Good Harness/Leash Choice?

[ArtNJ]

So I have a converted indoor/outdoor cat that escapes once every couple of weeks. He is just really smart, clever and fearless about it. Its long past the point where we hope he'll stop. He isn't going to stop escaping, not ever. Maybe he will take a break for winter, thats about it. The sunroom (screened on two sides) never seemed to satisfy him, although he clearly did like it there, but now that it has been under reconstruction he has been extra focused on getting out. When he was indoor/outdoor, he would sometimes come out with me when I went jogging, and accompany me (using the term "accompany" somewhat loosely) for our whole street. I would literally need to turn back because I didn't want to encourage him to go further. So although I have been against leashes for decades after tryind and failing miserably with other cats, with this cat, perhaps its a logical thing to try. For a cat like this, where I'm not panicked about him escaping from me because he is outside-savvy, what would the best harness choice be?

 

[klunick]

I have heard good reviews about this one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076BVMKW1/?tag=thecatsite

 

[ArtNJ]

I took him out in the backyard! He walked a bit, and didn't totally hate it, although he did whine when I wouldn't let him go in bushes. He was chirping at wildlife so maybe he even liked it?

Can I eventually get him to walk with me? This is the cat that would follow me when I jogged after all.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. I am kind of surprised you haven't had more responses. But, I just will tell you the experience I had with my neighbor and their cat. It was a stray - no one knows from where - but, she took up following my neighbors when they went out on daily walks through the neighborhood. She would follow them pretty religiously while they were walking, and they eventually took her in their home. She would never accept being confined on a leash for those walks thereafter - they tried. So, they gave that up and let her walk with them freely.

She was happy in their home, but, she was always trying to escape the house any chance she got at other times that when they went walking. She was tricky to round up, but some of the rest of us in the neighborhood could trick her into coming to us - and, back to her home she went. They stopped taking her on walks, and the escape attempts went on for at least a couple of years after that. Finally, she decided that indoor only life was good and that her screened in porch was just fine. I think they just had to stop letting her out and once she realized she was an indoor kitty, the escape attempts stopped.

 

[ArtNJ]

Yeah, my cat (former indoor/outdoor) is very clever about it. If he sees me paying attention, he usually wont get close to the door. But if I go out the front door, he will wait for me to come back, especially if he hears the garbage can being moved. I can stop him from exitting if its on my mind before I touch the door, but if I don't remember to get in a defensive frame of mind before the nob starts to move, its Jordan breaking the ankles of some scrub. I don't mind it so much since he comes back on his own, just have to pay for tick meds and check him for em when he comes back and, most importantly, he doesn't actually whine. If he was a door whiner, I wouldn't do the leash thing and would be better about the airlock method (ie. locking him somewhere before doing garbage and such). But the way it is, I don't reckon he could be too much more annoying than he is about it. Plus, with the screened in porch work taking so long, I figured it would be a nice alternative. I'm thinking going on walks may be unlikely, but he did do pretty well yesterday. We'll see how he does tonight.

 

[FeebysOwner]

If he was a door whiner, I wouldn't do the leash thing and would be better about the airlock method (ie. locking him somewhere before doing garbage and such). But the way it is, I don't reckon he could be too much more annoying than he is about it. Plus, with the screened in porch work taking so long, I figured it would be a nice alternative. I'm thinking going on walks may be unlikely, but he did do pretty well yesterday. We'll see how he does tonight.

Ashley never whined either. She just was plain sneaky - she watched and waited until they slipped up, and off and out she went. She mostly came home as well. But, we would round her up if it was starting to get near dusk.

I hope the screened in porch makes a difference. It was Ashely's retreat - more than ever - after they stopped letting her go out.

 

[ArtNJ]

Ashley never whined either. She just was plain sneaky - she watched and waited until they slipped up, and off and out she went. She mostly came home as well. But, we would round her up if it was starting to get near dusk.

I hope the screened in porch makes a difference. It was Ashely's retreat - more than ever - after they stopped letting her go out.

Its just being fixed up, not new construction. He has enjoyed it for 6 months or so. Atlhough he likes it, I've seen no difference at the front door. So I always try to be a cautionary voice when folks recommend a catio as a solution to door whining. I've no issue with people trying it, so long as they realize it might just end up being a nice thing for the cat, and not a solution to the door whining. I think its pretty much as good as a custom designed catio, EXCEPT that with a catio, the screening will be sturdier. That was an issue early on, but I (think) the new screens will be safe.

 

[jcat]

A cat is less likely to slip out of a jacket-style harness, though they can be a bit difficult to put on a squirming cat. I used an H-shaped dog harness and a retractable 5-m leash for our last cat, who went for walks every day. The retractable leashes are a bit risky, IMO, because there's a built-in delay of several seconds if you need to pull your pet back in a hurry.

Jamie loved his walks, but they didn't stop his door-dashing attempts. Luckily our entryway is narrow enough that putting in a second door several feet back from the front door solved that problem.


I always took reading material (usually my Kindle) along on our walks, because Jamie would often want to hunker down beneath a bush in the hopes of catching a bird or mouse.

 

[ArtNJ]

Today (day 2) it was still easy to put on the harness, but he wasn't even sure if he wanted to go out. Once out, he was a bit scared to move for a good 5 minutes. This is all very odd, since on day 1 he was leading me around through the yard immediately. Still, he wasn't interested in an opportunity to go in early, and eventually led me to the bushes. When I brought him in after 10 or 15 minutes, it was easy to take off the harness and he was fine immediately. So not bad, but just not what I expected from a cat that loves the outside. Needs to get used to the leash more I guess.

He does not thrash at the harness at all, and the velcro is easy on and easy off, so I think its totally secure and my original question can be marked "solved".

 

[ArtNJ]

He escaped from the velcro jacket style harness today. Took it off with the velcro intact, I guess by wiggling backward or something. I was reading on my phone since he didn't want to walk and seemed to be chilling. I felt a few tugs, and could have reacted if I was paying attention, but it all seemed so secure. Well, no real harm, he is outside savvy and will be back tonight. But now that he knows it comes off, I dunno if this is going to work.

 

[Brice53]

I have a Velcro harness for two of my cats and my one cat has certainly tried several times to slip out of his harness. I have two absolute rules when walking him. #1 never let his leash get in front on him. If the leash is always behind him he can't back up and use the tension to slip out. #2 immediately give his leash lots of slack if I feel him pulling. Again if he doesn't have the tightness of the leash it's a lot harder for him to get it off.

Thankfully over time he has all but given up on trying to escape the harness and now he acts like he forgets he has it on.