Cat & fast road

snowscreamer

Hi all,

Just to let you know that with our cat going crazier and crazier without outside access (even though we were spending over an hour a day playing with her) we made the difficult decision to rehome her with my parents. They live on a quiet cul-de-sac with good visibility and have a decent garden (1/3 acre). There are also few other cats in the area so ought not to be many territorial wars unlike at our place with smaller gardens and lots of cats (10 houses each with ~1500 sq ft of garden among at least 6 cats).

She was very quiet and timid yesterday and was just curled up in her bed on the coffee table in the family room / kitchen most of the day. The dog went to investigate and she snarled at him so he backed off. Hopefully over the next few days they will come to an arrangement. They are going to keep her in for at least 2 weeks to make sure she is familiar with her new home and new canine friend before letting her out. Fingers crossed. I hope we've made the right decision. It's already taken a weight off our shoulders because we think she'll be so much safer there than with outdoor access at our house and so much happier there then at our house without outdoor access.

Snowscreamer.

beanielou

A tough decision to have made.
As you say hopefully yjr right one.

Shrike

Best thing for the cat. If you want a feline companion, shelters usually have 'indoor only' cats that either have always lived inside or, for health reasons, can't go outside. Older cats are also likely not to want to go out much and be happy with a garden run.

snowscreamer

I think we are going to have a clean break for now To be honest both OH and I were expending so much energy physical and emotional on our cat we could do with redirecting that towards each other! Plus the small silver lining is without a pet we will have our freedom back to stay overnight with parents / friends / relatives and go out on a whim. Always felt bad leaving the cat for long periods at a time, especially when she was inside.

I would like to add that having our freedom back and saving the money on a cat run / cat proof garden were not considered when we made the decision. Just bonuses. Decision was made because no one in the household was getting any sleep and we were all losing our sanity!!

hr100

Get your parents to get some feliway, that will help her calm down in her new home

snowscreamer

Thanks hr100. We did already have a Feliway at home which has moved with her but not sure how much difference it has made!! Will be seeing her tonight. Hope she has started to venture out of her bed on the coffee table as during her first 24 hours she only ventured out with serious human encouragement and when the dog was outside. Although frankly her current timidness is more appealing than all the yowling that was going on in our house.

beanielou

Never found felliway helpful in any shape or form.

snowscreamer

beanie, it works wonders for my sister's cat (moved out from my parents as at the grand age of 13 she did not like the new boisterous puppy invading her territory - started hiding and toileting in a cupboard!). The cat is now an indoor cat in her 2-bed town centre flat and but was hardly going outside anyway even with unlimited access before she moved. My sister says a couple of times the Feliway has run out and she hasn't noticed but the cat starts wailing outside her bedroom door at night. Refill and the cat shuts up and goes to sleep in the living room.

But on our cat it seems to have had zero effect.

snowscreamer

I think the fact that we moved her with her bed helped - bedding hasn't been washed for several weeks so presumably covered in familiar smells. Has barely moved from it since we left her there! But hoping she's starting to get her confidence back. As I said before - better stuck in the bed than trying to claw the door down and go out / wailing before her two-week confinement is up. Want to ensure she gets thoroughly used to her new environs and the dog before she goes out.