I hope that your cat has a collar with tags that have your contact info on them AND that your cat is microchipped with your up-to-date contact information.
Best case scenario for a free-roaming cat: Someone traps them and takes them to the humane society or animal control. The humane society/animal control can tell that the cat has an owner and contacts you to pick up your cat (and pay a fine).
Worst case scenario for a free-roaming cat: One morning they just don't come home. And you never know what happened to them.
And to address your question about can you lose your apartment over this? Yes, absolutely. Your lease may have a section that addresses pets and (if it is anything like mine) specifically says that pets are not allowed outside your apartment unless they are under supervision and on-leash. And that repeated violations may result in eviction.
I have an arrangement with my cat, who had been feral. I explained to him that if he liked being fed twice a day and scratched whenever he got my attention, the trade-off is that he stays indoors. He had mixed feelings about this until the weather got rainy and cold. He decided he had a great deal, and accepted the terms. Problem solved.
90
@Footprint
Your cat was an abandoned cat. A feral cat is one that is born without human beings around.
2
@Footprint Yep. We took in a feral cat. Turned out she was pregnant and we kept her kittens, too. She has no problem being an indoor pet. Food, a safe delivery and home for her babies seemed like a darned good deal to her. She's never even tried to get outside since the kittens were born.
16
@RR How do you know?
4
as a owner of two cats I ask why in the world would you let your cat go outside at night in NYC or anywhere for that matter. There is more danger out there for the cat than you can imagine. If you love your cat keep him or her inside.
98
I've had experience with converting a long-time outdoor cat to indoors-only. In my experience, it can certainly be done. My cat howled incessantly for months at the closed door. I felt terrible. But he had contracted a parasitic infection outdoors and I didn't want that to happen again. Eventually, he settled down and accepted his new life. After that, he lived a very long and healthy life. Don't give up!
3
Cat owners who allow their pets to roam freely are exposing them to countless dangers; toxins as in rat poison or anti-freeze, dogs, cars, etc. It is pure neglect and selfishness. I keep mine (formerly outdoors castoffs) indoors 24/7. They are not deprived as most 'cats must be allowed to roam freely' enthusiasts will argue.
10
For those of you explaining that cats always cover their poop, I'm in a neighborhood with feral cats, and their waste is evident. My dog thinks cat poop is candy, so I am obliged to notice it--hopefully before she does!
4
I cannot imagine that you would feel secure about letting your cat out by itself in N Y City. I lived in the Village some years ago with a sturdy, smart, medium sized Texas bred dog. I left him tied up outside Gristede's for a few minutes while I dashed in. When I came out he was gone. Either he had untied himself or someone thought it was a fun trick. I was beside myself with worry and guilt. When I got home he was hanging out by the door waiting-looking anxious and agitated. How he crossed 14th St. unharmed I will never know. Of all the places on the face of the earth for a domestic animal to be on its own I think N Y City is one of the most dangerous. I think the cat could learn to walk on a leash and that you would both enjoy it. It will protest the door being locked up for a while but you will both have to get through it.
And your neighbors are within their rights to object for a variety of reasons. Some of them are annoyed but others are concerned for the cat's welfare. I'm sure you love it but perhaps you are romanticizing this freedom notion.
10
Does anyone remember watching "The Flintstones" cartoon in the 1960's? Wilma put the cat out at night. So did many people in my neighborhood. What's happened to people since then? I cannot believe the level of animosity in these comments towards a 10 lb animal. An animal that didn't even start coming into people's homes until about 60 years ago.
There's thousands of years of DNA coded into a cat's brain to watch, wait, stalk, and hunt.
I'm just astounded how people never got so bent out of shape from seeing a cat outdoors years ago. And I agree with @MJM that it is the destruction of habitat that destroys bird population, not cats. Cats get far more rodents than birds.
But it's easier to pick on individual cat owners than to take on greedy developers.
5
@Madeleine Rawcliffe Are you really basing your response to this on a 1960's cartoon??????
Letting cats roam free exposes them to a ridiculous number of hazards. They also are a menace to the bird population, including many protected migratory species as NYC is unfortunately on the NE migratory flyway.
Domestic cats belong indoors. They are not "natural" and unless you are prepared to care for them inside your home 24/7, do not become a pet owner.
Keep your cat inside. He'll live longer.
16
Years ago I lived on a ground floor apartment in a coop in a quiet area with grass and trees. I would let my cat come and go as you did. She always came back within a few hours. One crotchety neighbor complained to me that vermin might come in through the same opening the cat was using. I ignored the complaint as the cat had been doing this for years with no problem. One day the cat did not return. I was heartbroken. I always suspected the complaining neighbor had taken her to the pound. I vowed never to let another cat come and go this way. I still feel guilty and sad every time I think about it.
8
Cats do not have a need for unfettered time outdoors.
Rescued cat in Madagascar, a few years there, 5 years in Paris, and finished his healthy, happy ,fettered 18 years in Florida.
19
I have had both indoor and outdoor cats. The indoor cats live longer and are better companions. In addition, outdoor cats prey on songbirds and defecate in flower beds. Unless the owner is going out and scooping up the feces, this is littering and breaking the law as well.
Cats are just as capable of following directions and doing tricks etc. as dogs are. It just takes patience and persistence (and clicker/treat training). I suspect time spent playing and interacting with the cat indoors would enrich the lives of both pet and owner.
15
This is a tangent but - several comments have referenced "studies" that conclude something like "cats are the major factor in the decrease of songbirds".
I have searched, trying to find a reputable study that supports this thesis. The studies I have found are few and flawed. One studied songbird predation in an area close to a suburb. The study didn't distinguish between domesticated and feral cats. Another was funded,suspiciously, by an "ecology" organization that fronted a major oil company.
My suspicion is that industry-funded studies are aimed at pinning the blame on cats to take the focus away from the loss of natural bird habitat. Millions of acres have been lost to development or pollution. My thesis is that the diminution of songbird populations has much more to do with human activity in the name of profit then it has to do with cats.
I would appreciate it if anyone can provide a link to a proper scientific study done by people without an industry-backed agenda that does indicate that cats are, in fact, responsible for the majority of the loss of songbirds.
Otherwise, this is a deliberate attempt by industry to shift the blame, deflect the responsibility, weasel out once again, from the fact that humans, in their greed and short sightedness, are destroying natural habitat to the detriment of all living creatures, including humans and songbirds... and cats.
5
@MJM Cats
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/09/cats-vs-rats-new-york/571414/?fbclid=IwAR1cNHf36JllZ6UMlEHQ-wLtKTUdh2-VpLClC-AB62CKJWZuJCuZeqi6JSg
"Over the course of the 79-day testing period, local cats ambushed just three of the facility’s roughly 150 rats —killing only two.
“Once that rat hits puberty, [it’s] way too big and nasty for the cat to deal with,” he says. “You can watch a lot of cats and rats accommodating one another, easing by one another, eating out of the same trash bag.”
The felines are excellent at catching mice, but adult rats grow 10 times as big as mice. And rats are fierce. “Once rats get above a certain size, rats ignore cats and cats ignore them
https://www.wired.com/story/rats-vs-cats/
There's also the cats' devastating influence on other urban wildlife to consider. Evidence suggests their impact on birds and small mammals is tremendous, and far greater than it is on rats.
5
@john taylor https://abcbirds.org/threat/cats-and-other-invasives/
According to me, the apartment keeps the Cat inside the apartment. Then your problem is easily solved.
1
This is one of the reasons I dislike cat owners. What gives you the right to have YOUR Pet wander off into another person's space? Get yourself a nice long leash and start walking your cat on your time instead of infringing on the rights of others. Many times cats have sprayed their territory on plants and bushes and they have died off as a result the same for birds. Your pet, your responsibility to see that it does not infringe on the rights of others.
28
The outdoor cats where I live in this rather different city kill birds, dig up gardens and potted plants, tease leashed dogs and pee on my porch. A few disappear down coyotes and others get hit by cars. Get a grip, lady.
33
I love cats, particularly my two. I think they are amazing creatures. I also think that it is cruel to let them outdoors in the city. Leaving aside parasites and diseases (rats carry nasty things), they are very clever and very good at getting into the street, but not so clever at avoiding cars. Look up the average lifespan of an indoor cat versus an outdoor cat and perhaps you will see my point.
They also can be very destructive - they may spray (the nastiest smelling substance I have ever smelled was male pee spray), even if neutered, depending on when it was done and what other cats they encounter.
And they are also incredibly destructive to wildlife. Songbirds are at peril across the board; cats are a big part of that.
And you do not have the right to do this! You simply don't. It doesn't matter if you like it or not, you live in a building that doesn't permit this. If you want to really let your cat get out and explore (and likely get eaten), move to the suburbs; part of the social compact in the city is that you don't let your animals roam untethered in shared spaces.
So yes, they can deny you a lease, and they have ever right - moral and legal - to do so.
43
@E
I live in the suburbs and my two cats are always indoors. Although I love animals, it is best to keep domestic animals far from wild animals for the sake of other.
12
@max
And away from cars!
4
I used to like cats until roaming outdoor cats began to spray my outdoor furniture, spray the screens on my doors, use my garden as a litter box, and kill birds. Now I consider outdoor cats as pests that I need to protect my property from. Dogs are not allowed to roam the neighborhood and neither should cats.
31
To the person writing in for legal advice:
1) Get a doctor's note stating the law is on your side for having an emotional support cat or cats.
If your doctor is part of any viable HMO or PPO hospital based system, they have a form letter in their database systems with which to compose this letter.
2) Give that letter along with a privacy notice HIPPA. Remind them of your need for privacy.
3) Include all vet vaccinations for your cat.
4) obtain all peer reviewed articles on cat behavior. They are nocturnal and they do have a cat domain. This is well established. The BBC published a scientific study on cat whereabouts at night. Scientists of England placed cat tracking devices on four cats (at least). None had a similar pattern of movement but they all had their OWN pattern of exploration and kept to that pattern.
5) Go around introducing your cat in a cat buggy to your neighbors, and explain, Hi! This is my CAT, named Catio, and she or he lives with me, in apart. X next door. He or she is my companion and it is well known fact that cats must wander a little in the evening. The majority of cat owners allow their cat to venture out at night. Please allow me to keep my lovely cat. He or She is a SUPPORT ANIMAL.
Finally, cats DON'T PEE in places. They are exceptionally clean. They always, always always, cover their waste matter with dirt.
4
@RR I can guarantee, if the LW follows your advice the Lease will not be renewed.
25
@RR, the cat is not actually a support animal. You are advising the reader to commit fraud.
Besides, how would support animal status legitimize letting the cat roam with the owner not present?
46
They sure don’t manage to cover their waste around here in the winter time, when the soil is frozen.
10
Fleas. Ticks. Dead birds.
22
For goodness' sake, keep your cat inside! The animal should not be roaming unsupervised around the common areas. As others have pointed out, some of your neighbors may be allergic to or dislike cats. In addition, if the cat happens to defecate in one of the common areas everyone will be upset. I love cats and I would be angry if someone in my building let their cat run all over the place and it ended up peeing in a common area.
Also, letting the cat roam free is dangerous, particularly in NYC. I'm very surprised that the building permitted you to install a cat door. Aside from the fact that any animal could get in via that route, your cat's outdoor wanderings could prove dangerous to it. Suppose it somehow escaped into the street: it could get hit by a car, it could get lost, it could get picked up by an unscrupulous person. A friend's cat was, we suspect, dumped by her ex-husband outside their NYC apartment. The animal was never seen again. The idea of any of my family cats loose in NYC would terrify me. My family adopted a lovely calico that showed up on our back porch one day. She insisted on going outdoors, which we permitted for a while until, concerned for her safety, we put an end to her outdoor romps. We had no idea where she went when she left our yard and who or what she might encounter, which is why we stopped letting her outside (and we never, ever let her outdoors on Halloween). The animal's safety, not your idealized wishes for it, is paramount.
30
"Picked up by an unscrupulous person?" Are there really gangs of cat snatchers roaming around just waiting for an unsupervised cat? I see some fair arguments for both sides here, but risk of catnapping isn't one of them.
3
@j.w. - Come on, that’s not what I meant. By “unscrupulous” people I’m referring to: 1.) people who aren’t nice to animals, who abuse animals. There are people out there who tease and torture them for fun. It’s sick, but it happens. This was the reason my family did not let our cat out on Halloween: the risk of her encountering a mean-spirited person, however small, was just too great for us and for her. Humane societies, at least my local one, send out warnings about keeping pets indoors on Halloween just for this reason.
2.) Several years ago, a group of vandals broke into a pet rescue near my parents’ town in the middle of the night and beat numerous animals to death. The vandals didn’t steal anything or otherwise damage the facility: they just broke in, killed some cats, and left.
And 3.) In a far less violent episode, a business near my building had a pair of charming resident cats. They often sat outside in front of the business during nice weather. One summer day, a mentally ill woman stole one of the cats right off the doorstep. The owners were devastated, and the animal was missing for two weeks before someone who realized she had the poor cat got it away from her and returned it. She didn’t hurt the cat, but she was obviously unwell and, in this instance, unscrupulous. We are our pets’ keepers and we need to look out for their best interests. Not everyone is nice and sane, and all owners, including the letter writer featured here, would do well to remember that.
20
@j.w. You do know that cats are used for bait by dog fighting people, i.e. "unscrupulous" people, don't you? And most animal rescue organizations won't adopt out black cats around Halloween for obvious reasons. Not everyone likes cats and some have no problem hurting them.
4
In addition to all the excellent comments here regarding the dangers facing an outdoor cat, I would ask whether the cat has been neutered.
Intact animals are far more prone to seek an outdoor escape, as well as more likely to fight with other animals and get hit by cars -- as well as far more vulnerable to myriad health problems, including certain cancers.
A neutered animal with indoor enrichment like cat trees and interactive toys will be happier and live far longer than one allowed to roam free where s/he faces untold dangers and cruelty.
18
@JR
A neutered/spayed animal is also less likely to cry to go outdoors.
7
Thirteen years in a rented apartment in a desirable area and you want to jeopardize your lease over behavior that is potentially dangerous to your cat and unacceptable to the Board?
49
It is never okay to let your cat roam freely. Nearly every cat expert including Jackson Galaxy says cats need to be indoor pets. It is cruel to expect an outdoor cat to survive the elements or other encounters with cats, dogs and humans. Cats can be walked on a leash just like a dog - they can expend energy, get exercise and expend energy.
I have 2 indoor cats, and I have to put up with my neighbors' outdoor cats using my carport for a litter box, spraying on both my front and back doors, harassing my cats at the windows, and finding them dead in the street from having been hit by a car.
If you can't keep it indoors, don't have a cat for a pet. Don't anthropomorphize with your pets - they don't need to run free like the wind!
50
Honey,
This is both about the cat and about you. People are allergic, people have phobias, people don't want cat feces in the common area. Other people will be very concerned for this stray that ended up in their foyer and will be pretty upset when they call the management company and learn that it is one of the residents who let their cat run wild at night. Read the majority of the reader responses.
When it comes to your behavior, flip the equation. How would you feel to come home late at night and encounter a strange dog? ferret? boa constrictor? You're not being a good neighbor when you decide that you and your cat have more rights to common areas than the other residents do. Did you get permission for that cat door?
55
"Can I Really Lose My Apartment Over an Outdoor Cat?"
Possibly. And very likely you'll lose your cat to any number of accidents that might befall him in New York City. Other commenters have enumerated various ways that can happen.
And if your cat indeed goes into other buildings in the complex, then he's really in for a treat: big dogs, elevator shafts, utility closets that get opened only occasionally (and can trap for a week a cat that's wandered in), people who hate and enjoy kicking cats, a little spilled (delicious, poisonous) antifreeze, and so on.
I have to say, if you actually are fond of your cat, you should stop letting him out of your apartment. If you don't like him, put him up for adoption.
52
She should check and see whether the complex would allow a catio (outdoor cat enclosure) on the patio or balcony. You can search online and find hundreds of pictures of different sizes and types. This allows cats to enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of the outdoors without the dangers of roaming. I’ve had one for my cats for years.
28
@Krista Rakovan
Catios also allow cats outdoor time without putting birds at risk.
9
I personally don't mind cats, but I would never think that it is OK to let my cat wander freely in common areas of an apartment building. It's the same as a dog. Some people are allergic or scared of them, and don't want them everywhere. They will go to the bathroom outside (or maybe inside!) and you're not there to clean it up. I'm surprised the board approved your request to add a cat door to the courtyard. . .or perhaps they didn't. It's very selfish to think that shared apartment spaces are for the personal use of your unsupervised cat.
71
@Heather N I agree!
8
Maybe you neighbors don't appreciate the smell when your cat pees outside their doors.
43
@diverx99
I might as well flag you but clearly you hate cats and are not knowledgeable about them. In fact, cats DON'T PEE in places. They are exceptionally clean. They always, always, always, cover their waste matter with dirt.
2
@RR They most certainly do. And before you say it, I do not hate cats - love mine dearly, spend a lot of money helping rescue others. But male cats may spray, even if neutered - females too. They do it precisely to mark. And it is tough to bury your poop in concrete, so sometimes they do that fake burial thing, or dragging a leaf over it thing, and move along.
16
The bigger issue here is that you are going to get your poor cat killed. Indoor cats are perfectly happy and live longer. Your cat can get hit by a car, tortured by a crazy person, gutted by a raccoon or a large rat or infected with just about everything including feline AIDS. Get a cat tree, some cool toys and play with your cat. Please, please take better care of your pet.
77
@Tai L And you can take the at outside for walks on a leash. I do that with my cats in L.A. and they love being out for 20 minutes and eating the grass. No need for them to be out for hours.
10
Keep your cat indoors. Many of the rodents in the city have eaten poisonous bait. Your cat will ingest the poison along with the rodent. Song bird populations have been decimated by cats hunting them. And cats do get lost, attacked, injured, or even adopted by other people who assume the animal is homeless and needs an owner with more sense than to let it roam outside. Either put a harness on the cat and take it for walks, or enrich your indoor environment to make life indoors fascinating.
64
Why on earth would you EVER intentionally let a cat outdoors in NYC? It's so dangerous for your cat - so many diseases (including leptospirosis, which is carried in rat urine, and for which most vets don't vaccinate because the vaccine more often than not causes life-threatening reactions) and dangers (human and otherwise). Keeping your cat indoors is NOT cruel. Your cat will live a longer life and won't end up the target of cruelty from people or end up squashed under someone's car tires or poisoned from purposely or inadvertently placed poison. Yes, people do poison animals in NYC. You need to take responsibility and keep your cat indoors.
53
It’s waaaay more cruel to let your cat wander about outside in the city.
58
I’m baffled by the original writer’s comment that “it seems cruel” to keep their cat inside.
Quite the opposite. It is much safer for the cat to be kept inside, especially in a busy, dense city. Every time you let your cat out you are taking a chance with its safety. Lifelong cat owner here.
50
None of these comments so far address the issue. As I read this, the cat is allowed access to an inner courtyard that is, in essence, a common area for the building no different from a lobby.
I presume the other tenants could not prevent this renter from simply opening a window out onto the street.
As a cat owner, I would never allow Binky to go outdoors, and he is quite happy indoors chasing his cat toys. But I am only concerned about the safety of my cat, rather than worrying about what would happen if he encountered prey. It's a cruel world where no small animals have any longevity.
In fact, he has, over the years, presented us of two mice that somehow got in. He received scratches and treats for this, and the bodies went out with the trash.
14
@BKT
You may not realize this, but cats are an invasive species that are decimating the bird population.
Aside from that, other commenters have mentioned cats can be killed by poisons eaten or meant for rodents or contract diseases from eating mice and rats.
8
I remember reading in the Times not too long ago a report that found that domestic cats in urban areas kill up to 50 percent of fledgling birds in their neighborhoods. Maybe something to remember when cat owners say that letting cats roam freely is part of their nature?
55
@Gary
If you are really in Oslo, how the heck would you know?
It's feral cats that eat birds in urban areas such as San Jose, California. They are near river areas with many birds residing in the trees of the river. They are abandoned cats.
2
@RR No, it actually isn't. It is house cats as well as feral cats. And people in Oslo can read things too. The words don't change between here and there.
28
@RR Maybe it's just Texas cats then, who leave their poop in my garden (and those of my neighbors) uncovered? I'm in a neighborhood with feral cats, and their waste is evident. My dog thinks it is candy, so I am obliged to notice it--hopefully before she does!
You should be keeping your cat inside if you really love it. The outdoors is a very dangerous place for cats. I know you feel that you are doing the best for the cat by allowing it to have outside time, but you aren't - too many dangers. Get a litter box, and then have your cat on a leash for outside time.
59
Even not being allowed to roam at night your cat has a life better than a lot of people in the world. The cat will adjust. And as the columnist mentions you could be hard pressed to find some better.
49
Given that cats eat rats and other rodents, I would think the co-op board might welcome them, as long as they are otherwise well-behaved.
Unless, of course, they think rats and rodents pose no public health risk. Especially in NYC.
6
@Garak A cat that is out at night in the building courtyard is also using communal spaces as a litter box. I love cats, but you don't just get to impose one on your neighbors in shared spaces.
55
5
That would be disgusting for a cat to attack and eat a NYC Street rat! Do you have any idea of the types of germs and diseases a rat carries! I would never want my pet eating them or even biting into them and potentially bringing those diseases home.
30
Some years ago, I'm going down in an elevator in my apartment bldg. The elevator stops on the sixth floor, a cat walks in, and we proceed down to the lobby.
44
Maybe you shouldn't have let the cat get in the elevator. It probably wondered into the hall from someone's apartment. It surely was not waiting for the elevator.
9
@Allen Roth My 75lbs boxer did this once. He let himself out of my locked apartment, walked down the hall to the elevator, waited for it to open, took it to the lobby, and was trying to walk out the automatic opening front door when our doorman grabbed him. I think he just wanted to go to the dog park across the street!
21
@Maxwell Stainback
No way I'm gonna pick up someone else's cat, and risk getting scratched or mauled.
I am not a cat person (see photo).
10
The American Humane Society recommends keeping cats inside. They stay healthier and live longer and so will you.
I live in a small Southern town in an 85 year old house on .75 acre. I have to keep my cats inside or be fined by the city if they wander over to my neighbors yard.
77
@Karin Byars
GEE they are not cat experts. They are non profit but for vanity organization.
They have no legal authority to determine how own owns or manages any pet.
1
@RRA
As a superintendent with all sorts of residential tenants I think about the single women who seem to compensate for their lack of a romantic partner by owning a cat. "Cat ladies," my doorman calls them.
Lobby packages and boxes from Amazon containing all sorts of cat ownership items, including litter - yes - they have sand delivered for their cats.
True cell phone text: "Hey Frank, it's a hot day and I am at work - I forgot to leave a window open, can you go into my apartment and open one - the cat must be uncomfortable?"
Otherwise well-adjusted working girls.
@Frank
You seem to have a strained relationship with women and Amazon. Maybe you ought to manage a better residential project with AC for the comfort of the cat and doormen who do not invade the privacy of the residents by snooping through their packages.
11