Outdoor/Indoor cat, help?

[Rout]

Hi there,

I am just looking for a bit of advice about my cat Flo.

Flo was an cat that had free access to outdoors via a catflap for her first 3/4 years or so. Then my circumstances dictated I had to move to a first floor flat with no option for access to allow Flo out. So I got her a litter tray and she became a house cat or indoor cat if you will. This remained until I got a new house about 8 months ago with a back garden and high-ish walls. She's now 11 years old. So I started letting her wander in the garden, supervised. Gradually, her confidence has built and I was able to leave her in the garden doing her own thing.

Recently though, shes started getting braver and is getting up on the wall and wandering a bit further out. The desire to go out for her is now getting quite bad, shes always asking to go out. Shes also the most placid cat ive ever known and never gets snappy with us about anything, but that seems to have crept into her behaviour a bit just recently which has never happened. She just seems a bit unhappier now that she has a taste for it and can't go out at will - she digs up the carpet next to the door when we aren't there. We don't want to put a flap in or let her go far because theres a busy road right near and her brother, Dave, was killed by a car when they were both young cats.

Do you think I would be best just taking her back to being a house cat. She seemed much happier - like ignorance is bliss. Should I keep doing as I am doing and just letting her play out but not full access. Or should I just give in to nature and natural desire and just bite the bullet and let her out as she used to and just hope she continues to come back and about the road?

Thanks in advance!

[Kay]

how about cat proofing your garden so she can go out but not wander to the road? angled brackets fixed to the wall and covered with netting don't cost much