My cat got out of her harness today

[ayeshajae]

Hey guys, bit shaken up after what happened today! We were walking our 2 cats on leashes and they were kind of scared of being outside. My cat Oreo got scared by a large dog walking around freely and so I picked him up to go near my other cat mittens, but my footsteps cause him to freak out and he escaped his harness and ran away! He ran all over the apartments and finally back inside in his own. But I am scared to take him for a walk again because I think we were lucky this time he didn't go on the road. I need advice about this badly

 

[catpack]

Personally, I would not take Oreo back out. It doesn't seem like he has a desire to be outside. Timid, skittish or fearful cats don't do well IMO. I think it takes a confident, outgoing cat to benefit from taking walks outside.

How does Oreo do with windows opened in the house (with screens?)

 

[mservant]

Wow, I would have been frantic!  I used to take my tabby girls outside locally on harnesses when they were young, and one time met a dog that was barking at them so had a similar kind of situation.  It was awful but thankfully neither of my cats got out of their harnesses and I managed to keep them together with me.  I hope all of you are alright now, and calmed down.  What a good thing your cat was able to find the way back home.  That was one of the main reasons I used to take my cats out - so they would know where they lived if they ever ran out on their own by accident.

Have your cats been out on a harness much before, or was this the start of taking them out to explore?  I know my girls were still OK going out after our experience but I was always very careful to head away from any approaching dogs after the incident.  I didn't leave it too long before I took them out again but did leave it a day or so if I remember correctly.  I was certainly careful to make sure the girls were not panicked when I put their harnesses on when we next went out.  

For all of your sakes, if you plan to go out again look carefully at the type of harness you have:  whether it was fitted as well as it can be, or if you want to change it to a more secure type.  I don't think I would feel happy taking any of my cats out again using a harness one had managed to get out from.

I have a very secure cat harness which is designed for in car use that I use with Myshi in case I ever need to take him out of the apartment in an emergency.

 

[ayeshajae]

Hey mservant, I was totally frantic about it when it happened, but I tried not to show it outwardly so I wouldn't scare the kitty away more! This was actually only my second time taking them outside, taking them for walks because in addition to their diet, I also want to try giving them exercise. I was so happy that he came home, based on the mauled cats I've seen In the area i would be horrified to know he's out and he could of gotten out on the main road ..., I'm just glad he's safe with me now!

I'm reluctant to walk him again however I just wanna know where I went wrong

 

[ayeshajae]

Hey catpack , I've actually thought about. That too Because they were actually scared of outside and they got " poofy" a few times but he does like looking out the window , unless he sees another cat/dog/me outside then they'll get poofy

Could be that they aren't cut out for the outside?

 

[mservant]

I believe a lot of cats are happy indoors and as long as they have plenty of up and down / run around space and places to explore their lives can be kept interesting and enriched.

I live in an inner city area on a main road so my cats have always been indoors - I just wanted them to know the area in case they ever got out, and if they showed a real love of being out on the leash I would have kept taking them out regularly. My girls were OK with it but not bothered.  One of my girls did have a habit of running at the open apartment door and got out to the street one night but she sat at the main door and meowed loudly until someone let her back in.  At least she knew about the door and what the stair smelled like. My current boy wouldn't go beyond the entrance to the block on the harness, and would look really tense when he got to that point so I stopped taking him there:  we never got to the outside.  I occasionally put the harness on him in the apartment in case he needs to wear it at some point but I am confident he is happiest staying indoors.   He is super confident in his own domain and happily looks out the windows to watch everything going.  

Look at your cats' behaviour and take a lead from them.  If you feel they are anxious going out I wouldn't force them in to it.  If they remain interested see if you can get a harness you can feel confident with, and time when and where you go to minimize the chances of meeting dogs and other things that may frighten them.

 

[ayeshajae]

Thanks for the advise guys and when I look at the situation now I believe they may simply not like going outside, which I have simply never heard of before in a cat... That being said I believe I have really opened the box or something because this is what I find my kitty doing now

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• ayeshajae
• Apr 7, 2014

It looks like he actually wants to go back out!! I'll never understand them :doh3:

 

[pangurban]

Oh! This is my nightmare and part of the reason I haven't taken Pangur Ban out for a walk yet. I am waiting to get a good cat harness he will have a very VERY hard time wriggling out of. I agree that Oreo sounds like maybe they need to just stay in and not go out for walks, or at least wait a long while before trying it again.

 

[mservant]

Mouse does that at the door but if I open it he sits or stands there and just looks out! 

This is his harness - he is a daemon wriggler and never managed to get out of it YET....  He tollerates it rather than likes it which I think is clear from his expression in the last one!  It looks like it is fitted tightly from the way it's pulling his fur but actually it is fitted with room for 2 loose fingers between him and the straps.

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• mservant
• Apr 7, 2014

       

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• mservant
• Apr 7, 2014

      

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• mservant
• Apr 7, 2014

     

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• mservant
• Apr 7, 2014

This is a harness suitable for use in cars and comes with a short lead with seat belt clip rather than lead so you have to have your own lead for it if using for walking.