| su2009 |
07-30-2010 12:24 PM |
Managing cats outside
I walk my cats outside in our own yard. It was a lot of work to train them. I did it starting with the head cat - the older, braver one: stand and hold him for three minutes on the back patio slab, then walk back into the lanai. Repeat several times a day for several days while the other cat watches from inside the sliding doors. Prevent struggling by holding a front leg firmly out and away from the cat (you must be reasonably strong and his claws must be clipped). Tell him: "stay with me!" repeatedly and praise him. Then the other cat: stand and hold on the patio slab, back into the lanai.
Move up through stages, one cat at a time while the other watches: cat sitting on patio slab next to you sitting on the slab, with your hand holding him down, then cat walking slowly in garden next to lanai with you walking next to him, then cat on side of house. If the the cat runs, yell "No! Stay with me, [his name]!" Talk to him sternly if he moves away from you, praise him if he walks slowly with you next to him. Cats like big flower beds, dislike being exposed, so keep a big flower bed in the front and back or side and wear old shoes to walk around with the cats in it. (Bark it instead of using rock, as cats will not walk on rock. Keep your plants tall and fluffy so cats can stay mostly hidden (abelia and lorapetalum are good choices), no spikey roses or spikey holly or juniper bushes.) Eventually you will be able to walk each cat around the house. Then you take them out together in stages - back flowerbed for five minutes, etc. Constantly tell them "Stay with me!" and praise them when they do. Always keep the lanai door propped open while they are out so they can rush inside if they become frightened, rather than running away from you.
If you see a dog anywhere in the vicinity, yell "Oh no! Dogs!" Scoop a cat up, point to the dog and run inside, acting panicked. The other cat will follow. Once inside, act frightened and run into the bedroom with the cats. Tell them you are glad you all are safe and you are proud of them for not getting caught by a dog. Eventually, you can yell "Oh no! Dogs!" and the cats will rush back into the lanai whenever there is, for example, a large truck barelling down the street, or a neighbor stopping by -- anything that might otherwise cause a cat to bolt. When they hear "Oh no! Dogs!" they will run back inside.
When you are out with the cats, always act wary. Make it clear that it is very dangerous outside and you are watching out for them. Caution them constantly. Eventually, they will not go outside without you, even if the door is open for furniture delivery, or to bring in groceries, or whatever.
Never take a cat out when it is getting dark because you just can't monitor them closely enough. If you take them out and they both stay beside you, stay out for longer and then praise them lavishly when you come back in.
Then, be prepared for your cats to meow from morning until dark, for the rest of your life, in the hopes they will persuade you to take them out not just twice a day, but 1,000 times a day. They will be relentless. You will need nerves of steel. You will wonder why you ever started this foolish cat-walking project instead of taking the advice of all the nice people who told you the cats would eventually be happy on the lanai.
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