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Thoughts on letting cat out in back garden? — Brooklynian

Thoughts on letting cat out in back garden?

quigley
quigley
edited November -1 in Park Slope
We just moved into the garden apartment of a brownstone, with direct access to the back garden. Our kitty is looking out into it longingly, but she's never actually been outside (meaning, in her life.)

Does anyone with a fenced-in garden let their cat out there? Any thoughts on the pros/cons? We'd do it supervised, meaning only when we're out there with her.

It just seems like such a great treat for her, but I've only had indoor-only cats in the city (growing up in the 'burbs our cats always went out back). I'm nervous about it, but would really love to let her explore, sit in the sun, etc.

Thoughts?
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Comments

  • peanuts
    peanuts
    I've never had a garden (lucky you), but if I had a totally fenced in one I might let my kitty out with supervision (would never let the cat out alone as they can climb anything and escape - or a critter might get in. The only problem is that she'll get too used to being outside....
  • swngnmonk
    swngnmonk
    My neighbors cats *love* my backyard.

    I'm not all that happy with the fact that they're digging through my garden. My flower beds are *not* their litterbox. Not cool at all.
  • nykittyny
    nykittyny
    Until he passed away of old age, we would let our cat into our fenced in backyard with supervision. He loved it. Some things to keep in mind:

    The cat may try really hard to get out of the yard, and succeed. This happened to us twice. One time we even had to hang signs around the block till we found him in our neighbor's yard.

    The cat will get filthy. Be prepared. Oh, and they like to eat creepy crawlies and drink dirty stagnant water too. Many gross things got traipsed back into our apartment.

    Your yard becomes a litterbox. And you won't realize where he is going until you step in it or try to dig it up while you are planting flowers.
  • antigone
    antigone
    Personally, I'm strongly in favor of indoors-only cats. Our two cats (one a former stray, one a rescue) love looking out the window but don't show any strong urge to go outside. We have a backyard and we have let them out there a couple of times but we live in a busy neighborhood with a lot of traffic and it makes me too nervous, despite the fact that our back yard is fenced in.

    I guess I'm an over-protective cat mother, but it's just not worth the risk to me.
  • armchair_warrior
    armchair_warrior
    one of my tenants cat he roams through out the building and she lets him roam around the yard too. first time i saw him, i was like dang did a stray some how sneak in :p. i ask and girl was like oh my cat :p. the fat cat is cool. he is pretty big guy.
  • bkchickie
    bkchickie
    Nothing for nothing, but the family cat when I was a kid went outside, ruled the neighborhood, and lived to the ripe ol' age of 18. Based on that experience, I would never keep a cat inside 100% of the time.
  • bhaskell
    bhaskell

    Subject: Cat on leash

    We take out most indoor cat out with her on a harness and leash so that she can't get away from us. She has adapted to it very well and doesn't really fight it. But we go where she wants, not the other way around.
  • brokechick
    brokechick
    BKChickie wrote: Nothing for nothing, but the family cat when I was a kid went outside, ruled the neighborhood, and lived to the ripe ol' age of 18. Based on that experience, I would never keep a cat inside 100% of the time.
    well, my family cat went outside, ruled the neighborhood, and died pretty horribly at the age of eleven from a blood-transmitted disease she probably contracted in one of her many fights, and now i will keep all of my cats in 100% of the time. i saw so many kitties busted up from falls out of windows when i was working in veterinary medicine that i hover nervously when my girl sits on the windowsill. you can try to let your cat out only under your supervision, but be prepared for her to want to escape all the time. just make sure before you start releasing her into the fenced-in wild that she is up to date on all vaccines (in case something wanders into your yard, there are lots of strays and the occasional raccoon), and look into advantage or something for fleas.
  • bklynpnx
    bklynpnx
    My kitties adore the backyard after being indoor only cats for years. However, as closely as I watch her, Stella has gone "off the reservation" a few times and jumped the fence into my neighbor's yard. She was SO quick. She's always been too damn curious for her own good. Luckily, she wears a collar with a bell and a tag on it and is microchipped. The bell was how I realized what happened. She came back each time after rolling around on the other side of the fence showing off and rubbing her face all over the neighbor's furniture and basically being a brat. Jackson just adores being outside more than I can possibly explain.

    I started out with a giant cage-like structure,which Stella adored. Jackson cried like I was killing him. It made for some funny pictures

    image

    As worried as I am about Stella getting away (and I really do watch her like a hawk), I think that they love it SO much that it's worth the risk. It's the first thing we do after they eat breakfast and they can't wait to get out there. They listen to the birds and roll around in the dirt (dirty cats!). Jackson also chews on some grass, which helps his digestion (he's always been a bit pukey) and he has his own planter of catnip in the summer.
  • homeowner
    homeowner
    This may sound odd, but as a kid, we put our cat on a leash and let her out in our backyard. She had a long lead (seven or eight feet or so, which was long enough to give her space to wander but short enough so that she couldn't climb to the top of the fences.

    My current two cats go out on leashes and harnesses, but due to the high number of ferals, and my fear they'll pick up fleas or some thing worse, they get the short three foot leash.
  • barbara gil (elardo)
    barbara gil (elardo)
    I think I am going to start putting Stella Puss on a leash. Right now she has a snap-away collar, so that won't work. I have a harness somewhere, but I haven't tried putting it on her yet.
  • armchair_warrior
    armchair_warrior
    hey flexi this sounds like a nutty idea. how bout making some kitty training weights for her :p. so she'll tired out faster might not go as far?

    human would wear these weighted vest and arm and leg weights etc...
  • charlesbklyn
    charlesbklyn
    ^ sounds like a nutty idea because it is :-)
  • armchair_warrior
    armchair_warrior
    don't you want a beefy kitty :p? i'm sure the idea would take off once someone does it!!
  • minnow
    minnow
    ^you first!
  • planetablu
    planetablu
    our back garden cat adopted us a few years ago. then we moved to our new digs with a back garden as well. she goes out. she scratches at the door to get back in and doesn't poop in a litter box, except in extremely cold weather. she seems quite content with her lifestyle and basks in the sun whenever she can. she doesn't escape for she knows and loves her home, family and food source. no cages for kitty please!

    gc.
    gh
  • homeowner
    homeowner
    Flexichick wrote: I think I am going to start putting Stella Puss on a leash. Right now she has a snap-away collar, so that won't work. I have a harness somewhere, but I haven't tried putting it on her yet.
    I'd suggest getting her a harness and letting her wear it a bit before and after she goes out in it. I made the mistake of putting our guys out the first time they were in harnesses, and they spent the first ten minutes figuring out how to wiggle out of their harnesses. It was a couple of tries before they finally figured out no harness, no wild kingdom. Since then all has been good.
  • rosita
    rosita
    ^ Yep. She aleady knows that no collar = no outside. Whenever she looks at the fence, I look at her and say "don't even think about it" and "HEY!" Anybody looking from the outside would just think I am crazy :-)

    Jackson simply will not wear a collar, but he has zero interest in going AWOL. He's microchipped and I watch them all the time, but he goes ballistic if I try to make him wear one. He's a little scaredy cat. I actually have to leave the door propped open while I am out there with him because any little unfamiliar noise will send him high-tailing it right back in the house. If the door is not open, he gets scared. Sensitive little boo boo kitty.
  • booklaw
    booklaw
    Keep your cat inside! I've lived here for 30 years and the sound of catfights right outside my window is forever ingrained in my head. You love your kitty and want to give it space and enrichment. You can do that by bringing things inside and playing. Really, so many awful things can happen to your cat out back because they can climb fences and the ferals can smell and hunt them down. Plus there are dogs and raccoons they could fight with. They can get mites and fleas and parasites and they will spend all day attacking innocent squirrels and birds. And there's nothing sadder than a "missing cat" sign on a tree.

    All that said, I have seen people build complex wire mesh cat runs in backyards (via doggy doors) that allow their cats to get fresh air without the risks. Super cool if you're crafty.
  • thegardener
    thegardener
    The first question the vet asks is: does your cat go outside. And if you say yes, they treat the cat differently because the cat's been exposed to lots of other things.
    I say, keep your cat(s) inside.
  • tyson
    tyson
    It's tough because even if you know the cat, it might freak and take off if it's never been outside before. And they can slip through very small holes in fences, etc. I'd make sure it had a collar w/ID/microchip etc. Aside from the obvious danger of running off and getting hit, what if it gets into poison for mice, etc. Don't know what else is around your yard. I'd keep it inside.
  • nitcomb
    nitcomb
    Our cat just recently passed at the ripe old age of 19. She spent her whole life coming in and out as she pleased through her little cat door. Never had a problem.
    Our two year old male has been going out since we got him without incident.
    Make sure they have a name tag with contact info.
  • karl the druid
    karl the druid
    image
  • dawnc
    dawnc
    I am actually lost a cat who disappeared after going into the garden. HOWEVER it may surprise you that I am still in favor of letting my cats out when I'm there because they enjoy it so much. ( I still believe my cat was stolen because she would always come when called and I mounted a very vigorous campaign to find her without success.But thats another story. )
    For the past 20 years I had been letting cats out with no problems. None of my cats have wanted to stray far and tend to stay close to me when I'm outside. They will go into the immediate neighbor's garden but no further ( even the cat that I adopted from living on the street. She knows when she's got a good thing going !)
    The mistake I made in the past is not having my cat collared and microchipped. Also they need to be fully innoculated. Beyond that I still don't have the heart to deny them such a great pleasure.
  • mazzlefrass
    mazzlefrass
    I wish I had a cat running around my backyard. It'd take care of the rats that run rampant late nights. In fact if you want to lease your cat, I'd be happy to discuss specifics....
  • dawnc
    dawnc
    Oh I would like to add that a bit of basic brainwashing helps; get in the habit of giving a couple of little cat treats when they come in when called. Mine always come in a second, even when they are out of sight, so I never have any trouble getting them in when I want to lock up. But in my experience they want to be around me so they tend to only go outside when I do, even when the door is open. I wouldn't worry about them straying if you have a good bond. Its just whether you are comfortable with the low risk of something random happening to them.
  • veets
    veets
    Dawnc.. The last sentence of your post caught my attention.

    I am not comfortable with the "low risk" of the situation.

    When I was a blessed companion to my cats they stayed indoors and I guess I take "low risk" with my dogs now.
  • caseopele
    caseopele
    I'm sorry but this is ridiculous. If you (general you) care at all about your cat, do NOT let it outside unattended. There are so many things that can happen to it, cats have been killed by raccoons in backyards in Park Slope. A dog could get it, an animal hating jerk could poison it or worse, it could get in the street and get hit by a car, it could get lost or just disappear, it could get in a fight with another cat and contract FIV, and if it comes into contact with the saliva, blood, urine, or feces of an FeLV+ cat then it will get FeLV. FeLV is almost always fatal. Why would anyone risk their cat's life just so it can roam around outside?

    I've seen too many cats, feral cats who know the streets, hit by cars. Cats that were used as training for people's ill bred dogs, a cat that was set on fire with motor oil, cats abused in ways you never want to know. Keep your damn cats inside if you love them, even a tiny little bit. Or if you must let them out, do the responsible thing and watch them.
  • femmedada
    femmedada
    I would never let my cats outside unattended. I got my heart broken too many times as a kid when I would find that my beloved pets had been killed by a dog or had ingested poison. I keep mine indoors at all times and they're as happy as clams. Despite the fact that they are felines.
  • bklynpetunia
    bklynpetunia
    Those of us with birdfeeders really appreciate you keeping your cat inside, or in your yard only. They may not necessarily kill the birds (depending on the cat), but they will harass them - the poor birds are trying to survive and don't deserve to provide "play enrichments" for someone's cat. We have a couple neighbors who leave their cats out all day without a clue as to the nuisance they cause. We definitely have fewer interesting songbirds in our yard as a result. I love cats - just not in my yard!
    If you want to keep kitty in your yard, you may need to put something on top of your fence like this:

    http://www.catfence.com/pictures.htm
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