Cats in an apartment

Blue Whale

How do cats get on in an apartment? Would like a pet, but obviously dogs aren't allowed in the apartments.

Its a ground floor apartment...so...a cat flap could potentially be installed onto the balcony if my partner was amicable to the idea...am not sure they are however!

Do people keep cats in upper floor apartments as a matter of interest..seems a bit cruel if they can't go outside at will??

miezekatze

There are different opinions as to whether cats are better off being kept indoors or outdoors, or a bit of both. Personally I think if you live in a city it's better to keep them indoors. I got mine when I lived in a 6th floor apartment, lived there for a few years and she was fine. Not all cats want to go outside anyway. Now we live in a house but the cat still lives indoors only and she's happy. You just have to make sure your cat gets enough attention and stimulation really.

You will need to check though if you are allowed to have pets in your apartment complex, a lot of places don't allow it.

Dandelion6

Lots of threads about this here. Short answer: a cat that's been raised indoors will be fine in an apartment. I wouldn't try to adapt an outdoor cat to an apartment, though.

intheclouds

One of ours came to us when a neighbour abandoned her and she goes in and out her cat flap merrily all day long (ground floor apartment). If I need to block the cat flap for any reason she gets very anxious and upset at not being let out when she wants.

The other one came to us from the street, we found her living in the bin shed with kittens. We kept her completely indoors for about 3 months and she was totally fine about it. She goes out now for short meanders but prefers indoors and if for any reason we dont let her out she doesnt mind at all.

So it depends on the cat I think.

kylith

A friend of mine adopted a couple of cats that had been rescued strays and who couldn't be allowed out because of health issues. They adapted fine to being indoors, with plenty of hiding places, cat trees, and the like.

05eaftqbrs9jlh

Dandelion6 wrote: »

Lots of threads about this here. Short answer: a cat that's been raised indoors will be fine in an apartment. I wouldn't try to adapt an outdoor cat to an apartment, though.

I used to bring my parents' cat to live with me when the cold winter months rolled around, before we had our own cat - it was fine! She's the most murderous hunter of any animal I know but when she lived indoors with us (in a relatively small apartment) she was a changed animal. We made sure our flat is equipped to deal with her energy. Dangling things, plenty of scratching posts (occasionally she would dig her claws into the leather couch but we caught her doing it and brought her to the scratching post and that behaviour stopped).

I think most animals are a lot more adaptable than they get credit for

BetsyEllen

My cat was kept inside for the first 5 months of her life as I lived in a top floor apartment.
She seemed happy, I suppose she knew no different though.
I played with her a lot for exercise which I think is very important.

After 5 months though I moved into a house and she now goes outside - she LOVES it - absolutely adores being out exploring.

I don't have a cat flap for her, I just let her in and out as she requests - if I'm going out and she wants to stay in bed, I live a litter tray in the living room for her that I then move outside when I get home.

If you're in a ground floor apartment there is no reason that she can't spend time outside, and you wouldn't really need a cat flap.

intheclouds

BetsyEllen wrote: »

If you're in a ground floor apartment there is no reason that she can't spend time outside, and you wouldn't really need a cat flap.

+1

One of ours lives in the front (with a cat flap) and one in the back (no cat flap). They cant bear each other (well its just one who hates all other cats.....and humans......any living creature really).

Our lady with no cat flap has a regular routine of "outies", she only stays out for about 40 mins to an hour and we check regularly to see if she is waiting to come in. She tells us when she wants to go out.

dr.fuzzenstein

To keep them locked into the apartment their whole life? Well, the same principle applies to children. If your children were to grow up never to leave the apartment, they would also be "fine" about it, because they would never know there's an world outside. Whatever about their mental health. Same as a bird in a cage, or maybe a circus or zoo animal.
So, yes it is possible, but to my mind it equates to all the above. I would regard it as selfish. Plus of course the stress on the animal to be left alone in the apartment all day while the owner is at work or maybe out for the weekend partying. Animal suffer in captivity, there is no denying that fact, to inflict it on an animal nevertheless is cruel.

intheclouds

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

Animal suffer in captivity, there is no denying that fact, to inflict it on an animal nevertheless is cruel.

That "fact" is easily denied.

A non captive cat in Ireland, ie, a feral cat, has about a 2 year lifespan, if its lucky and doesnt die from disease, exposure or starvation before then (if its female). Its pregnant every season and it produces more hungry mouths each litter. If its male it might last longer but is in constant danger and pain from territory fighting.

The life of a wild cat is not one to be relished.

My cats are pampered princesses and will hopefully live to be a great old age commanding me about and demanding space on the bed and the couch.

dr.fuzzenstein

intheclouds wrote: »

That "fact" is easily denied.

A non captive cat in Ireland, ie, a feral cat, has about a 2 year lifespan, if its lucky and doesnt die from disease, exposure or starvation before then (if its female). Its pregnant every season and it produces more hungry mouths each litter. If its male it might last longer but is in constant danger and pain from territory fighting.

The life of a wild cat is not one to be relished.

My cats are pampered princesses and will hopefully live to be a great old age commanding me about and demanding space on the bed and the couch.

You do know there is something inbetween an apartment cat and a feral cat? You do know I wasn't referring to cats living wild?
Cats can have a large territory, they love to snoop around and explore and while the world is not always a warm and fuzzy place, I would not lock a cat into an apartment for it's entire life.
Of course a cat that has never known anything else in it's life would have trouble adapting to the outdoors, but to my mind that cat is developmentally stunted.
If people want to keep an animal in a 4x6 apartment, they should get fish or a hamster.

intheclouds

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

You do know there is something inbetween an apartment cat and a feral cat? You do know I wasn't referring to cats living wild?

No - that wasnt clear at all.

I thought you were having a general uninformed rant on cat ownership. Thats how it came across. That a pet cat was the same as a bird in a cage - which is ridiculous right? Well thats what it seemed like you were saying.

Nonetheless - you are still incorrect. Cats can and do live happily in a small territory if they are provided with everything that meets their needs.

Anyway - if you dont agree with indoor cats, then dont keep one indoors, that is your choice.

dr.fuzzenstein

intheclouds wrote: »

No - that wasnt clear at all.

I thought you were having a general uninformed rant on cat ownership. Thats how it came across. That a pet cat was the same as a bird in a cage - which is ridiculous right? Well thats what it seemed like you were saying.

Nonetheless - you are still incorrect. Cats can and do live happily in a small territory if they are provided with everything that meets their needs.

Anyway - if you dont agree with indoor cats, then dont keep one indoors, that is your choice.

Course I don't, himself (big orange tom) uses the cat flap. As does the small dog. Big cat and small dog.
Why on Earth would I advocate feral cats over purely indoor cats? That doesn't even make sense.
I think keeping cats in an apartment is not great. It's the equivalent to keeping an exotic bird in a cage. We used to have budgies in the 70's, kept in a small cage because I guess people didn't think about it back then. I would never do that again, and I hope people's attitude to apartment cats and dogs will change. I really shudder to think of millions of cats and dogs locked into small apartments bored out of their skull while their owners are gone for up to 10 hours a day, come back tired, spend 5 minutes with their pets and then zone out on front of the telly, go to bed and the whole cycle starts again. Dogs at least get to go out.

intheclouds

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

I would never do that again, and I hope people's attitude to apartment cats and dogs will change. I really shudder to think of millions of cats and dogs locked into small apartments bored out of their skull while their owners are gone for up to 10 hours a day, come back tired, spend 5 minutes with their pets and then zone out on front of the telly, go to bed and the whole cycle starts again. Dogs at least get to go out.

No matter if I stay home or go out my cats sleep their heads off for the entire day with a couple of short forays to the food bowl or the litter tray.

I actually set up a camera to watch cat flap cat before and she didnt budge off the couch for 8 hours - no joke.

Cupra280

Don't forget, cats sleep on average 16 hours a day.

I have a ground floor apt, and work 12 hour days. My partner works from home, so our two cats have access/egress whenever they need it. The older cat spends a great portion of her time outdoors, the younger one less so. They both go out every day.

It really depends on the cat.

él statutorio

Depends on the cat, and the outdoor environment.

Ours are indoor cats, have been since they were kittens, they don't show any real interest in going outside. Which is probably for the best as in our current location there are too many things that would kill them.

metaoblivia

I have two cats and I live in an apartment. They are indoor only. Most shelters, rescues and responsible breeders in my area will not allow you a cat unless you sign a form promising it will be indoors only. Obviously people can break that, but I don't. There's a lot of trouble cats can get into outside while unsupervised - cars (I live in an urban area), other aggressive animals, people who hate cats and exposure to diseases and infections.

Cats sleep a lot during the day. On the weekends those two just sleep up a storm. But when they're up, giving them plenty of toys and vertical space helps keep them entertained. And one of my cats loves to go on walks, so I have a harness and leash and we go out for evening walks.

pawrick

Whatever ever your decision re keeping the cat indoors or with outdoor access please don't allow your cat to roam without being spayed or neutered as they will breed / fight with other cats more often.

We all have our own opinions on keeping cats indoors or allowing them access to the outside and there are good arguments for both. Good luck with your choice, a cat can make a very good pet for someone living in an apartment and I have seen people and their cats managing in both scenarios very well.

My friend in Denmark has three indoor cats in a sixth floor apartment. They've never known any different and they're very happy, but she always has problems keeping their weight down - on special foods etc. I don't know if the two are directly related, just that I've always had indoor-outdoor cats and it has never been too much of a struggle to keep them slim. A ground floor apartment would be no different to living in a house I guess, if they have a catflap! In fact when renting myself I only look at houses or ground floor apartments for this reason.

A warning to anyone with indoor cats on higher floors though, my friend allows access to her balcony to two of the cats, the other cat had his balcony access removed after he fell off it, not once, but twice. A few years between falls but he must be lacking something there.

Shivi111

In relation to the indoor/outdoor discussion... I know people have very different ideas on this but from my experience I'm not a fan of indoor only.

When we got our first cat and read up we made the decision that indoor was better and Mori was an indoor cat for the first year of his life, in fact the second cat Loki was introduced so he would have an indoor companion, both living in a very rich environment full of toys and cat trees and lots of play.

Then... One Summers day we were all in the garden and he was watching us through the window, We let him join us and I cannot describe the absolute joy he experienced playing outside for the first time, and how much obviously happier he was overall with his freedom. He was a changed animal, more confident & content.

Everyone has to make this decision for themselves but I was absolutely converted to letting them out, and I'll never make a cat indoor only again.

I adore my fur babies & want the very best for them, Outside presents more physical dangers, but the quality of life they experience now is a worthwhile trade off for me.
I'll be heartbroken if anything happens to any of them, but I won't regret the decision to let them out, even if it means a shorter life I am firmly convinced it will be a better life.

Muahahaha

OP I live in an apartment and have an indoor cat that I got from a rescue. I started a thread about it too here http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057319899
He was 5yrs old at the time and the rescue came out and visited me prior to adoption. They had a number of people wanting to adopt him but chose me because I could guarantee him not leaving the apartment, they felt this was for his own safety as with his previous owners he was never inclined to go outdoors.

Nowadays in the summer I leave the balcony door open for him sometimes and while he might go out to explore he's generally back inside within 10 minutes. If the balcony is wet he'll put one paw down and then scurry back in, that's how precious he is haha! Once I brought him down to the local park in his cage and let him loose. For the half an hour we were there I don't even think he moved more than 10 metres away from me. In the end I think he was just happy to get back to the apartment.

Whatever about the debate about indoor/outdoor cats the one I adopted is happy to be indoors. He loves sitting up in his cat tree and staring out at cars and pedestrians go by. But actually being outdoors isn't really for him.