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We were looking at some photographs and noticed this one by NYCViaRachel on Flickr. It's apparently the fourth cat on a leash she's seen, and she wondered, "Seriously what the f*** people?" And Gothamist has to concur. We understand that cats enjoy new smells and sights just as much as their big cat relatives, walking a cat on a city street is very puzzling. Do their owners wipe their paws when they get home? Yes, cats like (and lick) their butts, but goodness knows what on the sidewalks of the city.
Other instances of cats on leashes around the city: At the brooklyn Museum by c_damage, a cat in a tank top, a cat in autumn leaves, and on a man's head in SoHo (really). And there was a big brouhaha about dogs off leashes earlier this month. Cats off their leashes are better known as feral cats.
Photograph of cat on a leash during the summer by NYCviaRachel
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your dog walks "barefoot"on the ground, do you wipe their feet before letting them inside your home?
I've taken my girlfriend's cat to Washington Square Park a few times, and he loves running around the grassy east end on a long leash. I worry that a rat will grab him, though.
My dog's feet don't touch my counters, table or face...there is a difference.
Seriously, I thought the editor was going to comment on how cats don't react as well to being leashed as dogs do, but I shook my head a little when it turned out that her objection was to the cat's feet getting dirty. I suppose it's because cats clean themselves more than dogs, but this is silly.
Yes, cats like their butts, but goodness knows what on the sidewalks of the city.
...
What?
When I got my cat at the Humane Society, the vet actually told me and my roommate that cats aren't meant to be "walked" because there are bacteria on city sidewalks that can make a cat very sick -- dogs are not affected by these bacteria.
So yes, there is an actual reason why cats shouldn't be walking around. I certainly don't see why cats couldn't romp on the grass, though.
Last year, I saw a woman with her cat on a leash in Madison Square Park; the cat was just lying there enjoying life, but the Parks Department made her leave since there was a sign that said "no dogs on the lawn." Nice, right? It wasn't like the cat was going to take a big dump on the lawn or anything (litter-trained cats won't go just anywhere).
More cats on leashes:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/myszka/40585535/
Cats on leashes=Bad idea
our two cats hang out in our backyard in harnesses and leashes. we have a little zip line that runs diagonally across the yard and we thread their leash handles through it so they can check stuff out but not run away. they love it. and we can just hang out with them and read and whatnot, and only have to get up once in a while to untangle them from the furniture.
your cat might as well be wearing a sign that says "this is why she's single"
hr: explain why a woman with a cat is different than a woman with a dog, a man with a dog, or a man with a cat. if anything, a person with a cat has more freedom since cats don't require as much care as dogs.
then again, men who think this way have terrible brains, and aren't worth dating anyway...I get the impression my cat filters out the losers. :)
HR will clearly not be making an appearance any time soon on menandcats.com any time soon. Real men love cats and aren't afraid to say so.
I saw a guy walking a cat on a leash and then he sat down to eat a candy bar with a knife and fork. Lots of people do it. I like it.
I used to do this when i lived in Boston. My roommate's cat was an indoor cat but liked to go outside. It wasn't safe since i lived on Beacon Street(a main road) so i would take him on his leash and walk him up and down the street, in the gardens next to the brownstones, and help him climb the cherry trees. He loved it.
I also do it sometimes with my cat. Even though the cat is living in new jersey, with my bf, it is an indoor cat. i don't want her to roam free and get into trouble but i want her to be able to enjoy the outside.
It is also useful for throwing them in the snow :)
A few weeks ago (on one of those sunny and unseasonably warm days), my girlfriend and I saw a man (balding, with gray fringe, in his early 60s, dressed in a windbreaker) walking his tabby on Second Ave., between 11th and 12th. The kitty was taking his time exploring and the man seemed to be enjoying the sun.
It was odd but nice.
If HarlemFur was posting, you could ask him what he thinks of cats on leashes (and hr, he's a guy, FYI). He takes his cat out and about on a leash. I tried this with my kitty, but she's too skittish to be outside. I think short trips out are good for the kitties, but you have to start them really young.
Nice site, Janine.
I just don't understand why cat-on-a-leash owners get mad when my dog-on-a-leash goes after them. cats and dogs, people.
lol
... and scene.
I wipe my dog's paws after walk him - each and every time. I don't get on my bed or sofa with my shoes on, why would I be ok with the dog bringing the same filth in?
There's nothing wrong with cats on leashes either. I'd love it if my cat didn't spaz out when I put her harness on, and I could bring her out back or to a park.
I'm sure you're being earnest but that made me guffaw.
We take tucker out every once and a while. He does alright. he doesn't go far and he does (what we like to call) "Commando Kitty" but it's fun to see him sniff around and get some fresh air. It works. If you have a kitty and you don't want him or her squished by a car but you do want to take them out from time to time, grab a leash. Just go slowly. And they don't actually walk. Well, mine doesn't. He stands and sniffs and does Commando Kitty.
I have a harness for my cat. I don't take her on the street, but she likes to go up on the roof sometimes in the summer. She does a lot of sniffing and Commando Kitty (once she gets used to the harness and stops doing Low Belly Walk).
Most cats that I have seen on leashes belong to homeless people. Especially near the Columbus Circle area and in front of WaMu on 56th and 8th.