracle is pricey, but, I found out last year that the company that makes it, sells the exact same stuff, but under a different name at Wal-Mart - it's called Fresh Results in there and half the price.

My friend has one of these - costs a fortune, but apparently brilliant.

http://www.litter-robot.com/Default.aspx?ac=1

Terminal

Can you get the wood pellet stuff in the States? My cat won't use anything else, (not that I mind too much - it's practically odourless)
He also appears to be immune to Catnip, I'm hoping that will change.

snorkmaiden

Yeah, it's called Feline Pine, you can get it at most Petsmarts etc. http://www.naturesearth.com/original.html

How old is your cat? Mine didn't get cat nip until they were nearly a year old, apparently it doesn't affect kittens so much. Now they love it, although one of them gets a bit like a nasty drunk when she's had it, and nips the others if they try and get near her stash

Terminal

He's 5 and a half, so maybe I should try it again.

Mandana

I forgot to mention your cats look adorable

They look like pedigrees - stunning.

snorkmaiden

Thanks, the blue ones are Chartreux (chartreux rescue is based here in Dallas) and the white one is a lilac lynx point Birman. We have one other, a long haired black kitty who used to be our foster kitten but no-one was adopting him because black cats are not popular here, and then we just got really attached to him and kept him

veronica jayne

You can get Feline Pine at your local supermarket probably, I got it at my local Food Emporium