Kristie
Rock n' Roll Doggie VIP PASS
LivLuvAndBootlegMusic said:Max, like I said before, that's for peeing/spraying and is not Cricket's problem. Before assuming it's a behavioral problem, she should see a vet to rule out a medical issue.
As for indoor vs. outdoor cats, I don't see any real reason why cats have to be outside. Outdoor cats require additional vaccinations that have a higher risk of problems than the typical indoor cat vaccinations (rabies and distemper). For example, my indoor cats will never get feline leukemia shots but outdoor cats have to and there is a very slight chance of some tumors associated with this vaccine. Sure, my cats meow and howl constantly to go out, but they learn. Beckham did this to the point of madness, and now he's fine inside. Max is constantly running out the door or acutally clawing through my screens, but he'll learn eventually. To me, it's just not worth the risk of all the diseases they can catch. I can't afford to vaccinate them against that and I don't want to take any chances. Domestic cats were bred to be indoors; there's nothing instinctive about them being in the wild. Not to mention, in a lot of cities it's not legal. The outdoor cats by my parents house are all sick, they're not taken care of b/c they never see a vet regularly, they've killed off the birds and routinely tear into each other. I can't believe how people say they love animals and then neglect their animals like that.
Kristie, I've been to your house and seen your cats and you have a very nice yard and your house is far enough from other houses for it not to be a problem.
I guess it's mainly a matter of personal choice based on if you're willing to pay extra and go to extra vet visits for the proper vaccinations and what the laws are in your area.
Our yard is one big kitty playground... but we've still had one cat get hit by a car and several that just never came home. I might teach a cat to walk on a leash but I've had enough of them that I loved go outside and never come home.