Cat & fast road

snowscreamer

Hi all,

Really after some advice here and some help calming down and making a rational decision.

My OH and I live on a fast road, busy at rush hour and very fast at other times of the day. There is a 40mph limit but it is not obeyed, and cars whip past at 60mph. Apart from our road, it's a very rural area with miles of countryside both sides of the road. When we moved in a year ago, we noticed there were quite a number of cats regularly passing through our back garden so we foolishly thought it was safe to get a cat.

Fast forward a few months and we adopted two 6-month kittens from the local RSPCA. The RSPCA home inspector did mention her concerns over the road but I managed to sidestep her with my claim that there were other cats around who had made it out of kittenhood and there was so much to explore behind the house. At this point we were already besotted with the two kitties we had picked.

Fast forward 6 months (March 2015) and our little boy cat, who had been regularly crossing the road (seemed to have established his territory over there) was run over and killed. We were absolutely heartbroken as you can imagine and terrified for our little girl cat. We did feel it would be cruel to keep her in so we carried on, safe in the knowledge that we'd never seen her cross the road although we'd seen her brother do it regularly.

As the days are getting longer and sunnier, our little girl cat is spending more time outside - previously her brother was the adventurous one and she didn't go out as much or stay out as long but now she seems to be enjoying the outdoors more. Yesterday evening when I got home she came from across the road to greet me. I have never seen her cross the road before and now I am really panicking. I spoke to my sister who is a vet who suggesting that all the nearby territory is taken as there are so many other cats which explains why our male cat established his across the road. Now it seems our girl cat is following his lead.

Now I don't know what to do for the best. We haven't let her out since and are going to see how she takes to life as an indoor cat. My sister thinks this is against the cat's best interests as she enjoys the outside and enjoys hunting, but equally we just can't let her out again where we are as that road is so fast, it would be totally inevitable she would get hit.

What would you do?!?!
She has been pining to get out this morning and tried to make a bolt for it when I left this morning and will probably try again when I get home. Is it cruel to keep her indoors after her being allowed outdoors for the past 6 months? Would it be in her best interests to rehome her to a quiet residential area? This would be heartbreaking for us but I think we have to do what's in her best interests. I am convinced that if we continue letting her out at home she will not last the summer.

All advice greatly received!

jess1974

Oh dear....I am sort of in the same boat as you....I moved into this house almost 11 years ago with my cat....we are in a very rural village with open fields to the back.....however there is a busy road running through the village.....my cat has been hit 3 times on the road but is still with us.... She is 14 in June and her advancing years seem to have curbed her adventurous side and she is now content to curl up in the garden x

snowscreamer

Glad to hear that with you Jess that yours has slowed down - as ours is only one year old the adventurous years will long continue. And the problem road is ours. If her territory is there plus what happened to our other cat I just don't see it having a happy ending. I don't think letting her outside where we are is an option now she has discovered the other side of the road and we will not be in a position to move for years

Shrike

If you can't make your garden secure enough to keep her in, then it really seems in her best interests to rehome her. You could then look at getting an indoor only cat - shelters usually have some that can't go out for health reasons.
Such a shame when in all other respects it seems such an ideal place for a cat to live.:(

DCFC79

Cant advise on the cat situation but get onto your local councillor about the speed limit.

snowscreamer

No way we can secure our garden I don't think. Fencing is haphazard, there is a hole in the fence on one side that cats go through; our cat can get down the side of the garage into next door's garden. We could probably secure it for a large dog but it would be nigh-on impossible for a small cat. Plus we have to have access to the garden for deliveries of oil / emptying cesspit.

Do you agree it would be cruel to turn her into an indoor-only cat? That's my feeling at the moment. My sister suggested we try it for a week. Apparently according to my OH she did settle down after I left. All winter she barely went outdoors - probably half an hour twice a day but she's been going out more recently.

snowscreamer

DCFC79 wrote: »

Cant advise on the cat situation but get onto your local councillor about the speed limit.

This was suggested by the lady who found our other cat and alerted us. But if they are already ignoring 40mph signs I can't imagine they will take any notice of 30mph signs. Problem is sat-navs see it as a cut-through road. Our next door neighbour said it was pretty quiet before the advent of sat-navs.

Fluff15

I think keeping her inside would be mean - is she young enough to train her onto a harness, so you can take her outside under supervision but keep hold of her? Or, a cat run, so she can sit in the sunshine and watch the wildlife, but not leave the confines of the pen?

snowscreamer

I don't know about training her onto a harness - she has been wondering outside on her own for 6 months. I suppose we could get a cat run, but I suspect she'd feel restricted inside that. I'm leaning towards rehoming somewhere safer which is awful as I just adore her but need to do what's in her best interests.

My OH thinks she will adapt to being an indoor cat. I'm worried about when we have guests over and so on and making sure she doesn't escape. It will also mean it's trickier to have doors thrown open etc during the summer. Argh, just such an impossible decision and it doesn't help that I've suffered with anxiety over the past couple of years and am firmly on the road to recovery but not there yet. This is starting to trigger it again.

pinkteapot

Cats can become indoor cats. I personally don't think it's cruel. Outdoor cats is quite a British thing. Bear in mind that in the US cats are almost all indoor cats, and people who let their cats out are seen as irresponsible! Cultural differences. I know a few sets of people who now only have indoor cats after losing too many cats to the road.

Some cats have to become indoor cats due to health issues. Others have to because owners move to busy roads, flats, etc. It happens.

Try her indoors. If she's indoor, it's really important to have regular, scheduled, playtime. Twice a day (three times if possible), a good ten minutes (longer than it sounds - check the clock) with a toy she gets really into. Da Bird or Flying Frenzy (same thing, different makes) work on most cats! She'll need to burn off energy to stop her getting too scatty/anxious. Have playtime at similar times each day (eg before or after a meal) so she has routine.

The downside of indoor cats is the faff of keeping them in, as you say. You can't have doors or windows open in summer unless she's shut out of the room where you are. And you have to be careful with the front door when visitors arrive and leave. It is hard work.

We rehomed our two year old cat last Autumn. He had to stay in for a month when we first got him, then for six weeks recently for medical reasons. We gave up using our front door and only went in/out the back! We have a utility room which we used as an airlock - come in the back door, close it, then come into the kitchen! Living our life round the cat.

Take some deep breaths. I have anxiety issues too so sympathise. There's no rush to make a big decision at all. She'll be fine indoors for a bit. See how it goes and make a decision in time. You don't have to work it out right now.

Johnny_Dangerously

If you are in a rural area, are there parking restrictions? If not, are there any neighbours you can team up with to strategically park cars to form an informal traffic calming area.

Obviously difficult to keep it going full time, but by parking cars on opposite sides of the road at staggered places it can have a dramatic impact on traffic speeds.

Puts your car at a bit of risk from being dinged occasionally, but it's quite effective.