A Difficult Decision

[Bonsai]

I have not been here for a while, at least not since the passing of my Totoro, but I come here yet again because I am at a complete loss of what to do with one of my pets - my cat, Sadie.

Sadie has always been the "wild child" and she's a force to be reckoned with. She can, and will, get her way whether you want her to or not. And what she wants more than anything is to get outside. She has actually started hiding and will dart for the door the moment it opens - I have tried everything possible to keep her inside. Were my yard secure and kitty-proofed to keep her from going outside the fence, I would have no problem with her going outside. But it is not and she roams. Luckily she is fixed, but I am growing very concerned and torn.

I live in a busy part of town, flooded with traffic twice a day through the week and tons of people drive at breakneck speed down the street. So obviously I'm concerned for her safety, I'm afraid she's going to be run over. I can't do anything to keep her inside and no one else in the house is on-board with keeping her inside. I have argued and argued with everyone to try and keep her in but they won't listen. I have even used the "How will you feel if she gets run over? Are you going to be okay with that, if you're the one who let her out?" argument and they bluntly told me "She won't be the first one to be run over", entirely immune to it.

I know I can't keep her inside and I've been trying really hard to do so, but because I have to stay up during the night hours to care for my grandpa, I can't be awake during the day to make sure she doesn't go out. It also doesn't help she keeps getting pink eye and she is impossible to administer medicine to, which may be why it keeps coming back. This cat, despite me raising her, is impossible to control in any way. It is not for my lack of trying or my lack of handling her - she just hit 5~6 months old and she's been like this ever since. So at this point, I don't know what I should do.

I am considering rehoming her as a mouser/barn cat for someone in the nearby area. Its off the beaten path, away from cars - and she gets to enjoy being outside since she apparently loves being outside. She's fixed so she won't be having kittens left and right; she got all her baby shots when she was a kitten so she at least has decent resistance to disease. I honestly don't know what else I can do; all cat shelters are at capacity and the ones who aren't don't accept cats. I just don't feel she's in the right home and I feel like if I dally much longer, something bad is going to happen to her. And it isn't because of me that she isn't in the right home, it is because of my family who do not care enough about the value of Sadie's life.

So I guess what I'm looking for is others' thoughts. I don't really have anyone to bounce the idea off of, but I'm fairly upset and I want to know what others would do if they found themselves in my shoes.

 

[PaGal]

I am like you and think the best place for cats is in a home as a housepet but I also know that is not always possible. In our case one daughter is allergic and has asthma. They are outside but mainly in the garage and are taken care of the same as if they were inside including getting plenty of attention. It is not perfect but at least they are not running loose in a city to be hit by cars and get far better care then if they were just feral strays.

IMO she would probably be better off at a farm then running loose in a busy area where more than likely her life will be cut short. I have known farmers that keep cats around as "mousers" yet care for them including taking them to the vets when needed.

 

[Bonsai]

I am like you and think the best place for cats is in a home as a housepet but I also know that is not always possible. In our case one daughter is allergic and has asthma. They are outside but mainly in the garage and are taken care of the same as if they were inside including getting plenty of attention. It is not perfect but at least they are not running loose in a city to be hit by cars and get far better care then if they were just feral strays.

IMO she would probably be better off at a farm then running loose in a busy area where more than likely her life will be cut short. I have known farmers that keep cats around as "mousers" yet care for them including taking them to the vets when needed.

I am gladdened that my train of thought is not off, I was racking my brain for other options but I'm beginning to not see any other options for my situation.

Yes, it is not always possible to keep them inside. It would do no one any good if you took them inside in your case; if there's one thing cats hate most, it is when they're blocked from certain rooms so if you blocked them from your daughter's room, they'd probably make it a point to go in there most of all. Sometimes it isn't even fault of us people who take them in, it is cases like Sadie where they simply can't be contained. Inside is best for them because I don't know about anyone else, but all the cats we've had that have even dared go outside were completely dumb about cars and roads. The only one who wasn't was killed by our neighbors by no fault of his own, so I am not only concerned about cars but cruel and sadistic neighbors as well. ):

I am hoping I can find a farm like that, where they need a "mouser" of which they will at least pay some attention to. She's not getting much attention here because I barely see her anymore. She is impossible to catch outside because she runs at the first sign of me (she knows I'll bring her back inside) and no one else cares enough to bring her in. So we kind of have to just wait for her to come back in of her own accord... So its not like she'd get any less attention as a barn cat; it just makes me feel terrible to entertain this idea even though I know it is probably best for her. I've had her since the day she was born, when I took in her mother so this is all incredibly painful, regardless of how I slice it.

 

[Amethystkytten]

I am rehoming my cat and her kittens to a farm.The farmer is in need of cats and lost the litter he had..I don't feel too great about it but I know they will be well taken care of he has kids to play with the kittens and loves animals so I know she will be well taken care.It is a hard thought to deal with but it would be better than finding her in the middle of the street run over(my cat also bolts for the door demanding to be outside).I hand raised mine as well (someone had dumped her in a barn on a farm and the farmer was going to drown her!) so I know how attachment goes but you have to think about what is best for your animal not your own feelings sometimes too, even though it hurts a lot.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

An alternative would be what I used to keep my rabbits from scuttling out. Got a metal play pen from Petsmart and looped it in a c shape in front to the door--I could open the door and step inside and close the door behind me then step over the playpen and into the room. The barricade worked great for us. Nancey isn't as tall, so once she had the door closed, she moved it away from the door, stepped into the room and then put it back in place.

 

[stitch&flopsy]

I am thinking that if you have a deck you could cat proof that and get a tray of grass for her. That way she can go outside use all five senses and still be safe. By cat proofing your deck I would say put a screen around it high enough so she can't jump to it, but you also want a 45 degree angle so she doesn't try to jump over it.

If you don't have a deck then I would recommend buying a decent sized dog run off Craigslist or something and you could bring her out there whenever she wants out.

Also if you have enough time I would recommend taking her for walks once a day even just out around your yard for twenty minuets will help. If you would like to go up and beyond you could take her for walks on a harness and leash plus let her out in an enclosure. Hope this doesn't sound too crazy and I hope I could help

 

[FreezeNkody]

Have you thought of possibly an xpen with a secure top? I was doing that with my cats for awhile. But I also have a 6 foot privacy fence and after I knew they would stay in the yard I stopped using the pen.

 

[Leopold_Ruby]

Can you let her out on a tie? I'm not sure a farm life is much better than a city life. Both have their risks silly kitty