The Cat Thread

I just died a little. Amazing!

Such cuties xxx

I UTFS'd but couldn't find anything obvious. We're about to adopt our first kitty, he's about 8 weeks old, not been outside yet, but I don't like the idea of continuing that trend forever. Thing is lots of cats go missing in our area, many twatty drivers on the road out the front, so wondering what the chances are of turning my garden into palatial cat prison yard. Seen a few design ideas, just wondered if anyone on here has first hand experience?

Just let them be free. A short life as a free cat is worth a million long prisoned years.

Cat has had the shits for the last few days. He's eating a little (boiled chicken) and drinking enough but I think it's vet time again.

Part of me wonders if the two courses of antibiotics he's been on in the last couple of months has something to do with it but the vet will just give him more if I bring him in...

He ate part of a dragon fly the other day which might have caused it...

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Catface is an indoor only cat, sometimes it's best keeping them in for their own good. Might seem cruel to some but I can't risk anyone else feeding him as he is diabetic, also last time I let him out he came back with an extreme allergy from something & pulled his fur out.
All cats are different & he certainly wouldn't like a little friend to keep him company. He is king of his castle & I doubt he would want it any other way.

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Short of high solid walls all the way around your garden, the cat will find a way out. Either keep it as an indoor cat permanently or accept the risk that it may one day not come home.

Every night Patch comes back, I count my blessing once more. I hope it'll never happen, but I kind of know that, one day, she might go hide somewhere when her time comes, or get 'catnapped', eaten by a fox or whatever.... So far she never goes far and I am glad.

The way I see it is that I would rather live a shorter but more exciting life than one that I am bored out of my shit staring at 4 walls everyday. That said, Patch is a self made indoor cat that she only goes out for short periods everyday...

Like others have said, each cat is different, and each household is different, I just happen to have gardens back to back so it is relatively safe round here, barring 1 single fox who seems to have lost the battle to the cats here...

Same. Although the foxes round here don't take any shit from cats and happily go for them if they get too close.
Other cats are more of an issue by an order of magnitude though. After less than a year of becoming an outdoor cat, ours has gone from pristine to having shaved patches, a limp and weird stomach issues from time to time.

Every morning when I let him out at 5am, it's a case of "it's been nice knowing you. Please come back intact and wake us up again at 7".

Finally, someone lets their cat out earlier than me. I let Patch out at 5:30... and by the time I wake up, usually about 7:30, she would have been out and back for the day... she might go out again hours later and again after dinner for a short while, but like I said, she is a self made indoor cat... and so far, she is good as gold... I only once saw some blood on the step by the flap but it certainly wasn't from her...

Thanks for the thoughts and advice guys. Buddy has been in our house all afternoon, seems to be fairly happy exploring the place, although he has a bit of a flea problem which we are trying to get on top of and he's a little bit freaked out by the sound of our neighbor going upstairs to his flat. We're a bit like nervous first parents at the moment, we need to relax into it as much as he does.

Been there, done that gotten the claw marks. I called the cattery about 2 hours after letting Patch out on her 1st week asking for advice how to look for a missing cat... Then 2nd week, she went out just 1 afternoon, couldn't find her, the I knocked on my neighbours doors looking for my missing cat...

Then it got better... still I would get out to the garden look for her every evening if I don't see her by about 9ish for about 6 months, now I am like "come back when you are hungry, will you?". It'll get better...

If he's got flea give him a quick bath. Bit of washing up liquid and warm water!

Cat is still super mopey and eating little. Hasn't done a solid shit all day. Vet again tomorrow!

Anyone remember this idiot. Found her hiding in a crawl space under our flat as a skinny abandoned yoot. She's solidly part of our pack now. Third wheel on our trike.

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The previous owners did that just before we arrived, they just seemed to migrate to his head. Given him some stronger treatment now and they seem to be dropping out, luckily he's quite co-operative about being combed.

I was just thinking about her the other day (honestly, I did). I have a thing about cats with black nose...

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Something about a wonky nose patch!

Something tells me he's settling in alright (no signs of fleas today).

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Yep! Looks comfy enough.

More Pocket (for ExTra)

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Not my nail varnish. Pics are what Mrs Wrongcog sends me when I'm at work sometimes.

OMG! You have made my day!!!

Patch's insurance has finally paid out, it only took them about 2 weeks from the day they received the last piece of info from the vet. No fuss, no hassle, pretty happy with John Lewis.