Re: OT Cat Advice Needed

Jason was an indoor/outdoor cat, and he usually came when called. My  
real delight was when I would go into the garden, and moments later I  
would hear the bell on his collar and he would be bounding over to  
greet me. When I would walk around the yard, Jason would trail  
behind, just as a dog would. We did not have an autopsy done when he  
died at age 7, but the vet was convinced that the cause was not  
poison. Probably a neurological tumor.

Cathy, west central IL, z5b

On Jul 30, 2007, at 10:22 PM, Kitty wrote:

> I'm not really sure why a cat needs to come when called.  Mine each  
> do seem to respond to their own names, but are more likely to come  
> to the sound of a cat food can being opened.  Mine come and go as  
> they please but when they are outside they generally stay in my  
> yard or not far from it.  If a car rounds the corner down the  
> street they head for the back yard.  They are all street smart;  
> arrived that way.  As time goes by, they seem to prefer being  
> indoors more than out, but that could just be because they know  
> they have the choice.
>
> As to the data about the average life-span of a cat outside is only  
> 2 years, it is skewed.  That takes into account huge numbers of  
> feral cats and a lot of cats with no benefit of preventative  
> medicine, no options, bad diets, and on & on..  All my cats have  
> been indoor / outdoor cats with decent food and the best medical  
> care. I believe they have benefited from having the best of both  
> worlds. Spot lived to 20, Orangecat and Mick died at 15 and 11  
> respectively from cancers that they could easily have gotten had  
> they been indoor only.
>
> If you don't want Diesel to go out, you're just going to have to be  
> faster and more agile than a cat.  Or devise a system that thwarts  
> his escape.
>
> Kitty
> neIN, Zone 5
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Daryl" <pulis@mindspring.com>
> To: "gardenchat" <gardenchat@hort.net>
> Sent: Monday, July 30, 2007 11:09 AM
> Subject: [CHAT] OT Cat Advice Needed
>
>
>> Diesel really loves being outside, and spends hours either on the  
>> screened
>> porch or perched in an open window. I thought he'd be a happy  
>> inside cat, but
>> I guess he spent too long outside before we brought him in.
>>
>> Anyway, a year later, and he still wants out. A couple of times  
>> he's dodged
>> out with the dogs. Once, he cruised out while I was slaving over  
>> the drawing
>> board and didn't realize that the dogs had opened the door a bit.  
>> Another
>> time, he apparently pounced at a bird or chipmunk, and pulled the  
>> screen right
>> off the porch pillar.
>>
>> Anyway. He's let me pick him up and bring him in each time. I've  
>> been careful
>> not to pick him up the first time he approaches me in the garden,  
>> so that he
>> doesn't associate me with a quick trip inside, and when we're  
>> inside I've been
>> trying to teach him to come when called (yeah, laugh at me- I've  
>> only had dogs
>> before), but I'm sure there will come a time when I can't pick him  
>> up and
>> he'll out-stubborn me.
>>
>> So. For those of you with indoor-outdoor cat experience - do they  
>> just wander
>> in when they get tired of being outside? Do they come when you  
>> call? Have you
>> been able to teach them to avoid roads? We've got a fenced yard,  
>> but a 4'
>> chain link fence is no match for an athletic cat, I"m sure.
>>
>> d
>>
>> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
>> To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
>> message text UNSUBSCRIBE GARDENCHAT
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
> message text UNSUBSCRIBE GARDENCHAT

---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE GARDENCHAT
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index