Cat Chat 2

[nervousdog]

Turning an indoor only cat into an indoor/outdoor cat tips ??

Okay so quick backstory : George is a senior cat . He is bald on his belly and inner back legs and has cataracts in one eye- but his eye isn't very foggy and he sees just fine . He recently jumped out a window ( 1st story and there was a box under the window ) and is now OBSESSED with being outside . We decided there was no harm in throwing a harness on him and letting him explore a bit and he loved it . He will now sit in front of the front door and constantly scream and pull the door handle trying to open the door ( our handle inside is kinda like a lever so there is a very real chance he could actually open the door and get out on his own- we locked the door last night just in case ) .
He will scream in front of the door for like, hours now .

I prefer indoor only cats because there are so many dangers outside ( disease, predators, cats, etc ) and that cats can pose a threat to lots of wildlife . However, George is old and my boyfriend and I figured there isn't too much harm in wanting to let him do what he wants in his older years .

Our currently plan is to keep his outdoors time minimal bc we can't get him a flea and tick preventative until a couple days from now . We want to keep his outdoors time supervised and on leash for a couple weeks bc my boyfriend wants to make sure he always comes back home .


Does anyone have tips on transferring him from indoors only to inside/outside ?
There is already a purely outside cat in the yard, my boyfriends parents own him . Onyx and George haven't had much interaction but have met once or twice- it wasn't friendly but they weren't throwing a fit and trying to fight either, I have no concerns that they won't do well outside together after figuring out their boundaries with one another .
We have another cat inside the home, Fiona, who George does well with . Fiona has no interest in going outside .

Also, any tips on discouraging cats from lilies ?? There are tiger lilies planted in the yard . Onyx does not mess with them and has coexisted with these plants for quite a while . Anytime George gets near the plants he tries to chew on them . I know any part of a lily is HIGHLY toxic to cats so I always pull him away from doing so .
I cannot remove the lilies from the yard, as they are not mine .
Should I always keep George leashed because of this ?? They are my biggest concern about letting him roam freely outside .
George is driving me insane with his constant screaming and ideally I would like to be able to turn him out for him to return later . I don't mind only leashed outings but even after a couple hours outside he will scream at the door on and on and on .
Building a catio is not an option for us currently or anytime soon .


Sorry for super long post . Thank you to anyone who takes the time to read everything and thank you to anyone who answers .

[Thalassic]

Turning an indoor only cat into an indoor/outdoor cat tips ??

Okay so quick backstory : George is a senior cat . He is bald on his belly and inner back legs and has cataracts in one eye- but his eye isn't very foggy and he sees just fine . He recently jumped out a window ( 1st story and there was a box under the window ) and is now OBSESSED with being outside . We decided there was no harm in throwing a harness on him and letting him explore a bit and he loved it . He will now sit in front of the front door and constantly scream and pull the door handle trying to open the door ( our handle inside is kinda like a lever so there is a very real chance he could actually open the door and get out on his own- we locked the door last night just in case ) .
He will scream in front of the door for like, hours now .

I prefer indoor only cats because there are so many dangers outside ( disease, predators, cats, etc ) and that cats can pose a threat to lots of wildlife . However, George is old and my boyfriend and I figured there isn't too much harm in wanting to let him do what he wants in his older years .

Our currently plan is to keep his outdoors time minimal bc we can't get him a flea and tick preventative until a couple days from now . We want to keep his outdoors time supervised and on leash for a couple weeks bc my boyfriend wants to make sure he always comes back home .


Does anyone have tips on transferring him from indoors only to inside/outside ?
There is already a purely outside cat in the yard, my boyfriends parents own him . Onyx and George haven't had much interaction but have met once or twice- it wasn't friendly but they weren't throwing a fit and trying to fight either, I have no concerns that they won't do well outside together after figuring out their boundaries with one another .
We have another cat inside the home, Fiona, who George does well with . Fiona has no interest in going outside .

Also, any tips on discouraging cats from lilies ?? There are tiger lilies planted in the yard . Onyx does not mess with them and has coexisted with these plants for quite a while . Anytime George gets near the plants he tries to chew on them . I know any part of a lily is HIGHLY toxic to cats so I always pull him away from doing so .
I cannot remove the lilies from the yard, as they are not mine .
Should I always keep George leashed because of this ?? They are my biggest concern about letting him roam freely outside .
George is driving me insane with his constant screaming and ideally I would like to be able to turn him out for him to return later . I don't mind only leashed outings but even after a couple hours outside he will scream at the door on and on and on .
Building a catio is not an option for us currently or anytime soon .


Sorry for super long post . Thank you to anyone who takes the time to read everything and thank you to anyone who answers .

I think the best thing to do, would be to give him as much leashed time outdoors as you can. Or if possible (or really more of a longterm thing), to build an outdoor catio, which is just a fenced in space outside for cats, or look up ways to cat-proof whatever outdoor space you have, that keeps them safely away from any sort of danger, while still allowing them to experience the smells and sights of the outdoors. But since those can be complicated and expensive, taking him on walks on his leash is an excellent idea.
Personally I am strongly against letting cats outside unsupervised. The risks simply outweigh the benefits by a lot. So my suggestion would be to stick to the safe methods, and also get him a flea/tick collar or drops or whatever, as soon as possible, as you can very easily encounter those in the "wild".
He probably isn't going to be pleased with limited outdoor time, but you can look for other ways to enrich his inside time, such as new toys, maybe bring in some grass or leaves from the outside (my cats love to play with crunchy leaves). I know you said he's old, so I don't know how effective this would be, but you could also try to take him on walks on a schedule, such as right after feeding time, for example, so that he learns when to expect a walk and when it's pointless for him to sit by the door and scream. If you teach him that screaming at the door get him let outside, he will never stop.

[nervousdog]

Thank you so much for the tip !
It's only been about two days of leashed trips, and he does good about not darting out the door when I take the dog outside, but he does sit there and scream .

I will use the feeding tip and putting his walks on a schedule !
Someday a catio would be nice, but currently it's not in our budget . We plan on revamping "our part" of the yard this summer so maybe we can fix up a cat safe area for him then !

[payno.]

“Bruh you have to try this catnip. It’s outta this world.”

[POLLEN_EATER]

i have a cat and his name is oreo and he is a chonky boi hes turning three this year but he likes eating tape and the smell of bleach wich is bad because i wants to rub around in it help?
oreo and toes

[Bridgy1234]

I have an adopted boy named domino, we adopted him and his brother midnight. Sadly midnight met the same fate as our last black cat buddy, and was hit in one of our driveways (please don’t drive country roads like they are highways!) the two loved sleeping cuddled up together so since losing midnight domino has been looking for new places to sleep, as my boy mr jade only likes to cuddle with me, one of these places is my chick brooder, so far this seems to be a favorite and it doesn’t even have the heater running yet! And it’s not really any different temperature wise either. Lol I’m hoping he does this when I have the chicks. Much rather him help keep them warm than stalk them.

[darling feathers]

hey, does anyone have any advice for dealing with a male
cat continuously marking/spraying?
i swear i've tried everything but he's gotten so much worse
recently & i'm not sure why.

for context about the cat in question:
- indoor only
- neutered
- around 5 years old
- lives with 2 other male cats (& has for a few years, no issues
directly with them)
- we have 4 litter boxes around the house
- pheromone diffusers do not help
- prozac didn't help

he also has a track record of urinary issues, but the vet has ran
lab samples recently & said he's perfectly fine, so it's just a
behavior issue :/

[Thalassic]

hey, does anyone have any advice for dealing with a male
cat continuously marking/spraying?
i swear i've tried everything but he's gotten so much worse
recently & i'm not sure why.

for context about the cat in question:
- indoor only
- neutered
- around 5 years old
- lives with 2 other male cats (& has for a few years, no issues
directly with them)
- we have 4 litter boxes around the house
- pheromone diffusers do not help
- prozac didn't help

he also has a track record of urinary issues, but the vet has ran
lab samples recently & said he's perfectly fine, so it's just a
behavior issue

Are the other cats neutered as well?
Could there be any significance to the places he's spraying, like places the other cats like to hang out, or very near the litterboxes?
Has he been doing this all his life, or did he only start this recently?

[Blue_Aussie]

hey, does anyone have any advice for dealing with a male
cat continuously marking/spraying?
i swear i've tried everything but he's gotten so much worse
recently & i'm not sure why.

for context about the cat in question:
- indoor only
- neutered
- around 5 years old
- lives with 2 other male cats (& has for a few years, no issues
directly with them)
- we have 4 litter boxes around the house
- pheromone diffusers do not help
- prozac didn't help

he also has a track record of urinary issues, but the vet has ran
lab samples recently & said he's perfectly fine, so it's just a
behavior issue

My cat, Buddy, does this. He marks any cloth items in the house unless it’s mine. But if he isn’t in my bedroom he marks all of my family’s blankets, clothes and even chairs... This probably doesn’t help any because I haven’t found a solution other than keeping him only in my bedroom which he prefers anyways because of our dogs. Also, tip for getting the smell of cat urine out of things is to use thieves cleaner. c;

[darling feathers]

-snip-

Are the other cats neutered as well?
Could there be any significance to the places he's spraying, like places the other cats like to hang out, or very near the litterboxes?
Has he been doing this all his life, or did he only start this recently?

the other cats are neutered. neither of them mark anything either.
none of the places seem significant, it’s basically
anywhere & everywhere he decides he wants to.
though he doesn’t do it near the litter boxes &
barely ever does it in my room.
he started when he was around 3 years old, so it’s
been going on for a bit.

Also, tip for getting the smell of cat urine out of things is to use thieves cleaner. c;

thank you for the cleaning tip :)