SO mad! Darn Neighbor's Cats!

[bywaterdog]

Enchanted colleen,

If the neighbors are only allowed 4 animals, how are you able to have so many and be legal? I had a problem with a neighbor who had 5 dogs ( allowed 4), she called animal control on my 15 chickens and to her dismay found out that an unlimited amount of chickens were allowed ( with proper housing, sanitation,etc.) was this the same in your case?

 

[redhen]

If folks care so much about their cats they would keep them inside. Or on their property. Period.
Otherwise expect them to be trapped or shot(by neighbor) if they come on my property.
If my birds are on YOUR land..then by all means..do what you have to do.. (although my yard is fenced..so my birds cant wander)
And i'll do the same when you cat comes on my land.
I DONT WANT YOUR STINKING CAT ON MY PROPERTY!!!!!!!!!!!! Keep YOUR pets on YOUR land!! How hard is that to understand??

 

[suebee]

Hey ESF! Long time, no see! Anyway, you should call back animal control and tell them to ride over to your neighbors house with an ultimatum; either keep the cat inside or next time they'll set a trap in your yard. If they trap the cat they will most likely charge the neighbor before releasing it to them. That can get quite expensive for them.

I'm a nice person like you, but if you've already talked to them and left notes, it's clear they are not taking you seriously so you have no choice but to take a different (but legal) approach.

Cheers!
suebee

 

[malignstar]

Quote:
I have to disagree here. My stepmom has taken in SEVERAL *feral* cats, earned their trust and they have lived strictly indoors without an ounce of protest. Two of our 5 cats were outdoor strays. The one never tries to go outside and the other ones tries to escape all the time but too dang bad for her. We just make sure she's chased away before we open doors, and we're extra careful all doors are latched/locked before we walk away. What if there were stray dogs all over the neighborhood that would kill and eat the cat in a heartbeat if it went outside? Do you think it would be easier to keep the cat inside or would the owner say "well I guess it'll just have to be ripped apart because it wants to go outside." If it's a matter of life and death, a true caring owner would keep their cat alive, safe and indoors, despite the cat being unhappy for a little while until it adjusts.

 

[redhen]

Quote:
I have to disagree here. My stepmom has taken in SEVERAL *feral* cats, earned their trust and they have lived strictly indoors without an ounce of protest. Two of our 5 cats were outdoor strays. The one never tries to go outside and the other ones tries to escape all the time but too dang bad for her. We just make sure she's chased away before we open doors, and we're extra careful all doors are latched/locked before we walk away. What if there were stray dogs all over the neighborhood that would kill and eat the cat in a heartbeat if it went outside? Do you think it would be easier to keep the cat inside or would the owner say "well I guess it'll just have to be ripped apart because it wants to go outside." If it's a matter of life and death, a true caring owner would keep their cat alive, safe and indoors, despite the cat being unhappy for a little while until it adjusts.

Very true.

 

[PineappleMama]

Quote:
This is the option I would go with, particularly if THEY provide the trap! There's a deposit to get one here, but you get that back when you return it so in the end it doesn't cost you anything. Not like electric fencing, urine/dyes, and/or dead/injured pets. And it's all nice and legal. Maybe after having to bail the cat out of jail a time or two they'll realize it's not worth the cost and will secure it. Of course there's also the possibility that they'll decide the cat isn't worth getting back. Either way good chance of it solving your problem, legally.

Oh, side note. Make sure the trap is well on your property though... so they can't say you purposely lured the cat from theirs...

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

Quote:
Yes, that's the case here. You can only have four adult domesticated pets, as in dogs and cats. But i was surprised to find that, because of the size of our lot, we can have as many ducks, chickens, turkeys, any kind of fowl or any farm animal that does not exceed pounds at adult weight. Hardly seems fair, but that's what the ordinances are here.

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

Here's my feeling about cats. i love cats. Have rarely met i cat i didn't like. This one duck-attacker is actually very pretty and sweet to people. When i see this cat in our front yard i tell him that it's fine that he's out there, he can even keep leaving his paw prints all over my car, i just don't want him in back. It looks like he's listening, but obviously not.

When i was young, i would let my cats outside. But after them not coming home, or finding them in the bushes after being hit by a car, i decided that everyone was going to be an inside cat. Two of my cats would LOVE to go outside. But since they don't have thumbs, they have a hard time opening the door. i give them lots of scratching posts and towers to climb, even though one prefers to use our furniture. Lucky for her she's so cute. We have toys for them and give them lots of attention. And so they are healthy and happy, they don't get in fights, don't get hit by cars or chased by dogs, and don't bother the neighbors. i know there are people who feel cats should be allowed to be outside and i'm fine with that. i don't even mind when they wander through my yard. Every cat in the neighborhood loves our yard as it's big and has lots of grass and trees and bushes. i just don't want them eating our pets. That's where i need to draw the line.

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

Quote:
Hi Suebee! i was surprised that our animal control was so nice and helpful on the phone. i've even had them here in person when someone reported us for having "a LOT of animals". A nice officer came, i gave her the tour, we talked about our chickens, and she dismissed the complaint.

 

[annaraven]

Quote:
I have to disagree here. My stepmom has taken in SEVERAL *feral* cats, earned their trust and they have lived strictly indoors without an ounce of protest. Two of our 5 cats were outdoor strays. The one never tries to go outside and the other ones tries to escape all the time but too dang bad for her. We just make sure she's chased away before we open doors, and we're extra careful all doors are latched/locked before we walk away. What if there were stray dogs all over the neighborhood that would kill and eat the cat in a heartbeat if it went outside? Do you think it would be easier to keep the cat inside or would the owner say "well I guess it'll just have to be ripped apart because it wants to go outside." If it's a matter of life and death, a true caring owner would keep their cat alive, safe and indoors, despite the cat being unhappy for a little while until it adjusts.

Some people feel that all domestic cats should be housecats only. Some people feel it's okay to have a cat be an indoor/outdoor cat. Deciding one way or the other doesn't make you a caring owner or not. Just as some breeds of chickens deal better with confinement than others, some cats deal better with it than others. If there were "stray dogs all over the neighborhood" I would work with animal services to get that problem taken care of because then it's a bigger problem than whether my cat goes outside. A dog that would kill and eat a cat is just as likely to attack a child - the problem still isn't the cat, it's the dangerous dog.

Note - I spent two decades of my life taking in stray cats, getting them fixed, and getting them placed. I have probably spent more time and money and energy in my life on cats than most people have on their kids. I know that many of my cats were perfectly content to be housecats. I have also known a couple of cats who insisted on being indoor/outdoor cats. A safe neighborhood for my cats was actually part of our decision-making about where to move. I share cat-sitting duties with friends (who also have cat doors for their cats).

So yeah, you can disagree all you want, but that doesn't make you right. Allowing a cat to go outside is not a sign of an uncaring owner. It just means they allow the cat to go outside.