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You can make your cat an indoor cat but that won't stop him from wanting or trying to go out. I have an 9 yo cat that use to be both but now he is on restriction because he goes off and stays at my neighbor's house. The other cats do go out as do the dogs but he has to stay inside.
some cats will and osme cats wont adapt to being ndoors only after a lifetime of being an in/out cat...
all you can do is try it...
i do think putting a pet run in for him next to a window so he can come and go via the window, or a cat door) is a great idea, you could pick up a small 6ft tall chianlink kennel for next to nothing off craigslist (ive seen small 5x10 kennels given away to someone thatll come pick it up...you simply set the whole thing up against a house/wall with the cat door in, and chainline 3 sides and secure it witha couple of meatal bands, add some shelves and ramps and plant some catnip or kitty grass and tada.
rehoming an 11 year old cat is NOT a good plan, at 11 years old, while he may be spry and healthy right now, he is a SENIOR, and there are only so many angels in this world willing to take on a senior pet.
they often sit in shelters untill they die of old age, and the stress of being taken from the only home theyve known for 11 years can actually make their health decline very quickly.
some senior cats DO adapt to being rehomed...but youd have to find a VERY special angel to take on an 11 year old cat. and most people adopting a senior cat are going to want to try and keep him indoors so instead your pretty much just passing the bucket of training him to someone else.
I adopted a 4 year old a year ago. She had been an inside/outside cat. I don't let my cats go out. She is much younger than yours, I realize. I've been able to turn her into an inside cat. She still sits in the bay window and watches what is going on outside.
She loves to go into the attached garage. I let her do that whenever she wants to. She loves it out there. There are lots of places to explore. I set a timer so that I won't forget to let her back in. I think she views it as a pseudo-outdoor experience.
I had a 5 year old, a neighbor's cat, who liked us better so the owner eventually told us we could have him. Strange, but true. He had been an outdoor cat, loved running up and down the street. When we adopted him, I basically told him,"No more of that". I was firm with it and he was then totally indoors. I think, like the Dog Whisperer, they sense your vibe/energy and know if you mean something or not. He never went out after that. Took him a few weeks to adjust. He would have like to have stayed the way he was, but too unsafe.
If I were in a situation where a neighbor was harming, or threatening my cats, I would be thinking of ways to efficiently get rid of the neighbor, not the cats.
My cats are members of my family.
The neighbor represents a danger to the family.
I will protect my family, and all it's members, regardless of their species, by any means possible.
You are the boss, not the cat. He may try to sneak out a few times, just yell "No" very loudly, and if he sneaks out, go after him immediately. I would give Beau a spanking. He knew he was bad! But he turned into an indoor kitty, just fine. With a few "prompts"...
You are the boss, not the cat. He may try to sneak out a few times, just yell "No" very loudly, and if he sneaks out, go after him immediately. I would give Beau a spanking. He knew he was bad! But he turned into an indoor kitty, just fine. With a few "prompts"...
Cats can learn to live inside. It takes work of course. Considering rehoming or euthanizing a healthy 11 year old cat rather than keeping him inside for his safety is way over the top IMO.
I read the dog thread. Misty, since you are building an enclosure for the dogs, why can't it be used for your cat, too?
Cats are poisoned quite often, unfortunately. All anyone needs to do is put down some antifeeze.
Not all cats can be taught to be indoors. They develop habits and when they have been self-sufficient for so long, they do not stay indoors. There are many cases with the rescue where we weren't able to transition cats back to indoor only. I used to be like you thinking that it was possible, but it isn't always. Cats are usually smart enough to detect poisoning, whereas dogs are not. So, they are rarely victims of poisoning unless they have no other food source. Yes, antifreeze is very dangerous to all animals but very easy to track. So, you would think that most people wanting to hurt cats wouldn't be so stupid. Either way, this poster is a bit questionable from a previous post and we are discussing a situation that probably doesn't exist...unless they need ideas on how to poison cats.
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A spanking?
Cats are usually smart enough to detect poisoning, whereas dogs are not. So, they are rarely victims of poisoning unless they have no other food source. Yes, antifreeze is very dangerous to all animals but very easy to track. So, you would think that most people wanting to hurt cats wouldn't be so stupid. Either way, this poster is a bit questionable from a previous post and we are discussing a situation that probably doesn't exist...unless they need ideas on how to poison cats. 
