After a cat's car death, is keeping my other cat indoors unfair?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is a hard dilemma. If her kitten is under 6 months I would keep it indoors and just let her out. All indoor/outdoor cats are at risk for predation, injury from other animals and cars and death. I wouldn't expect a mother cat to be able to protect a young kitten from a car or a larger animal. At some point Monti will need to be let out and fend for himself. Billu may be less interested to go out if she was spayed and you may want to consider neutering Monit so there is no mating between the 2. Billu will eventually stop looking for Simba. I wish you the best!

While it can be difficult sometimes to turn an indoor/outdoor cat to one who stays strictly indoors, I think that Ray is young enough that you should give it a try if you're concerned about his safety. You could look into putting up an enclosure (sometimes called a 'catio') so he can still spend some time outdoors.

Making them completely indoor cats would actually be doing them and the local wildlife a favor. Cats get hurt by other animals, hit by cars, lost, and exposed to diseases when allowed to roam outdoors. They may not like it at first if they were especially fond of going out, but they will learn and adapt and some even come to prefer it. Make sure they have plenty of perches and places to climb and look out windows, if they can have access to a porch that is fully enclosed they would enjoy that as well,

Start now with closing the cat door at night and keeping Kitter in with a litter box available. After a few days or a week keep him inside only. That way he will adjust before the stress of moving. Most cats naturally use the litter box but you may want to confine him to a smaller area with the box at night when he's in. Use plain litter without fragrance and clean it daily and fully empty it and scrub it with mild dish washing soap weekly. Cats are fussy and if the box is dirty they can start going out of the box. Also pick up bath mats and laundry so he doesn't start urinating on those. He should be fine, most cats adjust well. Make sure you play with him a lot and he may enjoy a cat tree since he is probably used to more exercise when he's outside. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Kitter.

How lovely of you to take in this kitten! Personally I believe in keeping cats indoors. They are safer indoors, they aren't at risk of being attacked by other cats and dogs, they can't get attacked by wild animals, and they won't be hit by cars. In addition, cats who live indoors typically live longer than cats who go outside. If you want Scruff to have time outside, I recommend building or buying an outdoor enclosure for her. That way she can enjoy the sunshine outside, but won't wander away and won't have any contact with wild animals and other pets. If you provide enrichment inside (plenty of toys, cat trees to climb, a window seat for her to look outside), then she won't feel cooped up. Good luck, I hope this help!

Indoor cats typically have a safer and longer lifespan than thier outdoor counterparts. If she is happy indoors I would not encourage her to go outside. If you are able to build her a secure small "catio" cat porch outside that might be a way she can safely enjoy the outside. But cats that go outdoors are more at risk from trauma from vehicles or other animals and disease, parasites and viruses. I'd be happy that she is content inside.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I am so glad you chose to send him to your gramma. Statistically, a 5YO cat doesn’t have great odds of adoption at a shelter. So that right there should make you feel good that you gave him the best chance possible. While you can never say for sure what will happen outside, many cats transition great to being indoor/outdoor. The fact that he comes in at night will help keep him a bit safer than if he were out all the time. Of course, if he is declawed, I STRONGLY encourage he be indoor only as he’s lost his main defense mechanism. I hope this helps you rest easier about your tough decision. Best of luck to you all.