Thanks guys!

Good Post Kammi x

we've had 2 cats for 7 years or so, before we moved house, we let them roam during the day but made sure that they were in every night before we went to bed (usually around tea time when they came in for their dinner). the only reason we let them roam was because we knew there weren't any other cats about for them to get hurt by (both cats are spayed females), we backed onto fields and we were far enough from the main road so that they didn't have an interest in gong that way.

where we are now we have had no choice really but to cat-proof the garden as next door keeps racing pigeons. it means they cant go into the fields, but we are closer to the road here so prevents them getting hurt.

they adapted quite well to the different set up here, even when they roamed, they didn't go far. we just have to give them a little more stimulation these days to keep them from going insane.

the only issue we do have now is feral cats, there's 1 that has got into the garden before, couldn't get out because of the cat fencing and ended up chewing on my sisters arm (rabies shots etc quickly followed).

oh and next doors jrt ... escapes nearly every week and were the ones that notice!

I don't like cats, find them really unsociable, best way to keep a cat out of your garden is to put a dog in it xD lol. seriously though, I don't care if they're roaming around as long as they stay away from me.

Ok well I am going to add to the "I like cats but..." brigade.

As animals go I do not dislike cats however I do feel that their owners should be made to be more responsible for them as dogs owners are.

As louise said cats are not wild animals they are owned by people and kept as pets and therefore they should be held accountable for their pets actions.

It is 'ok' for a cat to come in of its own accord and prey on my rabbits but it is not ok for my dog to enter the neighbours garden and prey on the cat or other furries - it is double standards. Same as if the cat injures or kills and animal of mine its owners are not liable for the vets bills but in reverse as a dog owner I would be expected to pay for any damage inflicted to a cat or other furry. As someone rightly said earlier if cats are really considered in law to be wild animals then legally dog owners should not have to pay vets bills when their dog injures a cat in the same way they wouldn't if their dog caught a bird or a wild rabbit etc however I notice this is often not the case and dog owners do have to pay for injury inflicted to a cat and therefore the law is of a double standard in itself.

My dogs never strayed over my 6ft back fence until a new family moved in with a cat that they fed over 20ft away from the house right behind my fence line which wound the dogs up enough as it was the cat then started to venture over my fence and craps everywhere if my dog did that I would be fined. I also have/had rabbits that I let free roam my secure garden why should I have to stop doing this so he can have his cat, I very much doubt he would be willing to foot the bills if my rabbit ever got injured on my property by his cat. Dita also hates cats with a passion and it was only a matter of time before she realised if the cat could get over the fence then so could she and started to follow/chase it over funnily enough it didn't take long for him to kick off about my dog being in his garden but had no problem with his cat being in mine - I made it very clear that his standards were double and that if he expected me to keep my dog out of his garden then he needs to ensure he keeps his bloody cat out of mine and that if the day came that my dog did catch his trespassing cat I would not be held accountable. I also asked him what sort of idiot purposely feeds their cat raw meat over 20ft away from their house right behind the fence line of a property that has several dogs in the height of summer when the food will quickly go off and thinks it won't cause issues. Funnily enough he doesn't feed his cat their anymore and we don't see it quite so often.

I am aware this doesn't apply to all cat owners and some are far more responsible but the vast majority are not. I myself had a cat that adapted happily from living as an in & out cat to an indoor cat with supervised stints outside and plenty of toys.

Whilst I agree that physically a cat may not be able to cause the same physical amount of damage to a car that hits it it still has the potential to do just as much damage as dog if the car were to swerve to miss it resulting in the driver hitting another car, wall, tree etc Yet a cat owner would not be held liable whereas a dog owner would be.

Dogs is dogs and cats is cats. I can`t really see the point of comparisons. It`s like comparing horses with canaries.

bloody hell I had trouble believing this was serious to start with til I seen the responses

you can keep your rabbit indoors if you dont want a cat getting it, same way a dog can kill a cat that comes in its garden and apparently (going by the other thread at the mo) eight times and counting, is that what you call responsible?
Not all terriers keep going daft at the sight of a cat either as they are trained not to, doesnt mean they like it or it lasts long but still..
exactly


Clearly those who havent got cats or ever had them, just dont realise they are not funny looking dogs

I'd love to hear about the proven training plans used on cats to stop them going into other gardens, on fences, trees....

I think you should get a better chicken run, as big as you like, but secure.

Theres a house here with a chicken run secure enough to be next to a path used heavily by off-lead dog(s) walkers and they are (high up) and fine
Well said.

My cats are the same, one didnt come when she got shut in a garage. Other than that they all came running, even from across in the woods!

Oh please send it my way when you hear something.