Banning you pet cat from your house

Jade2015

I work for a family who have a pet cat. They've have the cat for about 4/5 years. The cat sleeps in the shed on straw, with a hole in the shed so she can get in and out. She gets fed in the shed to. She was banned from the upstairs of the house, which is quiet normal. But now she is not allowed in the house at all. I feel so sorry for her as she was out in the snow at the back patio door begging to come in. She has no other cats for company. I feel like they don't want her, as why else would you treat a so called family pet like that. I already have a cat as I would offer to take her otherwise.
Does anyone else think this is cruel towards the cat, who up until this week could at least come into the house during the day

metaoblivia

It sounds like they may be using the cat for rodent/varmint control in their yard. I don't know why else you would keep a cat around, but not want it in the house. I can't imagine they interact with the cat much if she's always outside. Why was she banned from the house? Is she a scratcher? Does she mark? If it's a behavioral issue like that, I would hope her owners would try to find alternative solutions as opposed to just kicking her out.

That's not how I would keep a cat, especially in inclement weather, like snow, but a shed with straw isn't bad. My mom has one cat who really likes to stay outdoors, so they built her a little cat house with a blanket inside in case she ever gets caught outside in a storm, and she uses it. But she's welcome in the house anytime she wants.

I do feel sorry for the little mite though. She can't go into the house at all now, and she'll never understand why.

jungleman

I wouldn't worry yourself about it too much. Cats aren't like dogs, who really need companionship and get distressed without human interaction. I have friends who keep cats outside permanently, never allowed inside, and they are happy as larry. Cats are independent, they can fend for themselves.

madmaggie

I think she wants company. I have two cats, and they are great company for each other, as well as mutual hot water bottles! I don't allow mine into the house, but they have their own very cosy little house with a basket and fluffy blanket. I even insulated their house for them!

VonVix

jungleman wrote: »

I wouldn't worry yourself about it too much. Cats aren't like dogs, who really need companionship and get distressed without human interaction.Cats are independent, they can fend for themselves.

I could understand if a cat has never been in a home environment. But can you really say the same though for a cat who was raised and spent most of his/her life inside the family home?

Hell, an example would be one of my family members is away at the moment and her cat has been spending every day upstairs with me since she has been gone, whenever I go downstairs he'll follow me and when I'm going back up he'll happily follow me back up again.

Roosterreid

I'm surprised the cat isn't making a fuss about getting back in.... our cat will 'miaow' at the window until he's let in (and pretty damn loudly too).... sad to think they have taken this approach

Pumpkinseeds

It sounds strange alright. My guess would be

1. Someone has developed an allergy to the cat

2. The cat has sprayed or toileted somewhere in the house, other than a litter box

3. There's some sort of behaviour that they don't like

Whatever the reason, it seems very unfair to the cat. Within the definition of the law it isn't cruelty, but it's very hard on the cat. I find cats very sociable and I know that ours would be very distressed and confused if we suddenly banned them from the house. I'd be interested to find out what the reason for the putting the cat house is.

RentDayBlues

I don't get why people assume cats don't need company - I know mine is miserable when he's out and wants in immediately

He's happiest in the house amongst us. I can't imagine owning a pet and treating them like this, it's sad

boomerang

jungleman wrote: »

Cats aren't like dogs, who really need companionship and get distressed without human interaction. I have friends who keep cats outside permanently, never allowed inside, and they are happy as larry.

Not entirely true... It depends on the bond between cat and owner. Cats who are closely bonded to their owners (typically, they have grown up in the house) will certainly be distressed if suddenly banished outdoors. They will miss the human company. (Cats don't crave the company of other cats, but they do have an affectionate relationship with their owners.) And as the inside of the house is their core territory, it will upset them that they can't retreat into the house when they don't feel safe. It's one of the reasons cats will up-camp and move elsewhere.

Irish Stones

Roosterreid wrote: »

I'm surprised the cat isn't making a fuss about getting back in.... our cat will 'miaow' at the window until he's let in (and pretty damn loudly too).... sad to think they have taken this approach

I'm surprised that the cat doesn't leave the house and look for a more welcoming place.
Cats do need company and attention and it's not unusual that if they think they're not satisfied with the family they change house.

Shivi111

I don't understand this at all! Our cats would be heart broken if they were banished from the house. I know people think cats are independant and do not need company but they are actually very social if socialised properly, I really disagree with this approach, especially if they cat was allowed inside the hourse previously.

I had to banish my cats from my bedroom (developed pretty serious asthma due to allergies) and I felt bad enough about that!

Its one thing if you live on a farm and have a few 'working' cats who are outside together, and company for one another, but in my opinion very hard on the cat in this situation. Would be better, if their circumstances have changed, to think about rehoming, or if the cat has been banished for behavioral reasons try to address these.

MrWalsh

This is more or less how we came to have our first cat. A neighbour just threw her outside and would only let her in very sporadically. We discovered she was sleeping in a bush outside our door. My heart was broken when we discovered that so we started letting her into us. Eventually she just moved in and the neighbour moved out some time later and never even looked for her.

Its just cruelty. Can the cat not be rehomed?

PeteFalk78

At least it should have a proper outdoor bed and cathouse.
I have 3 cats and they all live outdoor 95% of the time. Once a cat has a dry bed and is fed then they are unlikely to move on.

Of course it's unacceptable to move a predominantly indoor cat to an outdoor cat without some level of acclimatisation.

Jade2015

The cat does meeow pityfully at the patio door to get in, and then went around to the front door to be let in when the mother came home. The cat was just shooed away. I think she was kicked out as the hubby said she leaves paw prints on the kitchen inside window sill. The cat leaves less of a mess than the kids. I hope she finds another neighbour to live with who wants her.

Tommy Kelly

MrWalsh wrote: »

This is more or less how we came to have our first cat. A neighbour just threw her outside and would only let her in very sporadically. We discovered she was sleeping in a bush outside our door. My heart was broken when we discovered that so we started letting her into us. Eventually she just moved in and the neighbour moved out some time later and never even looked for her.

Its just cruelty. Can the cat not be rehomed?

I wouldn't call someone bedding and feeding a cat performing an act of cruelty now. I think you and a few others suggesting the like are going way over the top on that front.

MrWalsh

Tommy Kelly wrote: »

I wouldn't call someone bedding and feeding a cat performing an act of cruelty now. I think you and a few others suggesting the like are going way over the top on that front.

If a cat has been kicked out from being an indoor cat (for at least some of the time) to being a fully outdoor cat then animal will be very distressed and wont understand why it cant go back into its territory.

If you dont think that thats an act of cruelty well.....not much I can say.

SeanM01

I have two cats and they are outside during the day, inside from 6pm to midnight and then back out for the night. I felt bad about this at first but there were some incidents where they started going the toilet in the house. I have a catflap in the shed door and I have made two beds with blankets, their food gets put in there twice a day. The problem is I dont think they are using the beds in the shed and I have never seen them sleep in there. Is there anyway to encourage them to use this more especially when it's cold out?

MrWalsh

SeanM01 wrote: »

I have two cats and they are outside during the day, inside from 6pm to midnight and then back out for the night. I felt bad about this at first but there were some incidents where they started going the toilet in the house. I have a catflap in the shed door and I have made two beds with blankets, their food gets put in there twice a day. The problem is I dont think they are using the beds in the shed and I have never seen them sleep in there. Is there anyway to encourage them to use this more especially when it's cold out?

Did they have litter trays in the house?

Where do you think they are sleeping?

SeanM01

MrWalsh wrote: »

Did they have litter trays in the house?

Where do you think they are sleeping?

There was and it still happened. Then we said we'd get rid of the tray and put them out during the day and then let them in the house over night. But this was too long for them to go without a tray and it happened again so we decided to keep them out during the day and overnight, but letting them stay in from 6pm to around midnight.

They have beds in the house as well and they spend most of their indoor time sleeping there. I have no idea where they are sleeping when they are outside.

MrWalsh

I dont understand why you got rid of the tray?

You really should have had 3 trays. 1 per cat plus 1. If there was only 1 to begin with then it may have been in use or dirty so they had nowhere else to go but in the house.

I dont know what you can do to encourage them into their beds. Cats go where they want to go. Maybe they sleep in a neighbours?

Shiraz 4.99

jungleman wrote: »

I wouldn't worry yourself about it too much. Cats aren't like dogs, who really need companionship and get distressed without human interaction. I have friends who keep cats outside permanently, never allowed inside, and they are happy as larry. Cats are independent, they can fend for themselves.

Good god man, I suggested the same thing months ago & I got ran out of the place.
You tow the line here or it's the ban stick for you.
Remember cats = humans round here, don't even start with dogs.

I'll see you back in the real world once we're banned & have our posts deleted.
Screencap & good luck.

Mod: User banned

Shenshen

Jade2015 wrote: »

The cat does meeow pityfully at the patio door to get in, and then went around to the front door to be let in when the mother came home. The cat was just shooed away. I think she was kicked out as the hubby said she leaves paw prints on the kitchen inside window sill. The cat leaves less of a mess than the kids. I hope she finds another neighbour to live with who wants her.

I'll never understand some people - if they clearly don't want the cat around any more, why not rehome it?

Yes, cats can survive outdoors-only, but statistically speaking it can reduce their life-expectancy by over half. Kicking a pet out of the house and pretending that it'll be ok - nope, I don't get that mentality.

DBB

Shiraz 4.99 wrote: »

Good god man, I suggested the same thing months ago & I got ran out of the place.
You tow the line here or it's the ban stick for you.
Remember cats = humans round here, don't even start with dogs.

I'll see you back in the real world once we're banned & have our posts deleted.
Screencap & good luck.

Shiraz 4.99,
Do not belittle the human-pet bond by suggesting that people here equate animals to humans. It is a pathetic and utterly unfounded low blow, and does not cut it in this forum. But you know that, because I pointed it out to you last time you went off on one in this forum.
I will not delete your post because I think it's important that people see what a great example your post is of what's not acceptable here. I will also point out that the "banstick" is reserved for more serious breaches, such as users not heeding previous warnings and repeating behaviours which have caused trouble before. For example, being rude to other posters, and about the users of a forum. Also, it's reserved for posters who have been already told by the forum mods to watch their step, and that they are being watched... does any of this sound familiar to you at all Shiraz4.99?

If you're having difficulty in remembering, you have previously been given a yellow card for being uncivil. You were not "run out of here", you were asked to behave yourself should you decide to post here in future.

Now, because you have been asked nicely here before to behave yourself, and you have decided to make your return with yet more rudeness towards the posters here, I think it's best that you don't use this forum any more... it's clearly not your thing.
As you can't behave yourself when asked, I'm afraid I can't merely ask you not to post in this thread again as I did last time, when I tried to cut you some slack... it clearly didn't work the last time.
So, I'm afraid I have no choice but to ensure you can't post here again.
Thanks,
DBB

Pumpkinseeds

SeanM01 wrote: »

I have two cats and they are outside during the day, inside from 6pm to midnight and then back out for the night. I felt bad about this at first but there were some incidents where they started going the toilet in the house. I have a catflap in the shed door and I have made two beds with blankets, their food gets put in there twice a day. The problem is I dont think they are using the beds in the shed and I have never seen them sleep in there. Is there anyway to encourage them to use this more especially when it's cold out?

Toileting in the house can be down to a lot of things. It can be anything from not liking the texture of a particular type of litter or the location of the litter to health problems and even stress. It's one of the most common reasons why people give up their cats. I don't really have any advice on getting them to use the shed, ours have a cat flap.

me0w

jungleman wrote: »

I wouldn't worry yourself about it too much. Cats aren't like dogs, who really need companionship and get distressed without human interaction. I have friends who keep cats outside permanently, never allowed inside, and they are happy as larry. Cats are independent, they can fend for themselves.

Nonsense.

PeteFalk78

me0w wrote: »

Nonsense.

Great counterargument.

Kalman

Jade2015 wrote: »

I work for a family who have a pet cat. They've have the cat for about 4/5 years. The cat sleeps in the shed on straw, with a hole in the shed so she can get in and out. She gets fed in the shed to. She was banned from the upstairs of the house, which is quiet normal. But now she is not allowed in the house at all. I feel so sorry for her as she was out in the snow at the back patio door begging to come in. She has no other cats for company. I feel like they don't want her, as why else would you treat a so called family pet like that. I already have a cat as I would offer to take her otherwise.
Does anyone else think this is cruel towards the cat, who up until this week could at least come into the house during the day

If, as you say, that the cat is well-fed and it sleeps on a straw bed in a shed, then there is no problem.

jungleman

me0w wrote: »

Nonsense.

Thanks for the input.

DBB

Folks,
The bitchiness on this thread is really starting to grate and will result in thread closure if it continues.
If you can't post respectfully, don't post.
Back on topic now please.
Thanks,
DBB