I used to work as an animal control officer. And I had quite a few insights into cat care that many owners should find valuable. Here are some things I learned on the streets:
Cats should be kept indoors. I know this is controversial among many cat owners, who feel that the stimulation and exercise cats get outdoors is worth the risk. These cat owners never had to scrape the cats killed by cars off the roadway. They never had to check the body for ID or call the owners to tell them the fate of their beloved family member. They have probably never seen what kind of damage a dog can do to another animal. They have never been called to transport an injured stray to a vet to be euthanized. Outdoor cats are at a high risk of trauma from cars, dogs, other cats, and cruel humans. The results of these injuries are everyday calls for animal control officers. (Veterinarians will also tell you about the risk of deadly diseases like feline leukemia faced by outdoor cats.)- All cats, including strictly indoor cats, should wear a collar with an ID tag at all times. The ID tag should be engraved with your address and phone number. This is in addition to other forms of pet identification, such as rabies tags, tattoos, and microchips. Most of the "lost" cats I found were indoor cats, since outdoor cats are usually savvy enough to avoid traps and animal control. The ones with ID tags were returned to their owners immediately. The rest went to the shelter, where they were at risk of catching upper respiratory infections and more serious diseases. The ones who were bailed out cost their owners an impound fee plus a daily shetler fee. The ones who were not were sometimes euthanized.
- If your cat is missing, call the local animal shelters at least every other day. The Harris County Veterinary Public Health website has a list of Houston-area animal shelters to call. This is true even if your cat has identification. ID tags can be lost outdoors and sometimes a microchip scan misses the chip, especially in fearful or aggressive cats. That leads me to the next tip:
The way your cat behaves around you is completely different from how your cat behaves around animal control officers and animal shelter staff. A normally-friendly cat in a trap or shelter is often terrified and may lash out. Shelter personnel, for their safety, will not handle a cat that may be feral, because feral cats bite hard without hesitation. (I learned this the hard way.) Pet cats may act like feral cats in a frightening shelter situation, and may be hard to handle.- Know how to physically describe your cat. What breed is your pet? Male or female, spayed, neutered, or intact? What color is your cat? How large? Non-purebred cats are classified in shelters as "DSH" (domestic shorthair) or "DLH" (domestic longhair). Colors are given as the primary or upper-body color, then a slash if there is a secondary color. Stripes are called "tabby" of a particular color. Cats with colorpoints (Siamese-style markings on the face, ears, feet, and tail) have "point" in the name of their color. Examples: "Seal point" is a better description than "brown and cream;" "calico" or "tortoiseshell" is better than "multi colored" or "patchwork;" and "orange tabby" is better than "yellow." Be able to specify any unique markings, scars, or other characteristics of your cats (for example, "notch in the left ear" or "saddle-shaped black and white pattern on the back").
Many people in the world do not like cats. It's a sad but true fact. Some of them will go out of their way to harm cats. Most of them, however, either ignore stray cats or use humane traps to capture them. In many jurisdictions, it is legal to humanely trap stray cats, then call animal control to pick them up. These cat-haters actually help in many cases by catching disoriented lost pets who otherwise might end up as roadkill or dog bait. Still, being caught in a humane trap, while not harmful in any way, is frightening to any cat. The best way to avoid this fate for your feline family member is to keep her inside. (Wait, I already said that.)
Comments
I can't tell how many people in our area have outdoor cats and none wear collars with identification. I worry about them but somehow they seem to escape harm and find food without any problems. Thank goodness. Now we just need to get more people to spay and neuter. :-)
Bobbi, I wonder how many of those cats are feral or semi-feral. For the ones who are pets, they may seem to be doing fine, but their odds of living past age 5 are dramatically lower than they are for indoor cats! I would never say that a dog should never go outside, but then again dogs can be confined to yards by fences (at least, the non-jumpers can be! :) ) But unless a cat is leash-trained, I think the risks far outweigh the benefits. My own cats seem to get great pleasure from sniffing the breeze from an open (screened) window and watching the birds and squirrels, with none of the risks.
Also, I think dogs probably need more exercise than cats, who are programmed to sleep 20 hours a day as it is—any vets out there who can back me up on that?
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