Is it true....

[blackcat]

Smidgen was a developed young man wasnt he?

 he was, still is, but not so much with the 'man' bits now. At present he is climbing all over me cos he doesn't understand the concept of books 

Will have to find him a hobby ...

[Rosella moggy]

Some of mine have been gone for absolutely ages their first time out too

I let Aslan RIP out for 1st time and he sniffed about for a few seconds and then legged it. He came home after 13 hours. It was about 1.30am and I was still sitting on back door step with quilt around me. Felt so sick with worry.

[Millys Mum]

No not all wanderings can be prevented but most can by playing it safe. Smidgen was a developed young man wasnt he?

[blackcat]

true. Bear in mind Smidgen had been with me for around 3 months but that did not stop him going walkabout the first time I took my eyes off him - 36 hours of being worried sick is not fun.

[Millys Mum]

I would disagree too, even for your own pets, so many people think a friends cat was fine and assume theirs will be too. The amount of cats that go missing from new homes is high and many would have prevented had they just been given time to settle down. 

[Desley (booktigger)]

CatJane - I do have to slightly disagree with you - your experiences are fine for people who have moved with pets, but not for people who have just adopted a pet, they need that extra time as they have to get used to the person as well as the house, I think the shortest time I have let mine out has been 5 weeks, I try and stick to the 6 week rule as much as possible. Some of mine have been gone for absolutely ages their first time out too - Rolo was, and it was raining!! And we had to send out a search party for Ginger on his first time out - he never lost his street cat ways, despite being here for 4 years, and always worked on his own routine!!

[Catjane]

I let out before breakfast, tea time at this time of year is already dark! I always leave the door open so they can get back in quickly if they wish.

If you would like to keep him in at night (which for most rescues is part of the homing agreement) then start how you mean to go on. Get him in for a meal and then keep him in so he cant saunter off 
Persevere with it and they learn the routine.

Yep - very true - they get in the habit.  My three are usually waiting for me when I get home from work, either indoors, or in the yard - as soon as they hear me call out 'heellooooo!' they all jump through the cat-flap, one two three! and then I lock it.  They are so used to this routine that they don't even try to go out again til the morning, when they wait patiently by the catflap for me to open it again!   I have to be honest and say that it is rather more difficult for me to get them in in the summer months, probably because they aren't as hungry, and the weather is so nice!  But I have learned from my mistakes, and realised that the best way to make sure they WON'T come in is to try to pick them up to carry them in!  They soon learn not to come near you until THEY are ready!  During the warmer months I generally just stick the catflap on 'in-only' and leave them to it once I've called them. Only once has one of them appeared to have stayed out most of the night.

[Catjane]

No, and I am afraid I am going to contradict BC's advice - dont carry them when they are outside, they can't pick up the scent of getting back home then. It is amazing how they know home though, I live on a quiet street and we dont have gardens, I took one of my fosters out on a lead, she pullled it out of my hand and knew exactly which house to go back into, despite it being her first time out.

This is absolutely true!!  NEVER carry a cat on its first jaunts outside - their primary means of finding their way back is via the scent they have laid down - a 'trail' if you will.  Just imagine if you wanted to mark a trail so you could return, and someone picked up all the markers you had laid then carried you back ... you wouldn't have much of a clue next time, would you?

You don't need to limit the distance they go first time out, either.  They will go as far as they are comfortable, which isn't far the first time anyway.  Nerve wracking for us humans, whose sense of smell is rubbish - we just don't understand.

I think we cat slaves have become ridiculously cautious about 'first time out'.  Cats know better than us, in this instance.  THEY know where they are in relation to where they started out, even if YOU don't!  So long as they have something to come back for, they will   So it's more a case of ensuring that the cat is fully comfortable in the new home, has established its own spaces there and, obviously, gets food and cuddles there as well!  So long as that is the case, it doesn't matter if you let it out after 2 months or 2 days.  My best friend's cat Tigger moved with him recently, but of course all his stuff was in the new home, with all the familiar smells, so my friend wasn't too fussed when Tigs went to explore the neighbourhood on the second day.  Sure enough, he was back within half an hour, ready for his tea.  And Tigs is not the sharpest tool in the box, either.  Another friend of mine has moved frequently over the last few years with her cat Sunny, as well as having to leave Sunny at her sister's place with her three cats on occasion.  At no time has she ever kept Sunny in, even when she has moved only a few doors away.  Sunny has always come back.  Really, they are not as daft as we think they are!

[Millys Mum]

I let out before breakfast, tea time at this time of year is already dark! I always leave the door open so they can get back in quickly if they wish.

If you would like to keep him in at night (which for most rescues is part of the homing agreement) then start how you mean to go on. Get him in for a meal and then keep him in so he cant saunter off 
Persevere with it and they learn the routine.

[Christine (Blip)]

Oh dear, I am sorry Betsy, I read your post to mean that you were just checking up on the old wives tale, I didnt realise you were about to allow outdoor access for the first time. 

Assuming this is an adult neutered cat, I would start with short supervised excursions after s/he has been with you for four to six weeks.  I did this for over a week with Blip, and was confident she knew her way around the garden, before I let her explore on her own.  Even then, I would stay in the garden so that she could see me for another week or so.

HTH

[Desley (booktigger)]

The hunger route isn't always foolproof either, especially not in ex-strays - Ginger had spent 3 years on the streets, so didn't see mealtimes the same as most cats, so he didn't see the fact it was 2 hours after teatime and he should be in!! I always let mine out first thing in the morning on a weekend, so it doesnt matter how long they are out, and I also leave the door open so they can bolt back in. Some cats miss my house and try and get in the neighbours though!!

[Mark]

I would also say to let them out close to tea-time so hunger will being them in before long 

[Desley (booktigger)]

No, and I am afraid I am going to contradict BC's advice - dont carry them when they are outside, they can't pick up the scent of getting back home then. It is amazing how they know home though, I live on a quiet street and we dont have gardens, I took one of my fosters out on a lead, she pullled it out of my hand and knew exactly which house to go back into, despite it being her first time out.

[blackcat]

No, sorry Betsy it is an old wives tale. It is not a reliable way of making sure your babe comes back. The only reliable way (and that is far from foolproof) is to closely supervise the first jaunts outside, and to pick your cat up at the furthest extent of its adventure and take it back inside. Do this daily for a few days, having let the cat out for a few minutes at a time, and you have a good chance they will know how to get home. If they go outside unsupervised and another cat, like the local tom, takes to them, they will head for the hills and not know their way home.

[Christine (Blip)]

Er, no.

 

[betsy]

Mother in law told me...

Must be true then

LOL

[hOrZa]

Mother in law told me...

Must be true then

[betsy]

to put fish oil/butter on a cats paws before the first time he/she goes out??? so that he will lick it off and mark his terrority outside and then know his way back?  Mother in law told me...