Cat parents, have you had any luck taking an outdoor kitteh and making him

[GreenPartyVoter]

an indoor one? Also, what about bringing in new kittens with a slightly older cat? (He was raised as the baby in his cat home, but they can't keep him now.)

We want to get kittens this summer, but a neighbor said she needs to let her almost 2yo boy kitteh go to a new home (Older cat is starting to bully him badly.) I don't want to deal with an outdoor kitteh again. I've been through the heartbreak of losing them too many times. And I want to be sure that it would be safe to bring new kittens into a home with this guy. (Safe for the kittens, and for the house. I don;t need an angry kitteh peeing everywhere.)

Any thoughts?

[meow2u3]

1. Ruby was like that when she was a kitten

I had no trouble turning her into in indoor kitty because that was the way she wanted it! She's the exception that proved the rule regarding other outdoor cats I had had.

Bonaparte, a cat I had had when I lived in Texas, was a pain to try to convert into an indoor cat. Mom and I moved to a place where it was illegal to let cats run at large, but we did have a back yard large enough for him to be let out there. He had to be put down because of FIP at the age of 14, in 1996.

Boots, a cat I had 7 years ago, was another outdoor cat who hated to be kept indoors. When he was 2, I got him a new home because he didn't get along with my ex-roommate's pit bull (they'd fight like the cats and dogs they were), but they returned him to me because he refused to remain indoors--he always got out! I had to bring him to animal control to try to get him a new home there and my ex-roomie gave her dog to a friend. The dog turned out happy; Boots ended up put to sleep.

I did have success with one cat: Sylvester, the Maine Coon mix, but it took my taking in two stray, semiferal kittens back in 2000 for me to do that. Before, he'd forever want to go out looking for feline playmates, but when the kittens came along, he didn't want to leave their side. He was a father figure to Smokey and Bandit (Smokey was solid gray, a Russian Blue lookalike or mix and Bandit was a tuxedo with a white tip on his tail--and not too bright, either). We ended up having 4 cats, until my mom's death in 2003. I couldn't keep the cats anymore and they all ended up on Rainbow Bridge.

[ceile]

2. Honestly, I've not had much luck in the past to completely break the desire.

Ambrose wandered up to me in an apt complex in 2000. He's always been an indoor/outdoor cat (he's 14). Never wanders farther than the front porch or back yard. I think that's mainly due to his temperment- he loves his people and is never too far away from us at any given time.
Grace is another story. Half feral when she showed up and we took her in. SHe did ok inside, but was constantly trying to "escape". She was young (about 2) so I thought I'd get her a kitten to play with (Ambrose and our other cat are very senior and didn't want anything to do with her)- maybe calm her down and make her see she could have fun inside as well. BIG mistake. Once that kitten showed up she began peeing on everything. Never tried to harm the kitten, but made it very clear she was unhappy. Had to start letting her out again, only for an hour or each evening after work and I generally sat with her during that time. Peeing stopped immediately. That lasted two months- gardners found her in some bamboo they were clearing on the side of my house not far from the road. Learned that lesson the hard way.
But I will say this: Ambrose loves the kitten (now 3 y/o). He was the one that groomed and played with her, still does. I always thought it was the females that were nurturing, but my two females blew that theory.
So I guess after all that rambling my point is this: it will be difficult to keep him in, and he may try to get out for years. You just have to be vigilant. On the kitten issues, I think he'll do just fine.

[rox63]

3. I brought a youngster into my household with my older cat

My older kitty (Princess, age 11) doesn't care for the youngster (Simon, nearly 2 now, but only 9 months when I adopted him), because he is always bugging her to play. She occasionally hisses at him and smacks him with her paw. But mostly she tolerates him. They probably won't ever be friends, but they can coexist in the same household.

Princess was an outdoor kitty when I first took her in. But she has never wanted to go back outside. I don't think she liked it much out there. Simon was originally picked up as a stray by the animal shelter. But both kitties were less than a year old when I adopted them. So I don't think being outdoors was all that ingrained in their personalities yet.

[iscooterliberally]

4. Here are my thoughts. I have 5 cats and 3 big dogs.

Make sure everyone is micro-chipped and vetted.
Have one litter box per cat, plus one or two extra.
Make sure that your new formerly outdoor kitty has it's own area of your house.
Make sure that he/she has some elevated places to eat and sleep.
Grow some catnip, get some cat toys. Empty boxes are awesome to cats. You can make stuff w/o spending $$$$.
Feed your new cat the best canned food that you can afford.
In other words, make your home a 'Cat Nirvana' so that when it does eventually break out, it won't be gone for long.

My last addition came from a feral cat colony next to a dog park. She came crying to me when I was leaving with my dogs and it was apparent that she was starving. She has gotten out several times, but has always come right back. She's a little butterball now, and does love her food. I have been feeding her Royal Canin kitten food and she loves it. Now if someone would just adopt her, I would be down to only 4 cats. I must have 'sucker' written on my forehead in invisible ink that only cats can read.

Good luck!

[GreenPartyVoter]

5. THANK YOU! I've asked his mom to consider us as the back-up plan if no one else will take him.

[Curmudgeoness]

6. I adopted two cats who were outdoor cats,

and I did not want outdoor cats. They lived to a ripe old age of 17 and 18, as indoor cats. They loved being by windows and watching outside, and after five years of them being gone, I still put my foot in the door as I open it to prevent an escape. But they were not unhappy. Cats adjust.

[Rhiannon12866]

7. I had the same experience and the cat I adopted was 12.

She had had way too much of a struggle outside and was happy to just sit in the window, where she was warm and safe.

[Curmudgeoness]

9. Wow, that was one incredible cat! Outdoor cats

normally do not live that long, so she must have been a really smart kitty. And lucky. And lucky to find a nice indoor home for her elder years!

[Rhiannon12866]

10. I found out that she was left behind when someone on the next street moved

The woman had a lot of cats (and three dogs) and this one must have gotten away from her. I don't know why she didn't tell me, since I got to know her when I rescued her smallest dog (Yorkie) after he got loose. It got to be a regular thing after I found out where he lived. *sigh*

I started feeding this cat in my side yard, and I got close, but it took me four months and a have-a-heart trap I borrowed from the vet for me to finally bring her inside. I resorted to the trap when the weather got bad. There was a woman at this animal hospital who worked with ferals who helped me. She said that this cat wasn't a feral because she let me get close to her. She was right. This poor cat was just lost and must have been through so much....

I needed my friend, who had caught cats for the SPCA, to come into my house and catch her for me so I could bring her to the vet. It was not easy and the vet had to sedate her (turns out this was a spayed female ). But it turned out that her teeth had gotten really bad and she must have been in pain. But after she had needed dental surgery, she almost became a lap cat.

After I found out who she had belonged to, I was able to trace her to the vet I borrowed the trap from and that's how I determined her age. She lived out the rest of her life indoors, would only eat Fancy Feast and the closest she got to outside again was looking out the window.

[Curmudgeoness]

11. Kudos to you.

You went out of your way to get this cat, care for her, and had to spend money on the vet (and all the Fancy Feast). I know that cat was thankful.

[Rhiannon12866]

12. The poor thing deserved much more, considering what she went through

I only wish I knew about her sooner. I used to see her running around the neighborhood, but I assmed she belonged to someone, one of the problems with folks who let their cats outside. I couldn't sleep if I didn't know where my cat was, just running around outside, anymore than I could if it was my dog. There are so many dangers out there and my cat was lucky to have survived.

[supernova]

8. No luck here

We have three cats: A brother and sister we got three years ago. Their son who is two years old. (Cue the banjos. )

We did pretty well keeping them indoors for a time.

Then we got a dog.

After that there was no stopping the cats. They had to go out when he went out to potty.

So now the routine is We go out first thing in the morning: Moby goes out to potty and the cats come out too. They stay out while there is daylight and if it's (mostly warm and sunny.) I make them stay in if the daytime temp is below about 45. Water gun at the door works. They know to come in as the sun starts going down.

I have a big yard that includes woods, so they have plenty of places to be and not bother anyone.

[badgerpup]

13. My clowder is indoor-outdoor....

The boys prefer being outdoors when the weather is good but will tolerate being housebound due to cold and snow. Raven is still on restriction due to her age (7 1/2 months)...she's only allowed out when I'm home and for short periods.
She gets a change of scenery when we go to work and they've bought my 'service animal' explanation at the Store Which Must Not Be Named, so she comes shopping with me too.
She has a fan club there.

Riktor has punched all my screens out so often I've given up on having any open windows...if they want out, they WILL find a way. Even a claw's purchase on a window sash leads eventually to an open window and escaped cats.

As soon as I get Raven her chip, they will ALL have microchips (they ditch the break-away collars).
I think D'Artagnan might have an 'arrangement' with some neighbors since he comes running from that direction when I call or come home. He's very lean, so he looks underfed, but that cat weighs over 12 lbs and is solid muscle.
All my neighbors know that if there are black cats running around, they're probably mine.

I'm lucky...live in a cool neighborhood where people understand about spay and neuter and live and let live...

[Auggie]

14. Took in a stray 5 months ago without knowing her history

until just yesterday.

Previous owners up and moved and left two cats to fend for themselves. They were both 100% outdoor cats. The one that we took in started hanging out in the backyard with regularity around August 2011. I was adamant about not taking it in -- never been a cat person. Plus, Mrs. Auggie has a history of massive alergic reactions with her previous cat, deceased for over 14 years.

Incredibly, the allergies didn't seem to be a problem. Cat was so scrawny and in-need and friendly that I broke down and fed her and we decided to look after her until we could find a good home. Had her checked from whisker to tail -- all positive. About 2 -3 years old, according to the vet.

As you might expect, she won us over and has been with us since. But those years she spent outside set some bad habits -- mainly, territory marking (inside the house and out) and, at first, no interest in the litter box. She's coming around to using the box, hopefully, but she'll never be happy being an inside-only cat.

We're working on getting our routine down. I take her for walks at 4-5 in the morning to be sure there aren't any bad guys in the backyard, and she can mark anything she wants. People do it with dogs -- why not cats? Sometimes she prefers to stay outside, other times she joins me inside as I read the morning paper. I worry like heck letting her out, but she's a lot happier that way. I wouldn't want to change that.