Catio Concerns

Sparklecat

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Hello! First time poster, long time lurker. We currently have a 7 year old cat (we lost her sister earlier this year) and will be getting a couple of kittens this month to keep her company as she really misses he sister. We are thinking of building a catio on our deck for the cats to enjoy during the nice months (we live up north) next spring when the kittens are older. My research has shown that cats love catios and we would make it large enough that we could go in and sit and enjoy with them.

However, I have some concerns that are keeping me from committing 100%. My first is a selfish reason- I am used to indoor needy, snuggly kitties. Will they totally desert me all the time? My human baby is a teen and I already feel a tad deserted! I guess knowing that it makes them happier and quality of life better will help me come to peace with it, should that happen.

More importantly, I am afraid of fleas and ticks- actually I should say I am afraid of the medicine. We have never used it before. I watch the struggle my friends and family go through emotionally when deciding to put it on their pets (mostly dogs). I am assuming if they were to go out, they would need some sort of flea protection, maybe not ticks as will be on a raised deck. I don't know of any safe flea meds! Is there one? Is the joy of the catio worth the risk of the flea meds? Or should I continue to just have indoor babies? I have never had a cat who was interested in going outside, rushing the door etc. and I am considering the catio purely as an added bonus for my cat's enjoyment as it seems safer than walking them.

Any thoughts are very welcome. I am trying to work my way through making the decision and I have until next spring to decide.
 

mazie

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Oh yes, if you are in a position to be able to build a catio for your cat, by all means please do, she will love it! As far as protection from fleas, Advantage II is a topical application you disperse on the nape of the neck once monthly. It is good for any fleas (not sure about ticks) that may land on her. It is not terribly expensive, does not require a vet's prescription to order. You can order online through Chewys, may be sold in Walmarts, don't know. With Advantage, you wil not have to worry about fleas, and is safe.
 

lisahe

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We have a screened-in porch that we built to be safe for the cats and they love it. Yes, they do sometimes spend a lot of time there but we can go there, too, at least in the warm months. (I'm also in the north!) If you're getting kittens, I'd particularly recommend building a catio: kittens are so active and I'm sure they'd love the outdoor experience!

Even with our porch/veranda being just off the ground, we haven't had a problem with fleas and we've only seen one tick in four (?) years. (And we think one of us brought the tick there, not that it crawled up through the floor!) We do use Revolution on our cats, at least when I remember it.

Personally, I would suggest thinking most about how much your cats would enjoy the catio: it's great stimulation for cats and helps keep indoor cats from getting bored. There's a lot of value to that!
 

FeebysOwner

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Hi. I have a screened in patio and live in Florida, but have not needed to use flea treatment on Feeby. But, my patio is also on a concrete slab, so no way for critters to come up through the flooring (although, they could come through the screen - but apparently don't).

I would use flea/tick treatment if it were needed without hesitation. I have used it from time to time on my previous cats (under different circumstances), and none of my cats had issues with it. I think Advantage II and Revolution both provide tick protection in addition to flea.

I trained my cats to learn that they cannot be outside at night after a certain time. So, now with Feeby, when I call her in she comes in and I lock the patio door. On the rare occasion when she decides that she would prefer to stay outside she is picked up and brought in. So, you just need to determine what your expectations are about them being outside and set the boundaries for them to learn when it is and is not 'outdoor time'.

Any cuddliness/snuggles you are afraid of missing out on will more likely come with the fact that you have 3 cats instead of one - not whether they can go outside in a catio. Cats living in a multi-cat household tend to (but, not always) be a bit more independent from their humans because they have feline companionship. This is particularly true when they are very young!!
 

TobiDaDog

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In my experience, when the catio was first installed both of mine spent a TON of time in it. Now one isn't interested at all because it isn't 'new' and the other spends quite a bit of time out there to bask in the sun, but she also comes back in and housecats it up. :p No less snuggly or affectionate than before!

As for bugs, we spray for spiders because they DO come through.
 

1 bruce 1

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We have a catio, on a patio (catchy sounding, isn't it ;)). They don't have access to grass. We haven't had an issue with fleas. If you're not wanting to treat the cats, you could be very diligent about using something like wondercide inside the catio and keeping the fleas away so they can enjoy.
And no, they won't abandon you, they'll be happy cats for it. Our cats are much calmer, and are less destructive and a lot less demanding when they have access to be outside safely. If anything, they're more affectionate because they get to "be cats" and once they've worn that out a bit, they're much more ready to be lap cats because their needs are met plus some.
Old tree branches or logs are great (free) scratching posts and are easy to replace. I think you'll all enjoy this.
 

LTS3

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lisahe

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And no, they won't abandon you, they'll be happy cats for it. Our cats are much calmer, and are less destructive and a lot less demanding when they have access to be outside safely. If anything, they're more affectionate because they get to "be cats" and once they've worn that out a bit, they're much more ready to be lap cats because their needs are met plus some.
Yes, this is so true... and exactly what I was trying to figure out how to say!

If you're planning on screening in the entire deck, you can install a cat door to allow the cats free access to their catio when they please.
This is another good point. (That said, one of our cats really hates to go through the cat door/flap -- our cats are rescues and it even makes me wonder what they might have experienced. I do want to see if we can find a softer floppier door, more of a flap.)
 

1 bruce 1

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Yes, this is so true... and exactly what I was trying to figure out how to say!


This is another good point. (That said, one of our cats really hates to go through the cat door/flap -- our cats are rescues and it even makes me wonder what they might have experienced. I do want to see if we can find a softer floppier door, more of a flap.)
If you can deal with the bugs, you can tape or strap the flap up onto the wall and let them have a few hours with just a hole in the wall and not have to deal with the flap. Later you can strap the flap to itself (if that makes any sense at all) so they have a "half flap" and later on, learn to use the flap themselves.
Queen Bee still hates the flap and will use her claws to pull it towards her, get an opening, and sneak in that way. She'll spend 10 minutes getting it just so when Baby Girl just barrels past her and does a head first leap through it because she has no sense of self preservation :lol:
 

lisahe

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Yes, something like what you bolded is what I'm thinking of! Thanks for pointing this one out!

And I like your suggestion on training to use the flap, 1 bruce 1 1 bruce 1 ! We kind of did that with the rigid door but Edwina just really didn't like it and seemed stressed out about not wanting to use it and then not going out to her favorite place. For the whole time we've had the veranda, we've used a board insert that my husband made; he cut out an opening to fit the cat door that Edwina (who I suspect is a lot like your Queen Bee) hates. It's that cat door-sized opening that the cats walk through. Bugs aren't an issue because the veranda is well-screened but cold is an issue in the winter! (Not that they spend much time out there in the winter...) Hanging a sort of curtain helps, as does putting boxes in front of the opening -- of course the cats really love the boxes, which makes it harder to try to make this into a neater operation with a proper cat flap/door! (Right now they have a very long vacuum cleaner box, which makes a great tunnel.)
 

di and bob

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I would never treat for fleas, or use any medication unnecessarily unless it was needed. My cats go outside for 30 minutes every morning, and for years before that for much longer and have never had fleas. Just check them when they are laying down, have them roll onto their backs and check where their legs meet the abdomen, Hair is much thinner there and fleas are easy to spot. Fleas are usually contracted from other animals, dogs are very social and get near others all the time. I don't think you'll have a problem, and if you ever do, just use teh topical like mentioned above, just get it high enough on the back of their necks when you apply, if they can lick it it is horrible, they foam at the mouth and are miserable.
 

aradasky

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I have thought about a catio for a long time. I just do not have a good place to put one. Our windows do not open the right way and I am not cutting a hole in my wall. SOOO... I do have screens on my doors, (so unlike SoCal but I grew up where we used them all the time) and I have my doors open as much as possible. I have a great cat tower I scoot in front of one of the screens and they love it as much as being outside. I sometimes feed some birds on that porch, too. As for fleas, my cats NEVER go outside however in SoCal we bring fleas in from the grass- year around- and they do get on my cats. I have carpet in some rooms. I treat them for two months (killing any newly hatched fleas as well as all adult fleas) when needed.
 

lisahe

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It's so true what you say, aradasky aradasky about cats loving a good perch or condo by a window! Ours like that almost as much as their veranda: some of the windows are great spots to watch birds and chipmunks.
 
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