Think about being perpetually trapped indoors – no thanks! We love the outside and, because it seems, so do our cats. They take pleasure in rolling within the grass, basking within the solar, and feeling the wind of their whiskers. We love our furry associates and wish one of the best for them however, as all-round animal lovers, we cringed when our carnivorous companions introduced residence “presents” from unsanctioned neighbourhood jaunts.
In addition to, the nice open air additionally hosts its fair proportion of risks and we don’t need our cats to be on the incorrect aspect of an encounter with a canine, automotive, or coyote.
So, caught between our cats’ wellbeing and the protection of native wildlife, we launched into a mission: to construct the last word cat-safe, wildlife outside paradise. Welcome to Catcatraz!
Undertake a Cat, Obtain a Complete Household
Our earlier cat fence labored effectively with our two older, much less adventurous cats. Nevertheless, proper earlier than the pandemic, we discovered a younger feminine cat alone in La Vérendrye Wildlife Reserve, with no proprietor in sight. Affectionately named Trinity for her fierce independence – mirroring the character from the Matrix trilogy – she adjusted to her new residence. We quickly found she was pregnant, including extra pleasure to our lives.
Mama Bear Cat
Our authentic plan was to maintain Trinity however discover houses for her kittens. However after discovering a house for only one, we realized we couldn’t half with the others – it was too arduous. Our household all of a sudden expanded to incorporate Trinity and her three remaining kittens. Embracing our new standing as “loopy cat folks,” we confronted a brand new problem. Trinity, a seasoned survivor, handed on her escapologist expertise to her offspring. Our current “catproof” fence proved ineffective in opposition to their dedication and ingenuity. They slipped via each small hole they discovered, displaying us that our earlier answer was no match for a household honed by the wild. Recognizing this, we tore down our previous system and began anew.
A New System, a New Failure
After exploring quite a few choices, we lastly settled for a fence with curler bars, designed to spin and thwart any cat’s try at escape. We constructed a DIY model utilizing PVC pipes and angle brackets. Initially, it appeared promising – for about 30 seconds. It wasn’t lengthy earlier than Trinity and her younger accomplices rapidly mastered a method of reaching over the bars to the highest of the fence with out touching them, bypassing our new system in mere minutes.
We spent the subsequent a number of months fortifying this new setup with aluminum flashing, beefed up rollers, corrugated plastic sheeting, and even motion-controlled sprinklers. (It changed into a post-apocalyptic junkyard fortress.) Sadly, after every tweak, our cats would rapidly work out a method to overcome the brand new impediment utilizing a mixture of resourcefulness and athleticism. The chilly climate appeared to sluggish them down however come spring, it was clear – we would have liked a greater system.
If At First You Don’t Succeed
Dismantling the makeshift “fortress” that our fence had turn into – a lot to our neighbours’ silent reduction – we looked for the subsequent answer. We found catnetting.com, which provided a sturdy design utilizing tall, angled poles and durable UV-resistant netting. Skeptical but hopeful, we ordered the system regardless of the price and customs charges.
Set up proved to be a bit of time-consuming, involving a number of nights and weekends becoming poles and metal wires, threading ropes via nets, and attaching parts. All of the whereas, our 4 cats melodramatically protested behind glass doorways. Their antics, which ranged from pawing on the glass to emitting pitiful mews, have been their methods of hurrying us alongside; they have been clearly lacking their outside time.
The Fence Is Achieved; the Cats Start
Lastly, the fence was prepared, and we launched “the zoo crew” into the yard. (They fairly actually leapt over one another to get out the door.) All 4 cats eagerly explored our new handiwork and paced the yard, testing the brand new boundaries we had set. Preliminary probes have been thwarted, and we cautiously hoped for achievement. Nevertheless, our optimism was short-lived; inside three minutes, our first escape artist scaled the netting and was free, main us on a frantic chase, a lot to the amusement of our neighbours who had turn into fairly accustomed to this ritual.
This new system was based mostly on the premise that cats don’t wish to crawl the other way up on a versatile floor. Clearly, the designers hadn’t met our cats. Regardless of the frustration over the money and time spent, there was some pleasure in our cats’ tenacity. Embracing this attitude, we believed we’d finally outsmart them and our persistence would finally prevail … proper?
Rome Was Not Constructed In a Day and Neither Was Catcatraz
We briefly thought-about constructing a catio however rapidly dismissed it; the cats have been already used to the total yard. Failure was not an possibility.
We added one other piece of netting from the highest of the cat fence, hanging it down from the apex, making it theoretically not possible for the cats to climb over. This appeared efficient till they cunningly gathered the hanging netting collectively so they might put their paw excessive.
We countered this method by putting in a rope alongside the underside fringe of the hanging netting with poles to maintain the netting stiff sufficient that it couldn’t be gathered. For the subsequent week and a half, we let the cats out and monitored their escape makes an attempt carefully in order that we might reinforce any weak spots instantly. It was a each day sport of “cat and mouse,” tweaking our design after every tried jailbreak.
After a number of extra breakouts and subsequent refinements, now we have lastly received to the purpose the place we are able to belief everybody out within the yard with out supervision. Even Sterling, who is powerful sufficient to hold for minutes from the fence with one forelimb whereas he works on an answer. Even Trinity, who can climb up a brick wall. Even Sophia, who lets the automated sprinkler bounce off her again. Even India, who can crawl beneath the smallest hole. Our yard was lastly reworked into a real Catcatraz, resilient in opposition to essentially the most fearsome feline escape artists.
Now, we take pleasure in birds singing with out fearing for his or her lovely little lives with the peace of thoughts that our cats are safely having fun with the nice open air. Our cats love their outdoors time, and so they love their yard. And we love that they’re staying in it.
In search of extra info on find out how to catproof your yard? Please contact the authors at [email protected]
