# How to keep cats from leaving the house? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 20, 2006, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485 "2006-04-20T15:59:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2006, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485/21 "2006-04-21T03:42:42Z")
> [@alice\_in\_wonderland](#): > > Duct tape. But doesn’t that get a bit tiring for the kitty who is duct taped to the wall all day just to prevent her from escaping the house then Matt comes home? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Elza\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Elza\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elza_B)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2006, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485/22 "2006-04-21T13:01:57Z")
> [@Little Bird](#): > > I forgot to mention–I haven’t lived at home for over five years, and that paticular cat has been dead for months, but I still get worried any time I see a door hanging open. Even someone else’s house, or on TV, my brain still goes “Close it! Close it! You’ll let out the cat!!” You probably shouldn’t come to my house, then:D. My girl will run away from the door when you get home (she’s a chicken sh\*t anyway - she runs if you sneeze or cough), and my boy just watches. The only reason we try to get the door shut quickly now is because we have a neighbor cat, nicknamed Buddy Cat (who’s an absolute sweetheart, but thinks he lives at our house now) who tries to jump in the door anytime we open it. My boy absolutely hates him, so it wouldn’t be a good situation if the Buddy Cat actually made it inside. I worried a lot before we moved into the house about my boy trying to get outside. I honestly don’t think he has any desire to go outside now. E. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2006, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485/23 "2006-04-21T14:41:11Z")
> [@XaMcQ](#): > > MOST IMPORTANTLY: put a collar and tag with your phone number and ‘indoor cat’ or ‘I’m LOST’ or ‘Call my MOM’ on a tag. Your cat’s name isn’t anywhere near as important to strangers as the fact that they are not supposed to be outdoors. And/or microchipping the cats, that way if they wind up getting out and finding their way to a shelter, you’ll be notified. Back when we had cats, one of mine realized he had it good (we got him from the pound) and never tried makign a run for it. The other one made numerous attempts to escape but when he got outdoors, was confused and didn’t make a run for it so we caught him quickly. The first cat I ever had, though, once got accidentally slammed between the door edge and frame. She wasn’t hurt, just frightened (phew!) but it was a very long time before she tried escape again. Not that I’m recommending this though… ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2006, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485/24 "2006-04-21T18:09:20Z")
Thanks to everyone for their advice! I just signed the lease, during which I checked with the landlord and confirmed my recollection that there is an “airlock” in the front entrance. So that’s one worry taken care of. But I will get collars for them, and I’ll also check to see if there’s a microchipping program in this area. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2006, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485/25 "2006-04-21T20:59:15Z")
> [@matt\_mcl](#): > > Thanks to everyone for their advice! I just signed the lease, during which I checked with the landlord and confirmed my recollection that there is an “airlock” in the front entrance. So that’s one worry taken care of. But I will get collars for them, and I’ll also check to see if there’s a microchipping program in this area. You know, if you get yourself microchipped and start wearing a collar, you might start a trend. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Mac\_Guffin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/2bfe46/32.png) [@Mac\_Guffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mac_Guffin)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2006, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485/26 "2006-04-22T10:12:03Z")
My cats are afraid of the outdoors. It might be because every winter, after fresh snow falls, I toss em out into a snowbank. They don’t stay outside very long. (Mere seconds.) In the summer when we are having torrential rain, out they get tossed again. And back into the house they shoot. As far as my cats know, the outdoors is the big bad place of cold and wet. Though they do like to look out the windows. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2006, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485/27 "2006-04-22T15:23:09Z")
**Mac Guffin** , that is evil. Brilliant, but evil. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2006, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485/28 "2006-04-22T18:12:36Z")
Oooooooh these little fuckers. I just KNOW they’re aware of how much time we spend discussing their bad habits and how to control them. Then they have counter intelligence meetings and undo all our efforts to exist with them side-by-side in a world of peace…where no kitties are on the lam and no one has to walk through the neighborhood shaking a can of Pounce and pleading for them to return home. ---
**Author:** ![Mariemarie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/58f4c7/32.png) [@Mariemarie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mariemarie)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2006, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485/29 "2006-04-22T18:20:53Z")
The people in this video have figured out how to keep the cats from going through the door: [How to keep cats inside.](http://www.jugglingcats.com/video/smart_cats.htm) Thanks to **Lakai** in [this cat-related thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=367945). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-keep-cats-from-leaving-the-house/353485.md?page=1)