# Cats in a kennel



## ionestar (Jun 18, 2004)

I live in a room, even though it is big, since I have my cats I can't remember what it is like to sleep peacefully. Last night I closed one of the cats in the bathroom and this morning there was litter all over the place. My cousin puts her dogs in kennels at night so I'm wondering if I can do the same. I know one of my cats would not cry but my other cat would. 

Advice please.


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## zoeae (Feb 21, 2005)

I only did that with the kittens when they where tiny to protect them from the big cats. They do not sleep in there at this time. 

All of my cats have free roam of the house. Wish I could have offered you more info on the subject. 

Oh yeah, Maybe if you play with them a lot befroe you go to bed and kinda tire them out they willl let you sleep some. Eventually they will get used to your sleeping schedule also, but until they do it is hard to sleep, I know. 

Another thing is that since cats are more active at night (they want to run and play then)they tend to eat and use the litterbox more then also. So unless you have a kennel large enough to provide lots of room, it will not work.


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## coaster (Dec 1, 2004)

If the cat is going to cry in the kennel, then you're still going to get woken up.

By a kennel, do you mean a cat carrier, or a cage? I wouldn't put them in a carrier all night. It's too restrictive and they don't have access to relieving themselves in a litterbox. There are cages you can get that are suitable for confining a cat in a small space. They have room for a small litterbox and a couple levels for the cats to relax on. But I still don't know if that kind of confinement would keep them quiet enough.

I think you should just get some good ear plugs.


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## Puma (Nov 29, 2004)

Well to be honest with you, I think you are asking the wrong crowd. First of all, cats are not the type of animal that tolerates confinement. I read from some of your previous posts that you have 3 cats and you have a roommate, how come the cats have to stay in your room? Does your roommate not like cats? 

I do think it would help a lot if you played with them for a good solid amount of time about an hour before you go to bed. It takes awhile for them to get into a routine, but if you are consistent it will work.


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## sallyburdett (Jul 19, 2005)

just to add a more positive note.

my mother in law has cats and a chihuahua. when she bought the chi she crate trained him so that at night (or when he wants peace and quiet) he goes in there. the door is always open but thats his "home now". 

her cats (a maine **** and moggy) got very interested in the dog cage and so she bought one for them, they now go in there to sleep ALL NIGHT. they were only about 6months old when this was introduced so i dont know if it work for an older cat but they love it. they have a scratcher and toys and blankets and they settle no problem. again the door is always open. however when she was having biulding work done she would put the cats in there to keep them out of harms way during the few hours a day the builders bothered to turn up, and it diddnt bother them one bit!

the other posters are right though, cats dont like confinement, and i think that if the door wasnt always open they would get moody to begin with which doesnt make for successful training. my mother in laws cats had been using the pen for almost a year before they were shut in due to the builders, so had no fear or problem with it.

hope that helps

sally


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## ionestar (Jun 18, 2004)

Yes you are right I have a roommate, we both agreed to have the cats, I left to visit my mother for 3 weeks and when i returned she told me they are to hard to keep, too much work and from that day on she doesn't even look at them nor does she allow them to enter her room (she has a door and i don't). She'll be moving in a couple of months and honestly i can't wait so i'll have the entire apartment with my kitties  about the cage i thought about something like this http://www.cagesdirect.com/store-pr...eneral-cage-corp-general-cage-cat-domain.html i guess i'll try first to play with them before i go to sleep. i'll consider the cage my last option. Thanks for making me come to my senses


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## coaster (Dec 1, 2004)

I'd consider that cage suitable for the kind of short-term confinement you're considering for not more than two cats, and these would be two cats that get along well together. I reread your first post and I don't know how many cats there are....seems there are your cats AND her cats?

Hope it works out for you. Keep the earplugs in mind.


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## ionestar (Jun 18, 2004)

They are mine, my roommate doesn't want anything to do with them anymore, she finds it too difficult to clean a litter box! I have 3 cats but i'm thinking on giving Mini, she is so beautiful and very tiny, my other two cats are very faisty and bit her up all the time. She doesn't look happy so i'm looking for a suitable person. In the mean time she is always seeking protection with me and it worries me because soon i'll start working.


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## BamMcg (Apr 25, 2005)

Maybe this can help... I have a crate I used for my cat when he was little. We kept him in there when we couldn't supervise him. There was room enough for a cat bed, his food dishes and a small litter box. We provided lots of toys for him as well in there, hanging toys, balls, etc. So, when he seemed big enough, we took the cage away gradually. He still went in there quite a lot even with the door open. Anyway, to save room, I put the cage into a storage closet. I took it back out a few weeks later when I fostered 2 kittens, but with the 2 of them it seemed so small, so I put them in the bathroom with a child safety gate. I didn't put the cage back into storage in case the gate didn't work. Then my older cat that had been out of the crate for a time decided it was his and now sleeps in their and sometimes refuses to leave. We've used the crate as a disiplinary tool, but it doesn't seem to work because he enjoys being in there. You put him in and he automatically and contently falls asleep. I think if you can get them used to being in a crate, it will work. If we needed to, we could crate him at night, but with his new schedule since he's gotten used to playing all day and sleeping in bed with us at night we haven't needed to.


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