Thread: First time owner

Hi and welcome! This is a tricky area, but on balance I also agree with Antonia and Wivelspiker. I know of cats who lived in fairly remote country areas who still got run over and killed. But the risk from traffic is only one part of it. There are other risks such as poisonings, whether accidental or deliberate. Getting stolen, lost or trapped somewhere and coming home thin and ill or not coming home at all. Getting shot with an air rifle or attacked by another creature (I include people in this). Less serious potential problems are, visiting other homes in the area and eating other cats' food, or annoying the neighbours by toileting in their gardens, or having territory battles with their cats.

Previously my moggies had free range inside and out, and fortunately we never had any serious mishaps. But when we got our MC's our breeder insisted they were inside or enclosed in the garden. It was part of the kitten contract and you will find that most decent breeders will insist on it. The downside to enclosing the garden, for me, is that I do sometimes feel sorry for them not being able to have a larger territory and more space. It's not the biggest garden but they do have every last inch of it to play in, and there's enough space for them to run at speed, lots of trees to climb, and viewing platforms where they can look up and down 3 streets (we are on the corner). Certainly I couldn't bear not knowing where they all are and not being able to find them at any time.