Exploring the Possibility of Taking My Cat for a Walk

[Evo]

Tomorrow the temperature is supposed to be above freezing and my cat really misses being outdoors and I'm going stir crazy because the weather has been so bad for so long, it's been too cold to do anything outside for months.

I'm going to stop off at the pet megamart after work and get a cat harness for Dr Foofer. He's pretty laid back, so I can probably get a harness on him, I just don't know if he'll move after it's on. I saw a cool cat jacket harness online that looks much more comfortable, but I don't know if he'd agree to wearing a jacket.

How many people walk their cats? My cat is 11 years old and has never been on a leash.

 

[wolram]

Evo you really should have the FMA, who ever heard of taking a cat for a walk, LOL.

 

[Oerg]

it would look pretty damn weird to see a cat on a leash!

 

[lisab]

I've seen it done, but never tried it myself. I prefer my skin to be unbroken.

I keep getting a mental picture of a marlin on the line...let us know how it goes!

 

[Evo]

My neighbors in Chicago used to walk their cats all the time, but they had been walking them since they were kittens.

 

[Evo]

Evo you really should have the FMA, who ever heard of taking a cat for a walk, LOL.

FMA?

 

[turbo]

My grandparents put their huge orange tiger "Fluffy" on a light rope by the front door and let him walk himself. They tied him up because he was beating up the neighborhood dogs and the neighbors were complaining. He would not have been receptive to being walked on a leash, but on his rope, he was the boss, within limits.

 

[wolram]

FMA?

Funniest------Member--------Award.

And on top of the cutest.

 

[hypatia]

I walk one of my cats because he use to be a outdoor cat. It took him about a week to get use to it, and I had to ask my neighbors if they minded, because sometimes he likes to check out their bushes. But now he knows what the harness means, and he loves his outdoor adventures.

 

[tribdog]

Believe it or not the cat will love you just as much even if you don't take it for a walk. Just let it wait until the weather is better. If you let the cat out when the weather is nice go ahead and let it out now. It will come back in if its too cold.

 

[Evo]

I walk one of my cats because he use to be a outdoor cat. It took him about a week to get use to it, and I had to ask my neighbors if they minded, because sometimes he likes to check out their bushes. But now he knows what the harness means, and he loves his outdoor adventures.

I think his love of being outdoors will eventually outweigh the fact that he's tethered. He just sits in the window all day and chatters at the birds and squirrels (I put the bird seed down in front of the window so he has a constant array of "guests").

My problem is that the fruit bat is going to want to walk at the same time and he's never been on a leash either. Where I lived they didn't have leash laws and he never ventured more than a few feet from me. Now that I live "in the city" I believe there is a leash law. I can just imagine the two of them getting tangled together every 60 seconds.

 

[tribdog]

tie the bat to the cat

 

[Evo]

Believe it or not the cat will love you just as much even if you don't take it for a walk. Just let it wait until the weather is better. If you let the cat out when the weather is nice go ahead and let it out now. It will come back in if its too cold.

I can't let him roam free where I live now. He needs to get out and run. *I* need to get out and move too.

 

[tribdog]

Getting chubby?

 

[Evo]

Getting chubby?

Flabby. Gone from "buns of steel" to "buns of jello". The fall, broken arm, injured shoulder and lower back, leg, knee, etc... I haven't exercised since mid September.

 

[chroot]

He's pretty laid back, so I can probably get a harness on him, I just don't know if he'll move after it's on.

After the harness is on him, he can simply be dragged, no?

- Warren

 

[Evo]

After the harness is on him, he can simply be dragged, no?

- Warren

Well, I was hoping it wouldn't come to that.

I can always fit a cat carrier into a wagon and wheel him around the neighborhood. Not like the neighbors will think I'm nuts or anything. :uhh:

 

[Evo]

Eureka!

http://justpetstrollers.com/catstroller.html

 

[Kurdt]

Never walked a cat before. Why can't he just be let out?

 

[chroot]

Why in the world would you push a cat around in a stroller? :uhh: I thought the point was for the poor thing to get some exercise anyway.

- Warren

 

[Evo]

Why in the world would you push a cat around in a stroller? :uhh: I thought the point was for the poor thing to get some exercise anyway.

- Warren

Last resort if he won't move. At least he'll get some fresh air, new scenery, and I'll get excersize. I started thinking even if he walks, he'll be stopping to sniff everything and we'll be lucky to go a block an hour. Unless I can get him trotting.

 

[Evo]

Never walked a cat before. Why can't he just be let out?

Too dangerous, I'm too close to very busy roads. When I lived in the "country" he could roam through miles of woods.

 

[wolram]

.best thing for cat exercise a dog.

 

[Moonbear]

Well, not exactly "walking," but I do have a harness and leash for Ember so she can go outside. It took a few tries indoors just to get her used to the idea of having a harness on (she would just crouch down and not move at first, then upgraded to wrestling the harness off herself, and eventually decided I wasn't giving up and started to put up with it...and when she finally got to associate it with being allowed to roam around the back deck, she even stopped fighting with me while I was putting it on). Don't expect success on the first try, and don't expect to be in control of the direction of the walk (other than to stop it from heading into the road or ravine), but he might start to enjoy it once he gets used to the idea.

 

[Schrodinger's Dog]

Always let my cats out come rain or shine, there pretty good at coping with the weather.

They seem to have an innate ability to find somewhere to snuggle up in.

 

[turbo]

Always let my cats out come rain or shine, there pretty good at coping with the weather.

They seem to have an innate ability to find somewhere to snuggle up in.

I wish people would stop doing that. I live 'way out in the country and there are still enough people around here with "outdoor" cats that I rarely see any ground-nesting birds. Cats are extremely destructive on wildlife. When entire classes of birds are wiped out by cats just for the fun of it, our ecology suffers.

 

[Schrodinger's Dog]

I wish people would stop doing that. I live 'way out in the country and there are still enough people around here with "outdoor" cats that I rarely see any ground-nesting birds. Cats are extremely destructive on wildlife. When entire classes of birds are wiped out by cats just for the fun of it, our ecology suffers.

Well to be frank, in this country there are so many wild cats, it really does not make much of a difference. We do it because it's unnatural for a cat not to be out and about. No one in this country would consider keeping a cat inside unless it was a pure bred or some sort of cat that would not do well outside. Just doesn't happen. Sorry.

 

[Moonbear]

Well to be frank, in this country there are so many wild cats, it really does not make much of a difference. We do it because it's unnatural for a cat not to be out and about. No one in this country would consider keeping a cat inside unless it was a pure bred or some sort of cat that would not do well outside. Just doesn't happen. Sorry.

It's such a myth that it's unnatural for cats to be kept indoors. They're DOMESTIC animals, SELECTIVELY BRED by HUMANS to live with humans. They AREN'T wild cats, they're HOUSE pets. Provide enough stimulation for them indoors by being a good parent to them and they will be quite happy inside without destroying the real WILDLIFE that DOES belong outdoors and has no chance against such an unnatural predatation pressure as an overpopulation of domestic cats.

 

[Far Star]

I found this review about the jacket harness.

http://cats.about.com/cs/catmanagement101/gr/walkingjacket.htm

The added benefit with the jacket might be more grabbing room if need be. Neighborhood dogs off leash and such (not even trying to picture that scenario). I didn't notice if it had a pickup handle on the top or not. That might be handy if it's just used for walking and not crawling under things.

After a few aged dogs with hip and mobility problems one really starts to appreciate assorted hardware.

 

[turbo]

It's such a myth that it's unnatural for cats to be kept indoors. They're DOMESTIC animals, SELECTIVELY BRED by HUMANS to live with humans. They AREN'T wild cats, they're HOUSE pets. Provide enough stimulation for them indoors by being a good parent to them and they will be quite happy inside without destroying the real WILDLIFE that DOES belong outdoors and has no chance against such an unnatural predatation pressure as an overpopulation of domestic cats.

Thanks, Moonie! I wasn't going to start down that road and tick off a cat-lover with no potential for improved behavior. The Egyptians had used domesticated ferrets for centuries to protect their granaries from rats, mice, etc. Then, domesticated cats came into favor with the royal families, and the fad spread through the upper-class, and with their rapid breeding, domestic cats became quite common. Ships employed ferrets, as well, to protect their cargoes, and when cats became plentiful, they added cats too. The ferrets could get into tiny places that cats could not, and would drive vermin out into the open where the cats had a better shot a killing them. Keeping cats indoor is not punishment - they were bred as domestic pets and also worked to keep confined places free of vermin.

 

[berkeman]

tie the bat to the cat

Occam's razor. I love it. :rofl:

 

[turbo]

Dr. Seuss might have come up with "strap the bat to the cat".

 

[DaveC426913]

I think his love of being outdoors will eventually outweigh the fact that he's tethered.

Yeah. Cats are not known for their willingness to compromise.

Cat: "I want to go outside."
Evo: "Here you go, but you'll have to wear this thing."
Cat: "GAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH#$*&%!@*#$!@#(%&!@$#!@$^!@^$$!@*$!@"
Evo: "Okay. So you won't be wearing this thing after all. And, apparently, I won't be returning it for a refund either."

 

[binzing]

Just get a really big hamster ball...

 

[Evo]

I found this review about the jacket harness.

http://cats.about.com/cs/catmanagement101/gr/walkingjacket.htm

The added benefit with the jacket might be more grabbing room if need be. Neighborhood dogs off leash and such (not even trying to picture that scenario). I didn't notice if it had a pickup handle on the top or not. That might be handy if it's just used for walking and not crawling under things.

After a few aged dogs with hip and mobility problems one really starts to appreciate assorted hardware.

Thanks Far Star! I really like that cat jacket, a handle on the back is a brilliant idea! I would definitely add one for a quick pick up.