Advice on cat harnesses and leads for an indoor cat.

[Saffstickles]

Hi everyone, Apologies if this has been posted somewhere else but I did a quick search for harnesses and didn't find much.
I have a gorgeous indoor cat who cant go outside as she is FIV+ and generally she is very happy indoors as she has lots of things to climb on and jump about on and play with while were out at work and she spends the time when we are there sitting on our laps and enjoying lots of fuss and attention.
I was wondering if it might be good for her for us to be able to take her outside for short periods and let her have a little bit of exploration in our communal gardens so I have been toying with the idea of trying to see if she would be comfortable using a harness and lead.
I've noticed there are a few different types of harness online and am wondering what people would recommend.
She is an average (maybe a teeny bit porky now!) cat (last weighed at 4 kilos but I think she's put on weight since then)She's certainly not fat but she's not as svelt as some cats!
She doesn't wear a collar so I am not sure how she is going to take the whole harness idea.....I was wondering what peoples experiences were and any advice on what kind to try....I was hoping to find one that isn't restrictive on the neck for her but also one she cant escape out of as I am terrified of her getting herself out of it and running off into danger outside the home as she isn't used to the outside world at all ,and on the few occasions that she has accidentally got out into the stairwell of our flats, she was found pretty quickly, terrified and yowling to be rescued and clearly wanted to be back in her comfortable territory that she knows.
That said she has a healthy curiosity for the outside world and loves to watch the birds in the trees opposite the flat from the windowsills so I thought maybe with a bit of gentle coaxing she could try the communal gardens with us so it will give her a bit of a chance to experience the outside world with the safety of the people she trusts with her.
It might be a bad idea but I feel like I want to at least give her the opportunity to try it and if she hates it we wont put her through anything that stresses her or frightens her of course but thought I'd ask you all and see what your experiences were on the matter.

Thanks in advance for any help and advice you can give me.

[Kay]

my only experience with a cat harness was many years ago, and not a happy one, as there were just too many plants in my garden for the lead to get tangled up in

you might like to look at this one though http://www.amazon.co.uk/XCat-Cat-Harnes ... roduct_top" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

the customer reviews offer some handy advice for a would-be purchaser

[Saffstickles]

Thanks Kay....much appreciated.

I don't know if Portia will warm to the idea yet but I thought it worth giving her a try to see just in case there is a chance of enriching her life with a bit of outside world every now and again.

On the sizes is medium pretty much your average cat?
I note on the reviews of this people say its on the small side.

My cat isn't fat at all but she does like her dentabits so is probably just above average I would guess.

Portia pics below to indicate the size of her.

[Hunnybunny]

Unless she is aggressive to other cats then there is no reason she can't have normal outside access.

[Saffstickles]

She doesn't go outside because she is FIV+.
I took her on as a rescue cat about 6 years ago and she has always been an indoor cat as long as I have had her.....to be fair she seems very happy indoors so I'm not worried about her in that sense....I was just hoping to offer her a bit more....it may or may not work but I thought worth a try.

[Hunnybunny]

Yes and FIV+ cats CAN have normal outside access if they are not aggressive and not fighters.

Unfortunately many rescues and vets don't keep up with the most recent research and data regards FIV which now actually states that FIV is not even necessarily classed as a 'life limiting illness'

FIV+ and FIV- cats also happily live in harmony.

[meriad]

Personally I don't like harnesses - too much that can go wrong with them.

just in case there is a chance of enriching her life with a bit of outside world every now and again

I also think it would potentially be fairer to your girl to keep her as an indoor cat vs very sporadic outdoor access. Along the lines of you don't miss what you haven't had

[HRHFluffy]

I agree with Hunnybunny that FIV cats can go outside if they aren't likely to get into fights. Frustratingly I haven't yet come across a vet who is up to date with the research and agrees with that idea. They are so behind the times. I had an FIV boy Harvey who had outside access. I would have happily kept him in but having been a former stray he was desperate to go outside. It would have caused him more stress if I hadn't let him out and stress is bad for their immune system.

However your Portia (Harvey was a black furbabe too) seems very happy to be an indoor girl. For this reason I agree with Ria that it may be better for her to be kept that way rather than occasionally having a taste of the great outdoors. You may find that once she's been outside and seen a bit of what she's missing that she will crave it more and more. Then she may show obvious signs of stress and then what will you do? Because you live in a flat, it would be difficult then to let her go out when she wanted and this could lead to more problems.

There are plenty of cats who enjoy being indoor only and I see no reason to force them to go outside or to show them what they might be missing. If Portia has previously been terrified of being outside your flat and would therefore have to be coaxed into the garden, then personally I would treat that as a strong indication that she wants to stay indoors where she feels comfortable and safe. Just my opinion though. She is absolutely gorgeous by the way

[Suzynick]

One of my cats has been going out in our garden for the past few years on a harness. I was lucky enough to be given mine from someone on another cat forum. Unfortuantely I don't know where it came from but its just a fabric one that goes round his neck and tummy. He was a bit wary of it at first especially as it goes under his tummy but he is used to it now. I tried it on my other cat when he wasn't allowed to go out out, but he just freaked out, he couldn't understand why I was following him!
Alfie loves the outdoors so this harness is a godsend. He used to be allowed outside but he had a bad experience once when he went missing.

[Podsy]

I bought a cat harness for my cats when they first started going outside, and they absolutely hated it. There was no way either of them were going to let me put it on them! Good luck!