I have found a place!!
A group house and I move in next weekend! :-) With my cat!! Thank you for all your advice, my question was this. Leia has lived her whole life inside (1 year) and I would like to introduce her to the outdoors. How do I do this? Is one month inside enough? then how do I take her outside? I don't want to lose her.
Answers:
I see way to many animals on the side of the road that have been hit by cars. Please don't let it outside. If you cannot keep her indoors where you live consider calling Pet Helpers. There is usually one in every city or at least something like it. They will find a suitable indoor home for her. Also they usually take them immediately and have foster parents that volunteer to keep them until they find a permanent home. But if you love her as much as you say you do then you will keep her indoors. Cats are fairly independent and just like some attention occasionally.
Keeping a cat outside can be dangerous at times. Make sure she's always supervised.
Oh please do get over the idea of "introducing" her to the outdoors. You could be introducing her to her death. You must love her dearly to have searched so hard to have a place where you can keep her, don't lose her now!
If your cat has lived her entire life inside and is happy and healthy, why would you want to jeopardize her safety and introduce her to the outdoors where she has no clue? I do hope she is spayed!
My advice, keep her as an inside kitty, she's bound to live a longer, healthier life, unless you have plans to the contrary?
If you don't want to lose her, don't let her out.
take her outside in the yard or just walk around with her and let her get the feel for being outside..be sure and put some food by the door and show her where it is.she'll probably go and explore when you let her loose for the first time..but she'll more than likely come back.Also if you are afraid you will lose her. try getting a large enclosed cage like you would use for a dog, she wont get out, and will still be able to be outside.
I wouldn't recommend letting her roam by herself. Cats are exposed to so many dangers while unsupervised outside; parasites, diseases, traffic, and predators, just to name a few. Not to mention the psychotic people in this world who have no qualms about hurting someone's pets.
That being said, you can take your cat outside, just do it the smart way. You could try getting her used to being on a harness and leash. You can't really "walk" a cat the same way you can a dog, but you just stand there and let them explore at their leisure. There are also cat enclosures for outside. Check some out here;
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/na.
That's fantastic you found a place for you and Leia (great name)
You could try one of those little harrnesses when you first take her out. She will be scared at first but will get used to all the new smells as long as your with her.
Good luck and BIG pats for LEIA
Food! you feed, thy stay. ear plugs help at night. watch out for the window screens being attacked. An old blanket and a Cat House. and Food..DI I say that?
Yes, please keep her inside! The outside world is a dangerous place for cats! I have two cats and they both stay inside.
i agree with the first answer. when u take her out, always supervise her. use a leash or carry her when going for a walk. dont let her rub up against somebody unless they allow it. and NEVER let it out unsupervised.
ConCATulations on finding a place where you can bring Leia to live with you!
Is Leia happy as an indoor kitty? Normally I would say that if she is, don't blow a good thing by giving her a taste of the outdoors that she might like so much that she'd no longer be happy staying inside.
BUT - and this is a big BUT - you're going to be living with a group, and you can't be certain that nobody will ever screw up and let Leia slip outside.
I have heard and read many sad stories about indoor cats that slipped out once, panicked, ran off, got loose and were never seen again. The best defense against that (other than not living with anyone but Leia) is to help Leia get familiar with your neighborhood.
It would be ideal if you can get her to wear a harness and walk with you on a leash. Many cats adapt to the harness and leash and really enjoy going for walks outside that way. I think it would be worth considerable effort to get her to accept a harness, even if she's reluctant at first.
If that fails and she just won't go for the harness and leash routine, then take her out with you. She probably won't follow you and stay with you as you walk along, so you'll have to stay with her. Follow her around, sticking close by her. If she goes too far or heads towards someplace you can't follow, like someone's posted property, pick her up and carry her home.
I did that with my Scamper, a feral rescue who made it clear that he was miserable being stuck inside all the time. He went for fairly long explorations in each direction from our home, which I let him do once in each direction. After that he quickly got the idea that if he stuck close to home I wouldn't pick him up and bring him inside. Within a month or so we had a nice little routine worked out. We go out the back door and he waits on the step if I dawdle to grab a soda or a magazine. I sit in the back yard on a lawn chair and read my book or mag while Scamper romps and explores in the yards of the homes on the street behind us and in the little yards of the other apartments in our townhouse building. He doesn't go far and every five or ten minutes he comes back to check in with me. He knows that as long as he stays fairly close and checks in like that, I won't go and get him and bring him in until he's ready. It's worked out very well for both of us.
Good luck with Leia. Enjoy your adventures together!
We recently adopted a very very very sweet cat, in fact she was so sweet she drove everyone crazy. She was kept inside by her previous owner because they didn't want kittens.. We had her "fixed" and slowly introduced her to the outside, very slowly. We would hold her and just go outside for 5 minutes.10 minutes and so forth. We let her see her own pace never forcing her, this took a few weeks. She is now a normal cat, she has taught herself to hunt. i am going to reiterate, She Is Now A Normal Cat. No longer craving constant attention, no longer dependent on Constant human contact.
OK to sum it up. Please get your cat "fixed" and slowly introduce her to the world, some cats wont accept the outside. And that is fine too, but don't deprive her.
Seriously keep her inside. There are a number of advantages to keeping her indoors all the time: an increased life expectancy for one, fewer problems with fleas and ticks, and minimal danger from other animals ( such as diseases), and of course you would have to worry about the traffic. Not to mention that cats are carnivorous, meaning there instinct is to hunt and most cats eat what they hunt ( things like field mice, gophers, rats) and there is always the risk of worms and poisons from people's gardens, trash. It's just too big of a risk to allow her out to roam. Besides ask any veterinarian and they will tell you to keep her indoors.
Also where we live we have a bylaw that warns us not to allow roaming of our pets, if they are picked up by the animal warden it costs an arm and a leg to get her out of the pound and if your pet has not been vaccinated ( rabies especially) they do it and charge you for that also. Good luck.
good going and i am happy for you ..when you move keep her inside and let her look outside thought a window or door. then walk outside with her to let her check outside and then take her back in.do this everyday for about a week and then let her go outside alone, but leave the door open so she can go in and out.she will be fine
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