Is Walking your cat on a leash a good idea?

Question

My cat Maeby spends hours in front of the front door meowing. It drives me crazy! She has been an indoor cat for 5 years now (since i got her when she was a baby) and i would let her out but she's declawed and i don't think she will be able to survibve out there (I also live in a high traffic area)

Should i take Maeby out for walks on a leash? My fear is that she will come home and be more persistend with her meowing because she wants to be outside more.

I'm torn...what do i do?

Answer 1

if she gas a collar it would be aggod idea. as long as it does hurt ur cat its fine.

Answer 2

Some cats won't walk on a leash. One of mine will just drop down and refuse to stand up. Some cats don't mind it, and will walk around. My cats do the same thing.. I have 4 cats. 3 of them like to go out with me, but two of them can get obsessive. Meowing and scratching at the door every time I go outside. I let them out (with me only), I have a little mesh tunnel that I bought in a catalog, that I put them in when I'm outside. Sometimes it makes them bug me less, sometimes more. But maybe you can try a Cat Fancy catalog, see if you can find the outdoor tunnel. Give that a try. My cats love it!

Answer 3

It wouldn't be a bad idea, in thought, but honestly I know when I was younger I tried walking my cats all the time, and they hated it! They refused to cooperate when on a leash, I just don't think they're meant to be on one, at all. Your cat would probably be fine out on its own. They usually stay right around the house anyway. Try it once, and stay out with her, and she where she tries to travel and make sure she doesn't want to stray too far.

Answer 4

Hi there,

Since Maeby spends hours mewing at the door begging to go out, I think you would be asking for trouble by training her to go out with a harness and leash. There is a chance that she might just learn to associate the leash with going out and stop begging, since she is getting to go out, but I would think that it might just get her begging more, as you suspect.

Cats don't really need to go out. They are a lot safer indoors, and less likely to become infested with fleas and ticks.

Try getting her a high cat tree with holes and hiding places and put it near a window. Use interactive cat toys, such as feathers on a string on a pole, and keep her environment interesting. This may help to stop some of her begging behavior at the door.

Hope this helps,

Troublesniffer

Owned by cats for over 40 years

Former breeder of Oriental Shorthairs and Siamese

Answer 5

I would just le your cat roam. My cats do.

Answer 6

Well i've known people who take their cats out for walks but if your cat hasnt ever been on a leash he probably wont like it at all. When we got out cats they had lived outside as kittens so when we took them home they wanted to go outside so we finally let them (supervised) and they just roamed around the yard. now my dad lets them outside in the mornings and then back inside when he gets back from work. my cats are delawed too. and they seem to be doing fine. they always follow us when we go for walks and they stay well clear of traffic. but last year a stray cat had 2 kittens in our yard so now there is a male cat who we think has started attacking one of my cats. so i think if you watch her outside she'll be fine. and your cat might get used to walking on a leash but i dont really recommend it because they dont seem to like it very much.