Thursday, February 27, 2020

How to leash a cat...

Ding is really happy now that the better weather is here.  I try and take her outside more often.  I am rather afraid of her being out without a leash.  She doesn't have front claws, from her former owner, so she can't defend herself... And I found out, she isn't afraid of vehicles.  I was walking out with her, and cars were going by, a noisy truck, a motorcycle... Nothing.  She didn't shy, she didn't run, just looked mildly curious at the louder ones.  Translation, she has no sense of danger, so she isn't going out without someone...

So, get her into a leash.  This is easy, and it's hard.  I pick up the leash, and she's ready to go.  She meows, and runs to the door.  And paws the door.  And meows.

I pick her up, and put her on the bench to put the leash on- and she jumps down and runs to the door.  I pick her up, again, hanging on to the little furball.  She is meowing insistently, and trying to slip through my fingers. 

I put the leash over her back, and she lunges.  I manage to hold her, and put the neck collar on.  This is where it gets tricky.  I have to hang onto her, and snap the chest collar shut.  Now, as far as Ding is concerned, when she heard the neck collar click, that was well and more than enough. 

So, I hang onto any bit of her that isn't in jump mode, which usually is her head or neck, I manage to snap the second collar shut, sometimes after a try or three... Her fur gets in between the latches, and makes it slip back open.

Finally leashed, I grab the door, and open.  To see her lunge, and usually bonk her nose on the screen... Not too hard, but I have to get the screen open quickly, or she meows and looks really annoyed, trying to open it with her paws.  Thankfully, she has no thumbs.

I finally get her outside, and she runs down the ramp, and gallops to the lawn.

And sits down, and grazes.

Yep, crazy.  Fits right in with our house.




4 comments:

messymimi said...

Tripod SissyCat was an outdoor cat before she lived here, so she loves to go out also, and yes, she eats grass. Now Enigma SissyCat (much younger and named after Tripod) has decided she wants to bolt and go eat grass every time the door is opened, too. They are a bit nuts.

Retired Knitter said...

All my cats were strictly indoor cats except for the first one. I was in my 20s and didn't know better. One night he didn't come back. We looked and looked. about 10 days later we got a call from someone who lived a mile away. Our cat was found (collar ID) and he had him. We got him back and he lived the rest of his 19 years in the house. And all cat since then have been indoor cats. Never thought to put a leash on them..

Cat said...

Messymimi:

Ah, yes, the bolt and see what's outside the door. I think that's like job #1 for my cat. Well, that and sleeping...

Cat

Cat said...

Retired Knitter:

We probably wouldn't have thought of a leash ourselves, but she was 'trained' before we got her, and so it wasn't a hard thing to get her to use it for walking. With the mentioned exceptions of the blog... :/

Cat