Taking a cat to the park?

[sara457]

I'll bet this sounds pretty weird, but lately I've been driving my cat out to parks and forests.

He tolerates having a harness and leash on, but he hates lots of noise. I live in a townhouse that is completely over run by neighbourhood kids in all directions. They are very loud, throwing balls everywhere, running back and forth past the front and back of my house. So there isn't anywhere I can take him out peacefully in the evening as the kids are out playing until dark (which these days is about 10pm.)

Gayden gets super restless around 7pm. This is the time where he starts spraying furniture out of frustration.

So the other day I simply got him into his cat carrier and we went for a drive! I found a nice spot full of tall grass that he seemed to like. Though he was still nervous about the man and his dog that were 60 feet away from us!!! lol

I just feel pretty weird doing it, like, I know he's a cat - not a dog! LOL

I've heard of people taking their cats hiking, camping and even rock climbing, do any of you take your cats out?

 

[stephenq]

It sounds like fun, but the spraying isn't.  Is he neutered?

 

[sara457]

Yeah, I could do without the spraying that's for sure!

He is neutered and we've simply run out of options at this point.

 

[fhicat]

 
This is the time where he starts spraying furniture out of frustration.

Neutered cats don't do this out of frustration. Something is wrong somewhere. Does he do this everyday at 7? Does he use his litterbox at all?

 

[catbehaviors]

Hi Sara,

Don't worry about it being weird.  Like you said, many people adventure with their cats, and it's becoming more and more popular as more "adventure cats" are showing up in the news, etc.

This year (and a little bit of last year), I've been taking my cat to parks and other new places, and I hope to be able to go on full fledged hikes with him soon. I'd love to see some pictures of Gayden out on one of his adventures! 

 

[sara457]

 
Hi Sara,

Don't worry about it being weird.  Like you said, many people adventure with their cats, and it's becoming more and more popular as more "adventure cats" are showing up in the news, etc.

This year (and a little bit of last year), I've been taking my cat to parks and other new places, and I hope to be able to go on full fledged hikes with him soon. I'd love to see some pictures of Gayden out on one of his adventures! 

Oh that's awesome!!! Do you get him into the car, or do you simply walk to the parks? How do people react when they see him? I'd love to see pics of your cat on adventures, there's not nearly enough of this kind of stuff online!

 

[sara457]

 
Neutered cats don't do this out of frustration. Something is wrong somewhere. Does he do this everyday at 7? Does he use his litterbox at all?

He gets very anxious every evening starting around 7. He uses his litterbox, reluctantly. He's still traumatized from having a blockage two years ago. So he holds in his urine for hours and after he finally goes he races out of the box at full speed. I bought new litter boxes that are much bigger than the old ones and I clean them faithfully every single day. I also completely wash them out every few weeks. They are very clean (I do this to make sure he uses his box, and also I like to keep an eye on how much he's peeing so as to avoid another blockage ever again).

He's frustrated because he wants to be outside fending off all the cats that come into our yard, I think. There are so many I can't keep track of them, don't think most of them are strays, and I have no idea how to keep them out.

I've been through hell with his spraying and have started a few threads about it. We no longer have a living room curtain because I got tired of washing them every day.

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/264208/my-cat-has-a-spraying-problem

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/271035/my-cat-peed-on-me-my-living-room-is-covered-in-plastic

 

[mani]

MOD NOTE:

For the sake of continuity and keeping information in one place:

If you would like to discuss the original topic:  Taking cats for walks   -   please post in this thread

If you would like to help Sara 457 with spraying issues, please go to her thread on that topic -   http://www.thecatsite.com/t/271035/my-cat-peed-on-me-my-living-room-is-covered-in-plastic/30

Thanks everyone.

 

[quiet]

Some people do walk their cats. Having worked at an emergency clinic I have seen my share of cats that were attacked by dogs while on a leash. So can't say I think it's a good idea.

 

[catpack]

If this solution works for both you and Gayden, I say go for it.

I have a 3 yr old that gets bored very easily. On days where Max seems restless, I load him up in his carrier and we go for a ride, as it is one of his favorite activities. We'll often make a stop at one of the local pet stores where Max enjoys self surfing and riding in the shopping cart.

This usually provides him enough simulation that he does cause too much trouble (getting in cabinets, hunting/mutilating treats bags) when we get back home. =)

 

[catbehaviors]

There are a lot of dogs on the road near my house, plus it's a pretty long walk to any local parks, so we take him in the car to our destination.  Since the park we usually go to doesn't have that many people, so we haven't had too many people encounters. Usually the people kind of pretend not to notice, but many of them give a side long glance at the cat and say something to the effect of "Hi Kitty" when they pass us.  

I'd be glad to share of some photos of Wessie on his adventures. I've also embedded a couple of videos of him on his walks below the photos.

  

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[plan]

I brought my kitten, Khal Drogo, to my brother's house for a BBQ on Fathers Day. He was extremely apprehensive at first -- there were 8 people there, plus my brother's chihuahua. Drogo is about 15 weeks old so this was a new experience for him

After doing a few laps around my bro's small, fenced-in yard, and realizing the chihuahua was not a threat, Drogo LOVED it. He spent the whole day running around the yard, chasing insects and playing with the dog. And then he got a super special treat -- steak from the grill, cut up into little kitteh-size bites.

By the end of the day he didn't want to leave. I'm glad he had that experience and I intend to take him outside more often. I just bought a harness, but he doesn't seem to like it, so I've gotta work on that.

 

[sara457]

 
Some people do walk their cats. Having worked at an emergency clinic I have seen my share of cats that were attacked by dogs while on a leash. So can't say I think it's a good idea.

I do worry about dogs. Last time when I took him out I brought his cat carrier with me so if he got scared he could easily run back into it. I think this is the safest way to take them out in public. But around my house they are ok. There aren't that many dogs. There is one that goes out without a leash, quite a large dog in fact, but as they live right in back of me I know when they are out with him so I can avoid it.

 

[sara457]

If this solution works for both you and Gayden, I say go for it.

I have a 3 yr old that gets bored very easily. On days where Max seems restless, I load him up in his carrier and we go for a ride, as it is one of his favorite activities. We'll often make a stop at one of the local pet stores where Max enjoys self surfing and riding in the shopping cart.

This usually provides him enough simulation that he does cause too much trouble (getting in cabinets, hunting/mutilating treats bags) when we get back home. =)

OMG this is the best thing I have heard all day!!! You bring your cat into the pet store?!!! And he rides in the cart? LOL that is priceless

 

[sara457]

              

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Wow, that's amazing! Great pics and cute video!

 

[sara457]

 
I brought my kitten, Khal Drogo, to my brother's house for a BBQ on Fathers Day. He was extremely apprehensive at first -- there were 8 people there, plus my brother's chihuahua. Drogo is about 15 weeks old so this was a new experience for him

After doing a few laps around my bro's small, fenced-in yard, and realizing the chihuahua was not a threat, Drogo LOVED it. He spent the whole day running around the yard, chasing insects and playing with the dog. And then he got a super special treat -- steak from the grill, cut up into little kitteh-size bites.

By the end of the day he didn't want to leave. I'm glad he had that experience and I intend to take him outside more often. I just bought a harness, but he doesn't seem to like it, so I've gotta work on that.

LOL wow that almost brings tears to my eyes it's so sweet Sounds like a really perfect day! I'd love to bring my cats to peoples houses but they are too adventurous and would run off for sure. Right over any fence in a flash!

 

[plan]

 
LOL wow that almost brings tears to my eyes it's so sweet Sounds like a really perfect day! I'd love to bring my cats to peoples houses but they are too adventurous and would run off for sure. Right over any fence in a flash!

This was actually in Manhattan, so I was more worried about him slipping *under* the fences than over them, because they're quite tall. I thoroughly inspected the whole backyard and covered up one potential gap before letting him loose.

It's funny, though, it was the first time I've ever heard my sister-in-law actively hoping a mouse would show up so Drogo would hunt it down. NYC has its share of rodents, and while the great thing about having a first-floor apartment like that is having a small backyard, the bad thing is that you might have to deal with rodents. (NYC's Health Dept. actually has an online interactive "rat map" and I was relieved to see my bro and his wife life in a rat-free neighborhood.)

 

[rachelinaz]

Can I ask where you got her harness? I have never seen them so thick. I love it!

We have (or are) leash training (total of 7 cats ovet 14 years). When we lived in Alaska I use to keep a cat run on the yard.
Here in AZ we can't have runs (I think it is stupis). Their reason is the heat.
I THINK if people are going to leave their pets out in the heat and abuse their pets... they will.

I didn't do it because we have so many people leave their cats out. Plus the neighbor warned me there is a hawk or two plus an owl in the near by trees.

There are a lot of dogs on the road near my house, plus it's a pretty long walk to any local parks, so we take him in the car to our destination.  Since the park we usually go to doesn't have that many people, so we haven't had too many people encounters. Usually the people kind of pretend not to notice, but many of them give a side long glance at the cat and say something to the effect of "Hi Kitty" when they pass us.  

I'd be glad to share of some photos of Wessie on his adventures. I've also embedded a couple of videos of him on his walks below the photos.

  

Bb3vuZuCYAAnYN8.jpg:large

• catbehaviors
• Jun 18, 2014

              

BjsK6BaCQAEkAbg.jpg:large

• catbehaviors
• Jun 18, 2014

  

BaCLvkFCAAAzsMs.jpg:large

• catbehaviors
• Jun 18, 2014

    


 

 

[mani]

Can I ask where you got her harness? I have never seen them so thick. I love it!
 

@rachelinaz, you'll find them in our market place.

 

[rachelinaz]

THANK YOU.... I haven't even wandered into the market place yet.