AboutJessica Expertise I have bred Siamese cats and have years of experience caring for homeless, feral, orphaned, and terminally ill cats. I am knowledgeable in cat behavior, health, history, troubleshooting, breeds, coat patterns and colors, and trivia.
Experience I have extensive experience with cats ranging from breeding to at-home medical care to rescuing homeless cats and placing them in homes. I have assisted cats giving birth and hand-nursed kittens who were neglected by their mother from 2 days old through weaning. I have given supportive care to cats suffering from diabetes, terminal cancer, feline leukemia, feline infectious peritonits, and kidney, liver, and heart failure. I have been through chemotherapy with two of my cats who had lymphoma and have also been through many cutting edge surgeries with my special needs cats.
Question I have 4 only outdoor cats that I inherit when moving to this house with 10 acres, now I'm moving to a new house about 5 miles away with a small back yard. I want to have them indoor only so they won't run away. Is this possible?
Thanks.
Answer Yes, Veronica, absolutely! And I'm glad you've decided to do this! You will find the cats much healthier and happier as indoor cats. And doing it with a move is easier than making them indoor cats when they're used to their surroundings.
When they move to a new place, cats feel most comfortable in small, confined areas. In fact, I recommend you limit them all to one room for the first few days.
Chances are they will feel too nervous to be dodging out the door at the new place. However, you'll still need to do a surveillance of the area before you leave the house to make sure no one is waiting around to run outside. If they are, see if you can distract them with a tasty treat or some catnip in the other room before you leave.
You can make the transition easier by providing them with a pot of cat grass, which you can grow with seeds available at pet stores. Some pet stores sell ready-grown pots. Also, there are videos of birds and butterflies and fish, etc., available for them to watch on the TV. You can check some out at www.cattv.com. And if you have the money, you can even get them a pet fence to go outside in without risking losing them or subjecting them to disease or the danger of cars. See http://www.kittywalk.com/enclosures.asp Make sure they have plenty of toy mice, balls and scratching posts, and they should be pretty content indoors. When I converted my outdoor cats to indoor-only cats, it took about 2 months before they really settled into their new lifestyle. Now most are terrified of the outdoors unless they're in their cage.
