this post was submitted on 13 Jul 2024
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Animals and Pets

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Cat likes people but not other cats. How to keep her from being lonely indoors? (beehaw.org)
submitted 1 month ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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I adopted a stray cat outside my apartment a few years ago. She was originally aggressive both to cats and people, but after I started taking care of her she warmed up to the neighbors, too. Since she'd lived outside for about a decade, I let her out in the yard (supervised) and she came to love lounging and waiting for passers by to give her scritches.

Unfortunately, I've had to move. No more outdoor time for the foreseen future, partially because she's in a completely new town, and partially because there are so many birds around here I don't think I'd be able to keep her from running off.

There isn't even a window facing the walkway where she can interact with people through the window, which was another thing she liked doing in our old place. It's just me to entertain her, and I can be gone ten hours a day.

She has lots of toys and beds and things to climb, but since she loved the neighbors so much, I'm worried she needs a companion. Anyone else been in this situation? How do you help your cat adjust?

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Birds don't cause cats to get lost. They rarely go far from their territory and are very good at finding their way home.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago (2 children)

This is generally true... but when we moved with a bunch of cats from an apartment into another apartment on the ground floor less than 500m away, just as I was showing one of the cats around, he jumped off of my arms, went ballistic across the terrace, jumped the wall, another wall, across a street, and wet up a cliff before I could do anything.

He stayed in a 1Km radius, so after a week and something, some kids recognized him, and I got to climb onto a precarious bunch of overgrowth on top of a cliff, to finally get him back

Moral of the story: he ran away all scared, but didn't know how to get back in, so just stayed around... it's important to make sure the cat knows how to get into the home, not just find the way home but run away again when a dog or whatever scares them.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I'm so glad you got him back!!

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

Thanks. It happened some 20-odd years ago, so he's been gone for a while now... even the cliff where I found him is gone... and now I got something in my eye, but no regrets. Well, maybe one: should've taken more photos.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Yes for sure, the first few days in a new place are a shaky time - they're likely to wander off trying to get back to their old home. Years ago we had a cat that went all the way across town to our old place (about 2km?), twice. But generally once they're well settled in they won't go far and it shouldn't be an ongoing problem.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I've heard that cats tend to consider up to a 4Km radius as "their territory". It's kind of crazy/scary when that involves a city.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 month ago

I just meant I wouldn't be able to supervise her. She's an older cat and I can usually corral her, but that prey drive will have her climbing places I can't dream of chasing her.