Expert: Ali - 3/24/2009

Question
Hello!  I have a 4 year old female house cat that has been in the family for most of her life.  She is fixed and vaccinated and has never been outside unsupervised.  She has not been declawed and has never been diagnosed with any health problems.  I feed her dry food and water and she does quite well on her own.  My boyfriend and I are ready to move in together, however, he is extremely allergic to the cat.  The property we are looking at is on 2 or 3 acres, and I want to put the cat outside to live.  There is not much resource material online about this issue.  The property is more country than anything, and there are ferral cats and raccoons that roam freely.  We have not seen any wild animals bigger than the cat, yet.  I have a collar and tags for her; I could get her flea treatments.  Would I be a horrible mommy for choosing to live with my boyfriend and putting my cat outside?

Answer
Eva,

I'm very concerned about this situation, a cat that's been indoors for her whole life isn't street smart or completely aware of potential predators. I think that allowing this cat to become a free roaming, outdoor only cat would be psychologically difficult for her and there is the potential for her to be hit by a car, attacked by wild animals such as raccoons, feral cats or even fishers which are commonly found in rural areas. Fishers are North American Martens, this animal is quite agile and comfortable in trees, they've been known to routinely kill and eat any house cats they come across and it's not a pretty end to a cat's life.

To be completely honest with you there are so many potential hazards related to human civilization and wildlife in rural areas I think that it would be in the cat's best interests to be re-homed to another family that will keep her as a pampered indoor cat. Outdoor cats in rural areas could end up being shot if they wander into a chicken coop, some people view free roaming cats as vermin to be exterminated and they're often shot, drowned or poisoned. If your cat happens to hunt small prey animals there's a good risk that she will be poisoned accidentally because many people in rural areas poison mice, rats and other rodents using commercially available poisons.

I realize that your cat has likely been vaccinated against rabies, however in the event that she's bitten by a wild animal she will have to be quarantined and treated for exposure to this deadly virus, if she shows any signs of infection most jurisdictions will require her to be euthanized. I understand that you are in a difficult situation because your partner is very allergic to cats, but you made a commitment to this cat that includes making sure she's safe and cared for. You could opt to re-home your cat with a friend or relative so that you could still see her from time to time and know that she was safe, healthy and well taken care of. Another possibility would be to speak with your local rescue organizations to see if they'd be willing to take your kitty in and keep her for as long as it takes to find her a good forever family. I understand being reluctant to admit this kitty to your local animal shelter because there's a good chance that she may end up being euthanized due to time, space and resource limitations so I'm willing to try and help you find solutions that would be in your cat's best interests.

If you aren't able to find a good home for your kitty there are a few options that you may want to consider. It might be a good idea to compromise and have your cat live in a basement that's closed off and separate from the rest of the house which will give the cat the best possible environment to ensure her long term health and wellbeing. If your cat lives in a part of the house where your partner doesn't and you use a door that is properly sealed to guard against dander finding it's way throughout the house that may be the best possible way to have your partner and your cat under the same roof. It's certainly an option worth discussing and finding out more about what would be required to create an allergy free way of constructing the room. I'm not entirely sure what would be required, but a reputable contractor would be a good place to start gathering information.

You could go ahead with building a fenced in outdoor enclosure with an appropriate shelter so that your kitty can be protected from the elements. There are many commercially available enclosures for this purpose or you could build your own starting off with a large commercially available dog run made from chain link fencing on all four sides and the top of the run. I would recommend that you bury the fencing at least 6-12 inches underground to lower the risk of a determined predator getting ahold of your cat in her enclosure. You can build a cat house that could be heated in the winter if you live in an area that gets snow and cold weather. It's probably best to try and make sure that you have an enclosure for your cat that's appropriately sized and insulated. Your cat's house should probably be completely enclosed with a cat flap or door to protect her against the coldest weather, adequate insulation will go a long way towards keeping the house warm in the winter and cool in the summer. If you have cold winters I would highly recommend that you get ahold of a small heater for your cat's house so that she doesn't suffer from the effects of the weather. Your cat will also need a shaded area to get out of the hot sun in the summer. During the winter months you'll need a water bowl that's spill proof and heated enough to prevent freezing so that your cat always has access to clean water. Food and water bowls should be spill proof if at all possible regardless of the weather. A fenced in enclosure will hopefully protect your cat from wild predators and large dogs that aren't friendly with cats and if you spend a fair amount of time working on the design it can be a comfortable place for her to live. Other considerations that go along with having your cat live permanently outside include making sure to provide your cat with additional food during fall and winter months so that she can build up a layer of insulating fat, this will hopefully help avoid hypothermia or freezing to death on the colder days. Frost bite and heat exhaustion are special concerns for outdoor cats, you'll want to speak with your vet about preventing these conditions if you decide to go ahead with having your cat live outside.