Here’s a little schematic to understand the layout. Help me figure out this mistery, not only to satisfy my curiosity but also to know if the cats in my street are in any danger.
Before reading and to avoid triggering any of you, my cat is fine and he was asking for belly rubs in the sun on my backyard just now.
So, I live in the house with the backyard with the B. My cat occasionally hangs around my neighbor’s backyard too. At curfew, if he’s outside, I come calling and he comes in.
Last night I called him in the backyard at B and he didn’t come but he was replying terrified. I know his meowing and this was “I can hear you, I’m scared, help me”. I couldn’t see him since only my backyard had any light. Every time I called he replied immediately in the same panic. That by itself wouldn’t scare me since he’s very anxious and easily startled. Once he entered the neighbor’s house and got locked in and he was yelling for me from inside the exact same way. But this time was different. The sound came from the outside the house, somewhere around the circle in A. And always from the same exact place. It really seemed he was stuck, he was definitely not budging.
I went around the house through the empty terrain (blue arrow) with a flashlight to see if I could see him and figure what was wrong. As I started moving through the low vegetation I heard and somewhat saw some movement in C in the direction of the arrow. I called my cat again and he was no longer replying. I looked inside my neighbor’s backyard and saw nothing.
I went back into the house. My mother was in the backyard (B) calling my neighbor. She said she saw nothing but heard a huge noise inside the house near the backdoor. The description of the noise sounded a lot like my cat running in panic. After a while looking for him inside and outside we eventually found him hiding behind furniture, peeking very cautiously. It took a while but he recovered. He has no injury or any kind mark of any struggle on his fur.
What I’m pretty sure happened:
- He was around A completely terrified of something and was not budging
- At the moment I entered the empty field whatever C was, it ran from me
- Also at that moment, my little demon flew through the fences and into my backdoor so quick my mother couldn’t even see him and made a huge noise running for his life (as he often does)
What I have no clue and want to find out:
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Most important, what the hell could C have been?
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Was my furry murderer frozen on fear or was something actually physically preventing him from leaving
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How long was he “stuck” there until I came calling him for curfew?
Some relevant information and, since I know some you are against leaving your cats going outside:
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My cats are indoor/outdoor, as most are here, and they can come and go as they please, though mine mostly stay inside and in my backyard. The cat in question explores just a bit more, but not much.
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At night, they have curfew and are inside only, and they know that routine
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It’s a calm street and the cars are slow. Also, for specific reasons my cats are terrified of cars and they even hide when they hear an engine.
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There are no known cat predators here. This is southwestern Europe in a 500k city suburb. There is a small woodland near here which I know very well and the most dangerous thing there is a hedgehog (I actually had one living in my backyard for a year). A fox is very unlikely since I never saw one here. But I have seen foxes in stranger places.
Coddled cats can be afraid of any animal larger than a baby rabbit, it wasn’t necessarily a rational fear. My last cat was afraid of a cat that was afraid of him, both were very cuddly wusses. When they crossed each other’s paths, they’d both be stuck in place meowing at each other for a very long time, and my cat would ask for help when he heard us.
When the other cat wasn’t afraid of my cat, things went differently: the other cat would silently look at my cat for a few minutes to take his messure, charge him, and my cat would go up a tree or come running to us if possible. No long standoffs, just a few minutes of noise (from my cat) and then flight.
Given how long your cat was trapped by this unknown animal, I suspect that your cat’s adventure was probably a non event and that your cat was afraid of something that wasn’t actually aggressive.
Foxes are everywhere in Europe, also in suburbs and cities. They’re just nocturnal and there’s not that many of them compared to house cats/dogs since they have to fend for themselves. Non sick foxes won’t go out of their way to attack adult cats, even if those cats are afraid of them.
Definitely sounds like a chupacabra encounter.
I was gonna say a Coyote (you’d be surprised how far into a populated area they’ll travel) but then “Europe” and I don’t think you have those, so nevermind (unless your country does have them and I’m wrong, then that’s my guess).
If I had to guess given that, fox or rival cat. Maybe stray dog.
I’d like to defend the Americans who keep their cats indoors and strongly oppose outdoor cats. If you live in most areas of the US your cat has a good chance of being eaten by a larger predator. It’s pretty normal for cats to be attacked by coyotes, bobcats, feral dogs, birds of prey and even raccoons. All of those predators and worst of all humans in cars, we have a lot of them and we go fast. I am part of a couple community FB groups and they’ll get a post a week of a dead cat found on the roadside. If it sounds like our roads are just covered with dead animals, you are right. There is death on every shoulder.
All cats should be indoor cats. Even if there are not predators, they can be and disrupt the local bird and lizard population.
Yes. Cats here should be indoor cats. Even in the city there are raccoons, coyotes, alligators, dogs in people’s yards, and CARS. I let them out briefly and supervised, sometimes, to catch a lizard if they are watching them out the window. Or as others say, occasionally on a harness to wander the garden, and eat a little grass.
Obviously that’s not always possible, there are feral outdoor cats that sometimes show up, the city has a spay/neuter and release program for those.
Oh jeez I forgot about gators, we got fuckin dinosaurs hunting outdoor cats in some states.
I live in Maine, the primary killer of outdoor cats is cars #1 followed by trucks then the weather. A little north from me bears, bobcats and lynx become a problem.
Indoor cat owner here… I couldn’t ever find my babies like the poor turtle trying to cross the street… People hit animals
People are the worst.
Yes, I would understand keeping your cat indoors in areas with predators and vulnerable species. There are good reasons to keep your cat indoors especially in places like the US and Australia. Not everything is black and white. There are always risks but when the risk is manageable I prefer to keep my cats happy.
I get the idea of risks being managed but when the risk is my cat dying an early death I do not think it is ever worth it. I had outdoor cats for most of my childhood when I lived somewhere with less car traffic and a manageable level of risk. The longest my cats ever lived was maybe 8 years, and she’d had multiple run-ins with other cats that left them scarred and beat up by the end.
I just don’t think the danger is worth it when the danger is the premature death of a loved one (cat).
Do we need a separate “Non-American Cats” community, so non-American people can ask cat questions without half the thread being derailed by all this indoor/outdoor argument?
Please! It’s insane. Americans are obsessed with locking living things for life. They have no clue how ridiculous they sound.
Indoor/outdoor argument is universal and for good reason.
No.
Keeping cats outdoors is a huge burden on biodiversity pretty much anywhere and especially in places that are poorly adapted to such predators like Australia and New Zealand. It’s less bad in Europe since foxes and stoats etc already exist and occupy similar niches.
Yes!
With explicit rules against even mentioning this.
OP is in Germany. You can’t even adopt a cat if it’s not allowed to go outside.
nonsense, where the hell do you get your information from? Do you think people in apartments just don’t have cats? Cats are better kept indoors anyways
I live in Germany and have been trying to adopt a cat for the past few years. Every single Tierheim insists on Freigang.
I have an indoor cat now, purely because the cat distribution system got me. Not because a Tierheim thought “hey, maybe it’s better for an animal to live in an apartment than in a fucking Tierheim!”
In Australia we are going in the other direction towards cats are indoors only unless you have a completely enclosed outdoor ‘cat run’ kind of space.
They are absolutely decimating local fauna and free roaming domestic cats & feral cats is a big issue in some areas pushing species toward endagered status.Not Germany but it’s normal to let your cats come outside as they please (if the place is safe of course).
I’m from Germany and you can definitely adopt an “only indoors” cat.
El Chupa Cabra!
If you discover more please let us know. This retelling was better than a lot of movies I’ve seen lately. All the best.
I’m now convinced it was just a younger cat that put the fear of god on my little pussy pants.
Easy solution: keep your cats inside.
you’re cats are likely to se shitting and pissing in the sandboxes where our children play. Fuck outdoor cats.
Your children are playing in sandboxes that get shit in and pissed in by outdoor cats. Fuck neglectful parents.
Your*
Fuck you. Go shit in your catio.
Yeah bud lids for sand boxes are dam expensive…
When I was a kid the neighbors cat would come over and try to shit in the sandbox while I was playing in it. Even after being shooed out it would come back and try again. Cats belong indoors just like dogs do unless the owner is out watching them.
It’s nesting season now. Keeping cats outside pretty much means easy and fun hunting on fledgelings.
Now, altruistic feelings aside, in addition to somewhat endangered tits and not really endangered sparrows, there are birds that are totally lethal for cats. Some of those, like owls, are often really hard to spot for an untrained human, for they are very fast and make no noise. Others, like crows and seagulls, are just very fast and devious. And they would totally try to do anything in their power to prevent the hunting for their babies, from instilling fear, to physical damage of various severity (that they could also inflict onto humans, I guess rarely lethal in Europe, but eye traumas happen; I know of conflicts between humans and crows where government had to resort to inviting professional military sniper to settle it. Hunters know not to mess with owls lest they are fine losing their face, literally.).
So this is just another theory that does not require cat predators and quite fits the setup described.
My neighbors keep cats outside; those look scared to death most of time this season - for a good reason, there is an extremely hungry owl family learning to fly here (that only I and people on Fediverse who saw my shitty smartphone pictures know about). Those are an addition to everpresent lynxes, a bear, and at least one wolverine, yet it’s never this scary for them as now, it seems.
New big neighbouring stray that bullied your cat. Cat often will not move from another cat, and will have staring competition with them, but this time the competing cat might be larger so your cat is afraid but will not budge because that cat will give chase if he run. Cat will often run from any other animal but not cat, they will have a staring competition.
I also vote for this. Once had a cat that went on her first alone outside trip. She likely found a nice place close to some bushes to take a dump when she was surprised by another cat and got scared so much she fled mid shit back into the house. It was a huge mess and she avoided leaving the direct proximity of the house afterwards.
Cats should not be allowed to free roam for more than the reasons you tried to preempt. For one, everyone thinks their cat won’t get hit by a car right up until it does. “calm street and the cars are slow” works right up until it doesn’t. It only takes once. They’re also exposed to more diseases and parasites. The average outdoor cat lifespan is nearly 3x less than an indoor only cat.
But, furthermore, your entire preemptive defence is also just selfish. Outside/unleashed is a danger to the cats, but the cats are also a danger to the outside.
Please, please, please keep your cats inside, and if you want to let them out do so responsibly on a leash with supervision. This is directed at everyone reading, not just OP.
My cats are 8 and 9 years old. They never had close calls with cars or other animals. If I suddenly decided to lock them indoors for the rest of their lives they’d go insane. When I leave for days and they have stay locked inside they become depressed.
Is there a risk? Yes, but it’s a small price to pay for their mental well-being, not to mention physical activity.
I’m much happier letting them decide where they want to go during the day. And so are they. Keeping an animal in irons just because you want it “safe” is not protecting it is abusing it.
My neighbor from a few years ago let their cat roam our tiny street and he got FIV, and likely also spread it.
Further, not only is it a risk for your cat, it’s a risk to the environment. They are responsible for the extinction of multiple bird species.
You really think that your cat is exempt from the studies showing outdoor cats have much lower lifespans? It’s not, and it’s proven by this post. Whatever scared them was probably trying to harm them (probably a stray tomcat, like my neighbors’ FIV+ one. FIV is spread through all bodily fluids, even their saliva through bites that you may not be able to easily see under their fur).
I have three indoor only cats that live very healthy, happy, and danger-free lives. They have never been in the danger that yours was probably in.
I’m not having this discussion again. Everytime someone mentions a cat going outdoors enters the paranoid american. Look, I know you guys really like your prisons and locking something for the rest of their lives for “safety” comes natural, but for the rest of the world you’re pretty much just abusing your cat.
When I was kid I also took risks for going out. My parents didn’t lock me home for my “safety”. Some parents did and it fucked up their kids. If you love someone you can’t completely dominate them and control their autonomy just for your peace of mind. Living implies risks. You guys sound a lot like helicopter parents. Do you realize how insane and abusive you guys sound when you say “it has to be always inside because it’s not safe” or when you talk about catios and leashes. My cat would have a heart attack if he found itself outside stuck on a leash.
My cats are healthy, they’re very happy and I wouldn’t ever make them miserable to satisfy my need of control.
You realize cats are a fully domesticated species right? An indoor cat is not suffering because it isn’t allowed outside, it is in fact much safer and healthier for the cat. And you seem to have completely ignored what I consider to be the most important part, which is that outdoor cats are the TOP SOURCE of human caused wildlife mortality. I remember being young and seeing so many diverse bird species around where I am and hearing beautiful bird songs. Now there are like 3 or 4 bird species near me tops, and one of those is just crows. Gotta love how one of the few times Americans have an actual point on how you are negatively affecting the environment in a major way you brush it off as “you just wanna lock stuff up cause you love prisons so much!”
Why didn’t your neighbour vaccinate their cat?
How can you possibly know if they ever had close calls with cars or animals in 8 to 9 years of unsupervised, free roaming time outside? Also, isn’t this very post about your cat having a potential close call with something, and you not knowing what it could have been? How could you possibly make that assertion?
But besides that, I cannot emphasize enough, it only takes once.
Your comment again ignores the havok that cats also wreak on the ecosystem around you, particularly for birds.
Cats being happier outdoors is entirely unfounded. Cats live incredibly fulfilling and happy lives indoors when properly cared for and stimulated, and crucially, much longer lives on average. Asserting that it’s abuse to keep a cat indoors is absurd and no credible vet on earth would agree with that assertion. Furthermore, if you truly believe your cats will be happier exploring outside, then they can go for supervised walks on a leash.
Do you leash your kids too when they start going out. Do you guys in the US realize how ridiculous you sound? Leashing a cat, really? Do you realize how stressful that is for a cat? You guys are obsessed with locking living beings for the rest of their lives. To us it is just abuse.
Keeping cats indoors is not a US specific thing. I’m Dutch and keep mine indoors too. They’re not used to the street so letting them go out would be far too dangerous for them. We were also specifically instructed not to let them go outside when we adopted them.
They’re perfectly happy to stay inside, it’s absolutely not animal abuse. That’s just hyperbole on your part.
My sister rescued a cat who she initially let outside (because he’s used to it) but after seeing him have quite a few close calls with cars on a busier road she decided to keep him inside. He needed a day or two to adjust but appears perfectly content staying inside.
Letting cats go outside has an environmental impact, sure. It’s also not a death sentence to let them go out. Neither is keeping them in animal abuse, nor is leash training them.
Let’s turn down the heat a bit, shall we?
I don’t live in the USA and that is a very strange assumption to make in the context of this conversation.
If your cat is stressed by being leashed, it is absolutely something to work up towards and train for.
I strongly encourage you, and everyone else reading, you speak to a vet about the risks of outdoor living for a cat, and to read about the impact they have on the ecosystem around you.
Agreed with this. I love cats and want them to live long, safe, and happy lives inside.
Honestly, it’s possible that your cat knocked something over in your neighbor’s yard and panicked. It’d sound like something big and scary, which would cause the cat to hole up and yell to be saved - and then when you came around the corner, perhaps thought that the ‘big scary monster’ was coming without knowing it was you.
As others said most likely another cat. Could have had yours locked in a defendable spot until you approached and it run away. From your description its most likely a cat. Could have been a stray, just wondering in, or unneutered male.
I’m also starting to think it’s what it was. My cat was very fearless with other cats but that was when he was younger and still had his nuts. Without the testosterone making him brave he went back to his normal self: a very sweet non-agressive and easily startled/scared cat. A cat probably chased him and he was hidden in a safe place not daring to leave until he left too. I’m glad he called for my help and I was there for him.
He was fine, he didn’t even fight. That will teach him not to stay out late. In the end he had lots of love that night. Everybody gathered around the bed where he hid while he peaked for safety. He only felt safe to come out after the other cat came to comfort him and show him it was safe (they are heavily bonded). I gave them a few treats and the next day he was rolling his butt in the grass in the backyard again while I laughed about cat leashes and triggered Americans.
glad it worked out well for everyone 🙂, very sweet
