When putting a cat, or kitten outside it's best to get a leash. Many cats and kittens have been stolen, hurt, hit by cars or they run away. My cat Molly has always been walked with a leash and she loves it.
By Barbara
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Hi Barbara,
My Mom has always taken her cats on a walk ... with a harness and leash! Unfortunately my kitties (rescue) have come to me as adults and too late to leash train.
They love looking out the windows though. If I ever find a kitten, he/she will be leash trained! How much fun to walk!
Jennifer
Northern Virginia
I had another cat that I could take outside on a leash, but the one I have now wont tolerate it. I got her as a kitten, but she just wouldnt let me put it on her. I tried everything. She is 12 yr old now and a housecat.. This past summer I had the idea to try letting her out on my big deck in the back of my house. (I live in the country so there isnt a lot of simulation...just enough..lol) I was able to keep her on the deck..just like a dog!
I tried that with my new kitten but she wouldn't ever do it she's hated it all along, any advice about that? Thanks!
Well I had my AllieMae for 10 years and she was
a tortishell cat, so beautiful but stubborn. She refused the leash from the onset but she loved
I trained mine by putting the leash on him for a short period of time each day, building it up slowly. He got used to it and loved his walks. I would pick up the harness and leash and shake it and he would come running,lived to be 20
We're fostering a rescue cat (aged six years) and have trained him to the harness and leash for his new furever family. They'll be able to have him with them in late spring and have really enjoyed the blog showing his training and progress:)
We started him off just putting the harness on him for five minutes, two or three times a day, and worked up to leaving the harness on for longer periods whilst taking him out to the back garden. He hated it at first, yowling, twisting, lying down, etc. But now he understands it is the only way he is going to go outside, so when he sees the harness come off the hook by the door, he runs to have it on:)
His new furever family was thrilled to know we would train him because they've lost other cats to outside accidents, injuries, illness. His brother was killed by a car crossing the country road near his former home (where they'd been abandoned) so he was going to be an inside kitteh anyway. On the harness he has outside time but is safe.
Keeping a cat indoors is better for the cat. An indoor cat isn't run over by cars, attacked by other animals including two-legged ones, exposed to parasites or contagious diseases. Indoor cats live longer.
But getting them outdoors on a harness and lead gives them a bit of the excitement cats seem to crave.
Yes, cats living indoors is much safer and much healthier for a cat. Its worth it for the peace of mind. I tried taking Lucy out several years ago, but she enjoyed the grass SO MUCH, we didnt get very far. Loud car noises spooked her, after that, so we stopped. But I just bought her a pet stroller, which she loves! Shes a CKD terminally ill kitty, so this makes her life have JOY!
I only allow our cat outside wearing her harness and cat leash. She loves it because she likes to be outside on a sunny day and she gets excited when I get the harness out and ask her if she wants to go out. It took a little while to get her into it but now it's fine and if at times she refuses to wear it she must not want to go out so I give up and forget about putting her out.
Lulu use to run in the neighborhood at our previous home and it was a area safe of traffic.....then we moved, not such a safe area for her. At that point she was 5 years old and never knew a tether or harness and leash. Took to it right away. She is more than eager for me to put it on her, she knows she gets to hangout in the yard with me or go for a short walk. She is now 10. I was very surprised that a cat that was once on her own for running around took to the halter, leash and tether. And she walked on the leash from the first, never flopped on the ground!
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