Does your cat stay inside or outside?

[Meow101]

Is your cat an inside or outside cat? I think it is safer to have inside cats, but mine is an outside. If I had a choice, he'd stay inside, but my Mom won't let him. (Mainly because she doesn't want a litter box in her house :rolleyes I don't think he'd like staying inside all the time too much either. It has been an issue for a long time whether to keep them inside or outside, and I vote inside. Even Vets reccomend keeping them inside, they say it is the safest thing to do. There are a lot of reasons why it is safer to keep them inside too; here they are: 1. To protect them from bad weather, 2. To keep them safe from dogs, or any other animals, 3. And to keep them (unfortunetly) safe from people that dis-like cats. I'll post a short article I've written in here soon. It is on inside and outside cats. I write an on-line newsletter called The Pet Planet On-line. I send it through e-mail.
Thanks,
-Meow101

[Meow101]

Should I Keep My Cat Inside, Or Outside?

This is a very important issue, and most people argue about if you should keep your cat inside, or outside. Most Vets recommend keeping them inside, they are much safer from other cats and animals, cars, and unfortunately, people who don’t like cats. I also recommend keeping them inside, they live longer, they’re healthier, they’ll be warmer, and have nicer places to hide, as most cats like to hide, it makes them feel secure. Boogie, my cat, is naturally an outside cat, but he loves coming inside. If it was my choice, I’d keep him in, but he doesn’t like staying in all the time, and my mom doesn’t like having an inside cat. It is your choice, whether to keep your cat inside, or outside, but it is safest for them inside.
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There was my (short) article on whether to keep your cat inside or outside. There is not much I haven't already said, but I just thought it would be helpful.
-Meow101

[Jamaican 17]

My cat stays inside because she had two wounds in her neck and her lower body from another cat last winter. She also got lost for three days in the winter and we worried about her a lot. I think it is better for cats to be indoor cats, especially since I was bitten by a "wild" cat on my paper route. So I think it's cooler to keep your cat inside.

[Meow101]

I also, think it is better to keep them inside. Thank you for telling your opinion!
-Meow101

[Fuzzy317]

We keep our cats inside, but they do go outside on a leash. To us, outside pets have too many hazards to dodge, especially in our area.

We prefer to have long term relationships with our pets. We would rather have a pet put to sleep after a long, healthy, peaceful life, rather than having that decision left up to the next car or truck.

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Recently adopted by 3 cats: Jackson, Rosie, Fluffy; a dog: Eli; some fish, and my fiancee: Lynn (Vi Co Bi)

[Logan]

We have had a very long discussion on this before. I am in total agreement with you that inside is the best place. But I am lucky, and hope to remain so. Mine come in and out as they wish, but are inside much more often than outside. Neither of them would make very good indoor only pets. But if I started them as kittens, I would definitely work to have them be indoor only. Mine stay right around my yard and we live in a neighborhood with low traffic and no stray dogs, so I feel much better, allowing them to go outdoors.

[Ben E Gas]

I really don't understand your reasoning, Fuzzy317. Why would you have your cat put to sleep? Isn't that a bit cruel? If your going to let your cat go,(which I don't agree anyone should), then just let it have the best chance to survive. you know? he didn't really ask to be your pet in the first place. at least give him the courtesy of fending for himself and having a life. Find him a home atleast. That is the first thing you should do anyway. I don't mean to be rude, at all by this message. Let me know what you think. putting him to sleep seems all to convenient to me. just because you can't live with yourself thinking that you let him go. don't put them to sleep. they are survivors. feast or famine. again, i don't think you should let them go but i think it's better than putting them to sleep. If the cat is very ill, that's a different story.

to get back to original topic: i think they're better off indoors and maybe take them out on a leash if they allow it. also, if you have your own home and it's in a nice neighborhood then it should be alright to let them come in and out as they please.

[Fuzzy317]

Originally posted by Ben E Gas:
I really don't understand your reasoning, Fuzzy317. Why would you have your cat put to sleep?

I guess my post was not specific enough. I was talking about MAYBE putting to sleep, AFTER a long life, and ONLY if they were suffering enough to make living a larger burden on them.

I want my current pets to be in my life forever, but I realize that pets, as well as humans, have a set time for "living", which I think is much more than simply being "alive".

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Recently adopted by 3 cats: Jackson, Rosie, Fluffy; a dog: Eli; some fish, and my fiancee: Lynn (Vi Co Bi)

[Ben E Gas]

I think I may have just misunderstood you, fuzzy317. sorry.

[ilovehounds]

My cat is an indoor cat but he goes outside to go to the bathroom. He has never used a litter box in his life he perfers to go outside. He sits at the door and meows to go out then when he has done his bussiness he paws the door to come in. He also goes for walks in the field with myself and my two hounds everyday.

The only thing I think you should do is NEVER let your cat outside if it has been declawed. He can't protect himself or climb to safty.

[4 feline house]

Okay, Ben, now that you and Fuzzy are friends again, please tell me that I am misunderstanding you. Are you saying that if a person cannot, for whatever reason, keep their pet any longer, dumping them is preferable to euthanizing them?

[pam_pesto]

I know I wasn't asked, but I feel compelled to respond. OK, I really hope you are refering to situations where the cat is in incredible pain and is dying when you are talking about euthanizing/dumping. Because as far as I'm concerned, that is the only circumstance when it is OK to euthanize an animal. Unfortunately that isn't the case, but I don't think it is Ok to dump OR euthanize a cat because you "can't keep them for wheatever reason." There had better be a pretty damn good reason. I personally do not put cats on a level any lower than that of humans when it comes to this sort of thing. If you can't care for your kid, is it an option to throw them on the side of the road or you know, just kill them? Legally, absolutely not! I don't think either is acceptable for a cat either-- legally it is, but ethically NO WAY!

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Personal servant for Pesto
http://www.angelfire.com/80s/pestoswitzer/main.html
http://www.angelfire.com/pq/coolcatclub/main.html

[Meow101]

Okay,
I REALLY don't understand any of this. Please explain this to me. Please do not fight- I don't know why everyone is fighting anyway. I'm sorry if I opened up a topic that starts fights.
-Meow101

[pam_pesto]

No one's fighting-- it just isn't always easy to tell what someone means by reading typed words, smiles and all. Don't worry about it.

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Personal servant for Pesto
http://www.angelfire.com/80s/pestoswitzer/main.html
http://www.angelfire.com/pq/coolcatclub/main.html

[Meow101]

Boogie is more comfertable inside. Right now he is curled up on the computer desk sleeping.[img] http://wsphotofews.excite.com/016/ff/Au/gW/qg28152.jpg[/img]
-Meow101
Boogie's Mom, And Webmaster
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