Turning an elderly cat into a mainly indoor cat - why do I feel guilty?!

bacardi66

My lovely boy will be 19 in a couple of months, Ive had him since he was 8 weeks old - his brother died 4 years ago. When I got them as kittens they had already been outside and were desperate to get out and he has spent nearly all his life with a catflap and the freedom to come and go as he wanted.

Over the last year I have started keeping him in at night and he has seemed quite happy with this. However during the day I have been plagued with other cats coming in, eating his food and spraying. If he was younger (and brighter!) I would get a microchip operated catflap. But he really hasn't seem interested in going out in the last two or three months and seems to prefer to use a litter tray rather than venture out. I am thinking about locking him in when I'm not at home and just letting him out when I am.

The vet said he seems very healthy for his age, he is still very mobile, grooms himself properly, has a full set of teeth, good sight and hearing etc but he does seem to sleep about 23 hours a day!

I just wonder if I will be depriving him of the stimulation of the outdoors by limiting his access? Or will it be less stressful for him as he won't have other cats coming in and eating his food?

I just want what's best for him as I want him to enjoy to the full whatever time he has left.

I would really welcome some advice from owners of elderly cats - as no one I know has had cats that have lived this long!

cutestkids

Hi

I have a cat which will be 20 this year and like yours she spends most of her time sleeping and only goes out when she has too.

I have never had a litter tray so she has had no choice but to go outside.

We did have a problem with other cats coming in for a while so stopped leaving her food out.

I feed her in the morning and evening and to be honest she does tend to eat it all in one go so during the day I just leave water out for her.

The other cats will soon get fed up if there is no food out.

I had no idea when we got a kitten almost 20 years ago that a cat could live this long.

I would think that if you are still going to let the cat out when you are there then it will be fine to shut him in when you are out.

He probably just sleeps anyway if anything like mine who has just emerged for the first time since 9.00 am today

UKTigerlily

My own cat is coming up to 15 so not quite as old & she too is now happy to be mostly inside & using her tray. I think what you suggest is fine, he can go out if he wants when you're home but if he sleeps so much anyway he's not going to be understimulated & sleeping is natural when they get older, mine sleeps mostly too

tuttifruiti20

I would say just to let the cat out when you're home.

I would think that having other cats coming in would definitely stress your old cat out so sounds like you've already found the most sensible solution

krlyr

He seems to be making the choice to stay in so I wouldn't worry about depriving him. If he's sleeping a lot he may lack the energy that could keep him safe - such as the ability to defend himself from the local bully cat, the speed to get across roads safely, the mental capacity to judge how fast a car is approaching or how near a fence/pond/dog/etc. are - plus he may be at risk of curling up and sleeping under a car, in an open shed, etc. and not hearing the engine start or the door get locked if he's in a deep slumber. There's lots of risks to an outdoor cat, but especially an older one.
You could always give it a try - if he seems stressed by it then you could look at alternative options, like an infra-red or microchip based catflap that won't let other cats in or out.

bacardi66

Thanks for the replies. 3 days in and it seems to be going well as he has shown little interest in going out even when the catflap is open. I will see what happens when the weather warms up as he does love to sunbathe!

But from my point of view its nice to know where he is when Im out and to know that I haven't got an assortment of undesirable cats roaming round my house, eating the cat food, spraying and stressing him out!

tuttifruiti20

It definitely sounds like you have made the right decision. Sounds like he is much happier for it.

Mrs_Z

Our golden oldie is around 16 going to 17 and as from last spring she stopped going out. Until that time the cats never had litter trays - they always went out. She started weeing in a living room corner but after ruling out any medical reasons, we set a litter tray for her in that spot which she happily uses. Come summer though, she then likes to sunbathe on a garden chair all day long, but still uses the litter tray indoors (!) She seems to sleep most of the day now next to the radiator and liking to eat little and often. Bless her cotton socks!

antw23uk

Normally I would be against trying to turn an 'outdoor/ free roaming' cat into an indoor cat but I absolutley think you are doing the right thing and i DON'T think you should feel guilty at all. You have nothing to feel guilty about to be honest.

He can still go out if he wishes when you are there and/ or at weekends and in the summer you will probably have the back doors open anyway and he can snooze in the sun.

Don't feel guilty, you are absolutley doing the right thing :T

jungle_jane

I lost my 20 year old a few weeks ago and also wasn't happy with him being out when I wasn't there. We were concerned about foxes possibly attacking him at night and other male cats wanting to assert themselves.

We have other cats though so it was trickier. We started locking him in the spare room at night when we went to bed and during the day if we went out we gave him the run of upstairs (large house) with the other cats downstairs/free to go out. He never minded at all and was really happy...i think it made his last few months far nicer and more relaxed as he was perfectly safe all the time.

madhatter_1

I also think you are doing the right thing. My cat is 21 years old and does have cat flap, but rarely goes out, especially in this weather. He is a golden oldy and tends to spend most of his time sleeping and eating. He is deaf and eye sight is not the best, but vet said it is just old age. He has also become a bit incontinent, so forgets or doesn't use his litter tray, so glade air-freshners all over house and good supply of rags, bless him.