Why Does My Indoor Cat Keep Trying to Escape?

hy does my indoor cat want to go outside all of a sudden?

• Exercising
• Mating
• Hunting
• Marking their territory

Continue reading as we dive deeper into each of these reasons and then uncover the solutions to these issues.

We all know how much cats love to sleep. In fact, cats sleep an average of 15 hours per day. However, the hours they are awake are usually spent running around, climbing, playing and eating. Exercise is very important for a cat's wellbeing. Not only does it make them happier, but it also improves their physical health.

One reason why your cat keeps trying to escape their home is because they are bored at home and wish to exercise outdoors as it must be more stimulating than playing at home. This is especially accurate when indoor cats don't have many toys or cat trees inside of their home. Therefore, they will resort to the garden, house roof, streets, etc.

Although this is understandable, it can be dangerous for our indoor cat to be outdoors. Especially if they are away from home, as they can easily get lost if they're not familiar with the neighbourhood.

Just like their desire for being in the outdoors, cats will have a natural instinct to mate. This may motivate them to get outside to socialise with other cats and mate, especially when a female cat becomes in heat and produces mating calls. This call will often attract local male cats to come to her.

Most female cats will go into heat by 6 months of age.The amount of times they are in heat usually increases in spring and summer. If your cat isn't spayed, this is probably the reason why she is escaping to find a mate. If you have a male cat that isn't neutered, he may hear a local cat's call and desperately escape to try to mate.

Another natural feline instinct is hunting. Some cats enjoy hunting more than others. For this, they will find any toy to hunt at home. However, if they don't have toys they can play with they will escape outside to hunt insects, birds or even small rodents.

Sometimes they eat their prey, other times they'll bring it to their caregivers as a gift. Although they do this with good intentions, it's normal for caregivers to prefer that their cat stay at home or in the home garden for their own safety.

Cats have certain behaviour that we cannot understand. These behaviours are part of their feline instinct and come natural to them. We simply try to understand why they do what they do. One of these behaviours is marking their territory by urinating on it.

If your cat is escaping their home, one reason for this behaviour is that they are going around their home to mark their territory. By urinating around the house and garden, your cat is communicating with other cats that the marked territory is their home and that they will protect their territory if another cat tries to come close.

Now that we've gone through the different reasons as to why your cat keeps trying to escape their home, now it's time to see what you can do about it. By understanding why our cat behaves this way, we can find the way to help them feel more comfortable and satisfied at home. This way, we can make sure they are safe and happy. Here's what you can do if your cat keeps escaping their home:

Exercise

If your cat is escaping their home due to a lack of toys or exercise, there are a number of things you can do to motivate them to exercise at home. Firstly, you need to make sure that your cat has enough toys and cat trees to keep them entertained at home. If you want to make your own cat toys, read our article on DIY cat toys.

You should also play with your cat. Not only will this help you bond with your cat, but it will also keep them entertained. One game cats love playing is similar to when they hunt. You can choose a cat rod for them to chase or a laser flashlight. Cats will enjoy chasing these toys as they will need to hunt the toy as they would with their prey.

Lastly, if you have a hyperactive cat, you may need to provide them with more exercise. If your home as a garden, try to play with them outside and allow them to wander around the backyard by themselves too. If you don't have a garden or backyard, you can try taking your cat our on walks with a leash. Some cat breeds really enjoy this as they are naturally more adventurous. Learn more in our article about walking a cat on a leash.

Spay or neuter

If your cat is not spayed or neutered yet, this is probably the reason why they escape their home. The solution is simple, take them to the veterinarian to get spayed or neutered. Spaying/ neutering your cat will actually help them live a longer and healthier life as it prevents many diseases and other health issues.

Female cats will stop going into heat from then on and male cats will be more well behaved. Once spayed or neutered, cats are known to have a more balanced temperament and to stay more at home. This is also cost efficient as having your cat spayed/ neutered will be far less expensive than caring for a new litter.

Learn more about the advantages of spaying or neutering your cat in our article.

Protect them

If all else fails, the best thing you can do is to make sure they will be safe when they are outside. To do this, you must first make sure they are spayed or neutered. You should also provide your cat with a personalised collar that has their name, your phone number and address. This way, if they are lost and found by someone else, they will be able to bring your cat back home or get in contact with you.

Some caregivers prefer to microchip their cat as they are afraid their cat may lose the collar. This procedure is similar to that of an injection. However, it consists of inserting a tiny chip, the size of a grain of rice, into our cat. The unique chip contains an ID number for identifying the owner of the cat, in case your feline friend gets lost.

Lastly, another important measure you must take when caring for a cat is making sure that they are up to date with their vaccination and deworming schedule.

You may also be interested in our article about if cats come back once they have run away.

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