Reply to Cat adoption: when did it become so difficult?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]We found the same thing.  We used to have a neighbor with many, many cats.  Sometimes one of his cats would show up at our house and announce that it was too crowded over there and it would be moving in with us whether we liked it or not.  Then the neighbor died and eventually stray cats stopped showing up at our house.  [b]When I called the local pet adoption places, they said they would not let us adopt because we do not believe in keeping our cats in the house 24/7[/b]. [/quote]

That's true. Cats who roam outdoors statistically are injured and killed at high rates. Adoption contracts require you to commit to keeping them indoors. I've learned to look for the ones that seem temperamentally suited to indoor living.[/quote]

There's longevity and there's quality of life.  I'm willing to look for the ones that are not temperamentally suited to indoor only life.  [/quote]

NP  I believe cats can have a high quality of life and be an indoor cat.  If you think being cold and chased by other animals/cars/kids is a good fun time than you should try it.  Unless you live in a rural place I think it is cruel to let them go outside.

We rescued one kitty from montgomery county animal shelter and two from the Humane rescue league in dc ( we were able to adopt that day)  The other kitties we have had were found as kittens on the street and were friendly and they have adapted to indoor living only.  [/quote]

I understand both sides of this issue. Certainly in terms of longevity, cats do best indoors. Some cats are unhappy being indoors only, and we have tried being flexible. But here are the results: our indoor only cats are still with us, our indoor-outdoor cats have all died prematurely. Three (one older, two young) hit by cars when they wandered too far from the house, one got into something toxic that poisoned him. My DH felt for a long time that we should respect cats' instinct to go outside, but he now agrees we should commit to indoor only. It's not always easy, but we believe it's the better choice for the cats' wellbeing. Many (most?) shelters feel strongly about this, because they know the statistics and have seen lots of bad stuff.

[/quote]When I grew up we had a cat that used to be an outdoor/indoor cat, it lived a long life. The cats getting hit by cars and being poisoned is a worst case scenario. I was in my 20's before I heard of cats staying indoors 24/7. As an adult I had two cats which I let out into the backyard, they loved it. When I brought them back inside they would sit by the patio door wanting to go back out.  The only real problem I had with my cats being outdoors is I didn't want them to poop on the neighbors property. One of the reasons I no longer have cats is because I don't want to keep them locked up in my house all the time. Sorry if people have a problem with that, but it just doesn't sit well with me. I have a co-worker who has a dog that he never takes out for a walk. It stays in the house all the time except when he lets it out into the backyard. That's weird to me. [/quote]

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