Animal Companions
Keeping kitty safe by bringing world inside

• Animal Calendar

By the Hawaiian Humane Society

Oscar is king of the jungle when he climbs his indoor cat ramp. Perches and shelves add adventure to cats' lives spent indoors. Suchi Psarkos • Hawaiian Humane Society

To protect your cat and show your love, here are tips to keep it safe at home.

• Indoor cats live three times longer with a better quality of life, protected from the hazards of cars, poisons, contagious diseases and other animals, and they won't be a bother to your neighbors.
• Bring your outdoor cat indoors gradually, by increasingly longer stays inside the house. Make the time indoors especially fun with extra attention and tasty treats. Over time, your cat will enjoy longer periods indoors.
• Build your cat an outdoor enclosure with access through a window or pet door. The Hawaiian Humane Society has simple plans for an outdoor window cattery. Your cat can still take advantage of being outside while minimizing the dangers.
• Build or buy a kitty condo or climbing tree indoors. Some models extend from floor to ceiling, making use of vertical space in your home and adding to a cat's sense of adventure.
• Install perches and shelves near windows to offer your cat a good view of the outside world, without the risks.
• Place a bird feeder near a window to attract birds for your cat's visual entertainment.
• Train your cat to walk on a leash. Place a harness around the cat's chest. Let it wear the harness around the house while becoming accustomed to it. After it is comfortable wearing the harness indoors, attach a leash, and by using treats, you can teach your cat to walk with you. Next June, join in the PetWalk!
• If you have a fenced yard, investigate a new product called cat fencing. This mesh net barrier that won't rot or corrode attaches to the top of a traditional fence and forms a barrier that angles into your yard, providing an overhang so your own cat will not climb outside. The vertical component also inhibits other animals from entering your yard.

Identification tags

• Be sure your cat is wearing a collar and identification tag with your name and phone number on it. Oahu's Cat Protection Law says an ID is required at all times. Identification is the best way to alert others that your cat already has a home and should be returned. If your cat won't tolerate a collar, an implanted microchip ID from your veterinarian will help bring the cat home again.
• Spay or neuter your cat. If your cat goes outside, it's an O'ahu law that it be sterilized. The procedure will reduce wandering, fights and spraying and help reduce cat overpopulation. O'ahu's Neuter Now program offers low-cost sterilization for cats and dogs.
• Teach your cat to come when called, so if it does get outside, you can call it back. Training is simple: First, make sure it knows its name. Call the name and when the cat responds, say "Come" and offer a tidbit of a favorite food. Praise your cat and provide lots of affection when it responds. Soon it will associate pleasant things with being called.

Recognizing the command to "come" is important for all animals to understand.

If you want help on how to keep your cat safe, please call the Hawaiian Humane Society at 946-2197, ext. 223.

Animal Calendar:

Paws on the Path: This group brings people and their dogs together to hike on the last Saturday of each month. An experienced volunteer leads each hike. Starting at 8:45 a.m. on Sept. 29, they'll trek Manana. (Bryan's Sectional Map, page 92 A2.) The trail has a good view of Pearl Harbor and is partly sunny, partly shady. Future hikes are listed on the Humane Society's Web site: www.hawaiianhumane.org News & Events, Calendar of Events. Or call 946-2187, ext. 217.

2002 Pet Calendar photos chosen: The 14 featured photos have been chosen for the Humane Society's 2002 calendar. The Web link is: hawaiianhumane.org/news/newsreleases.asp; select the item at the top of the list.