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Cat on First Floor Window Ledge
I was woken up to a bit of a noise at 3 am this morning, and realised it was my cat OUTSIDE my bedroom window, pawing at the glass. He had walked out of the open window and along the ledge, and then couldn't seem to work out how to get back inside. It's the first floor, so he couldn't jump down. He is too fat to turn around, and he was too far away for me to reach him. I called gently and he turned his head to me and looked confused, but just stood there for ages shuffling his feet about, until I got a packet of cat treats and shook them a bit. He then shuffled backwards to the window and climbed back in, and was fine.
I assumed it was a one-off, but my neighbour has just told me that 'oh, I saw your cat outside your window the other night... he likes that doesn't he? He's been there a few times..' and now I'm a bit freaked out that he's going to fall.
Should I just stop worrying, and assume he knows what he's doing? Should I shut the window at all times just in case? It's horrendously hot at the moment and sleeping is hard enough without having the windows shut... but at the same time, I can't sleep if I'm worrying about a cat with a death wish.
Does anyone have any bright ideas for a way I could block the window without stopping what little cool air there is getting in?
If it's relevant, he's about 7 and a is a fatty and not very agile. If it was my outside cat, I wouldn't be at all anxious, as he runs along fences, climbs trees, leaps off my shed and all sorts. The window fiend is a much more sedentary boy!
I assumed it was a one-off, but my neighbour has just told me that 'oh, I saw your cat outside your window the other night... he likes that doesn't he? He's been there a few times..' and now I'm a bit freaked out that he's going to fall.
Should I just stop worrying, and assume he knows what he's doing? Should I shut the window at all times just in case? It's horrendously hot at the moment and sleeping is hard enough without having the windows shut... but at the same time, I can't sleep if I'm worrying about a cat with a death wish.
Does anyone have any bright ideas for a way I could block the window without stopping what little cool air there is getting in?
If it's relevant, he's about 7 and a is a fatty and not very agile. If it was my outside cat, I wouldn't be at all anxious, as he runs along fences, climbs trees, leaps off my shed and all sorts. The window fiend is a much more sedentary boy!
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Here is the link to the ones I bought.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Penkid-Safety-Window-Restrictor-Single/dp/B00D6GIFY8/ref=sr_1_1?s=baby&ie=UTF8&qid=1406381414&sr=1-1&keywords=window+locks
They were removable as well.
http://www.streme.co.uk/pet-screens/?gclid=CLfswvTm478CFYvLtAod22MAsg
I made my own. Just bought a roll of zinc mesh fly-screen off ebay for £30 & made screens for 3 windows.
I am experimenting today with a bit of voile across the bottom half of the window (so I can still open and shut the window without removing it) stuck down with double sided tape for now. If it holds, I'll tidy it up a bit later.
The big danger is of kittens falling out of windows, but mature cats know how to land and are not as fragile.
Anything higher than the first floor and then there might be injuries and fractures.
If your cat leaned too heavily against the voile the double-sided tape would give; if your cat clawed at the fabric (and cats do claw curtains, for eg) you may have a cat trying to go out on the ledge trailing fabric round its legs.
I understand your desire to prevent your cat going out - I speak as the owner of a flying cat who thought nothing of launching himself out of a first floor window at a full run... because he'd seen a bird fly past