18 responses so far ↓

• 1 sezdog // Jul 4, 2010 at 11:38 am

  Not ours, but I wanted to thank you for taking the time to photograph and post about this cat. It seems like a lot of people don’t want to get involved or think someone else will take care of it. So thanks for being a good neighbor!

• 2 jessica // Jul 4, 2010 at 6:12 pm

  I always worry so much when I see cats out and about alone, I recently had two little visitors that were coming daily and had collars with only names no addresses! I brought them to Paws and got them checked for diseases, they weren’t microchipped but now hopefully they can find a homes…Its the best we can do sometimes, but leaving them out on their own is just not right. Thank you for posting the pics, let’s hope the owner is a phinneywood reader!

• 3 twiggy // Jul 4, 2010 at 11:13 pm

  Does this gray cat have bells on its collar? It looks like one that has been c0ming by my house as well very recently. I was thinking it may belong to new people who may have moved in the neighborhood b/c it looks healthy and has a collar with bells.

• 4 Jon // Jul 5, 2010 at 11:10 am

  @Jessica: If they had collars, and looked like they were well-fed, they probably did have homes.

  I love cats as much as the next person, but you can’t just go around, abducting people’s cats because they don’t have addresses on their tags.

• 5 NW // Jul 5, 2010 at 12:18 pm

  I have to agree with Jon. Wouldn’t it occur that a lot of cats like to wander from their homes and explore, but usually find they’re way back? I know ours does. I know you mean well and all Jessica, but it sounds like those cats belong to a neighbor. Maybe try putting some signs up before you take them to the animal shelter. And I hope those poor cats do find homes…their original ones.

• 6 SarahB // Jul 6, 2010 at 6:51 am

  Jessica did the right thing. If you care about your cat in this neighborhood, make it an indoor cat. Your cats shouldn’t be wandering.

  There are way too many people who hate cats in general, hate cat poop in their gardens, people who drive 40MPH down neighborho0d streets with complete disregard for animals or even people, kids who think it’s their right to chase and torment animals, etc.

  Do the right thing. It is just ignorant to think that you can’t turn an outdoor cat into an indoor one. I have done it, as have many other people.

• 7 Justin // Jul 6, 2010 at 7:40 am

  @SarahB: There’s a flip-side to that as well: You make the animal’s life miserable and all it does is sit there and look longingly out the window for 12 hours a day. Yes, there is a chance an outdoor cats get stolen, tormented or hit by a car – but the odds are low and quality of life improvement that the cat will experience will likely make it much happier.

• 8 Julie // Jul 6, 2010 at 9:39 am

  @SarahB is right. If you care about your cat and you want it to have quality time outside, leash train it like several of my neighbors have done. Or build it a safe enclosure in your yard. Train it to walk with you safely as several other neighbors have done. The truth is, the same laws apply to cats as dogs. They actually aren’t allowed to be in other people’s yards. Those who don’t want them using their gardens as a litter box or killing birds are perfectly within their rights to capture a cat and call animal control.

  The odds of them being injured outside aren’t low. The average life expectancy of an outdoor cat is 3 years.

  My dog and I walked out one morning to find a neighbors cat injured and in pain in my front yard after it got hit by a car. It was terrible.

  Check out this blog for numerous ideas on how to have healthy happy indoor cats. The cats she is working with have far greater needs that your typical house cat and she manages.

  http://blog.fabulouslorraine.com/

• 9 pdaddymom // Jul 6, 2010 at 10:14 am

  Amen Julie and SarahB. I have never understood why people who believe that it is wrong for dogs to roam freely think it is perfectly ok for cats to do so. The outdoor world is not safe for domestic cats (take note of all of the lost cat signs and neighborhood blog entries), and it is devastating to the small animals they prey on. Domestic cat predation is one of the main reasons that our native song bird population is on the decline. I also have a former outdoor cat who is now content to live inside. He does not sit around moping and longing to be outside as I have made him happy and fulfilled indoors

• 10 NW // Jul 6, 2010 at 10:33 am

  Wow.

• 11 seattle mike // Jul 6, 2010 at 12:53 pm

  Some cats want to go outside. And some children want to play in the street. That doesn’t mean we let them. We’re responsible for their safety (cats and kids) and need to act accordingly. Indoor cats can and do live full happy lives. The lifespan of an outdoor cat is half that of an indoor-only cat.

• 12 jessica // Jul 6, 2010 at 5:19 pm

  THANK YOU. I did do the right thing, these cats, were sleeping at my door for over a month, never left and were only fed or given water by me!

• 13 jessica // Jul 6, 2010 at 5:20 pm

  @SaraB and Julie…thanks ladies I totally agree. INDOOR is humane.

• 14 Charles // Jul 6, 2010 at 6:16 pm

  So I guess now in 2010 its inhumane to let your cats go outside. I’m gonna take a nice long break from reading these neighborhood blogs. A little too much crazy for me.

• 15 2 // Jul 6, 2010 at 6:41 pm

  Actually, if you believe statistics cats are living longer-outside cats do live longer than 3 years. I grew up with cats that were allowed outdoors and they lived to ripe old ages of 15 so I think it is more a case by case basis.
  And there is new research tying behavior problems to the cat being indoors the jist is that cats are not allowed to express their natural behaviors. Some of the suggestions on here are a little strange-having your cat on a leash is crazy and I laugh whenever I see one.
  And about the loss of song birds maybe there is more at play then simply cats eating them like loss of natural habitat, use of pesticides on lawns and gardens.

• 16 pdaddymom // Jul 7, 2010 at 10:54 am

  2: yes, I know all about the other issues that face song birds, which is why I said that domestic cat predation is one of the top reasons they are in decline, not the only. I have volunteered in a wildlife rehab center and have seen cat attack victims first hand. In addition, I have friends who are wildlife biologists who are very knowledgable in this area. So I am not just talking off the top of my head in this regard. Here’s just one link on the subject if you are interested:
  http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2700103/domestic_cats_threaten_migratory_songbird.html?cat=53

• 17 seattle mike // Jul 7, 2010 at 12:20 pm

  The best thing for indoor cats is to have two of them. They keep each other entertained, preventing the behavior problems that can happen otherwise.

• 18 Kat // Jul 7, 2010 at 5:56 pm

  When I had a house in Phinney we had 4 cats growing up. All outdoor, all did just fine. We lived in a weird part (not a lot of traffic except local) and a lot of our neighbors had cats as well. I moved, I live on a crappy street, got a cat and it got hit by a car after about 4 months. I got two more cats, keep them indoor with the exception of our small (but decent sized) fenced backyard. We even made a makeshift fence door thing so they couldn’t get out our front porch. Now everyone is happy. They have more than just windows, but don’t need to roam the whole neighborhood.

  My BF’s company has a cat it rescued, it lives in a 15×40 room (their office). TINY. Its super old and happy.

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