And finally, consider these thoughts from a site owner in the United Kingdom where free roaming cats are a way of life. You think your neighbors appreciate Fluffy in their yard? Think again...

"They do not seem to be able to accept that the cat they allow to wander around the neighbourhood everyday can be classed as a nuisance by others. Only a change in attitude of the cat owner will be reciprocated by the cat hater.

Cat owners call themselves animal lovers while allowing their pets to contribute to the decline in the number of birds and small mammals in the UK. They are either blind to, or would rather ignore, the fact that this is occurring.

Cat owners believe that the cat's independence is a wonderful attribute - only because they can then abdicate their responsibility for their pet.
No need to clean up after it - the neighbours can do that.
It doesn't matter anyway, faeces are buried - out of sight, out of their minds.
No need to keep an eye on its reproductive habits - there are voluntary organisations to cope with the unwanted kittens.
It sometimes returns to the "owners" house to get fed, then it's off again killing wildlife, spreading disease, damaging property and breeding without control.

Cat owners have an incredibly callous disregard for the welfare and safety of their "pets". It's the animal that suffers not the owner. No animal should suffer at the hand of man and there are many ways of deterring cats from your garden without resorting to killing them. The press is often filled with stories of the evil cat hater shooting cats because they constantly damaged his garden or killed the wildlife that he tried to encourage. Animal lovers scream with rage and shake their fists but the finger is never pointed at the cat owner. The cat owner who allows his cat to damage other peoples' property is as guilty as the cat hater who kills the cat for trespassing. The various animal organisations quoted in these cases will never blame the cat owner because they are scared of a cat owners' backlash. If you look on their websites, tucked away in a small corner, there will be a piece about neutering cats and the feral cat problem. They are all for cutting down on the number of feral cats in the UK and neutering domestic cats but dare not shout too loud. There is always some expert saying that there is a huge feral cat problem and they will have to be culled if nothing is done soon. The feral cat problem will continue to grow because none of the animal welfare groups wants to incur the wrath of the animal rights groups by calling for a cull."

Converting an Outdoor Cat to a Happy Indoor One:

How to Make your Outdoor Cat a Happy Indoor Cat - From Cats Indoors! The campaign for safer birds and cats. (Adobe pdf format)
Helping an Outdoor Cat Adjust to Life Indoors - From the Humane Society of the United States
Healthy & Happy Indoors - Good recommendations by Robert J. Holmes, BVM&S, PhD, MRCVS, FACVSC Animal Behaviour Clinic, Australia
How To Make Your Outdoor Cat a Happy Indoor Cat
Keeping Your Cats Indoors - A personal experience on converting an outdoor cat, and why she did it.
Indoor Conversion: Breaking the Free Roaming Habit - Katherine A. Houpt, DVM,DACVB, Cornell School of Veterinary Medicine
Suggestions for Converting an Outdoor Cat to Indoors - "Ignore the crying"...San Bernadino Animal Control
Moving the Cat Indoors - Hints from the Cat Hospital of Austin
The Indoor Cat : How to Understand, Enjoy, and Care for House Cats - A great guide book from Amazon.com
Living With An Indoor Cat - Canada's Pet Information Center
From Outdoors to Indoors - Hawaiian Humane Society

Cat Tree Resources

NOTE: We recommend cat trees that are at least 5 feet tall with perches. Small trees tend to tip over and cats will lose interest. Also trees that are a combination of both sisal and carpet will offer a variety of scratching surfaces. We know of one person who also kept a log inside the house because her cat liked soft wood. Our first cat, Tardy liked wood too. We used unfinished cedar planks which he clawed through to the other side. Work with your cat to find the best surface preferance to encourage your cat to use the scratching post. Oh, and catnip helps!

Cat Trees from Drs. Foster & Smith - We love these. The tower is great.
Angelicalcat Cat Trees - Great on-line resource for some terrific cat trees!
Build a Cat Tree!
Me-Ow-Trageou Cat Furniture - This is the Rolls Royce line!
Amby's Build-Your-Own Cat Tree Page - Lots of construction links

Safe Alternatives to Indoor Only: Enclosures & Leash Training

Leash Training The Cat - Great article on leashes & leash training
Leash Training
Leash Training Your Cat - From the Foothill Felines Bengals

Leash Training Your Cat - from Cats International
Harness Training Your Cat - From the Ottawa Humane Society
Harness Training Your Cat - Canadian Federation of Humane Societies
Leash Training - Jennifer Copely

Outdoor Enclosures
Fencing The Garden To Protect Your Cat - From the Feline Advisory Bureau of the UK.
Lisaviolet's Backyard Enclosure - Great photos of a backyard enclosure.
Do-It-Yourself Cat Fence - Step by step instructions. But please note the caution about predators!
Outdoor Enclosures - From PAWS
Outdoor Cat Enclosures - From Cats International