Cat loving people, help me with a reality check

[NoMoShocks]

I like cats a little, but am not the type of person who simply must have cats to be happy. I like to hold them, watch them play, and hear them purr, but if I am the one who has to clean the litter box, or if they won't use the litter box, I could wait until I visit someone else with cats and be fine for weeks, months, years at a time.

My wife and daughter wanted to get a couple kittens. I was a little reluctant, concerned about who will take care of them if we want to go somewhere, but if she and she aren't happy, nobody is happy, so I am happy to say that my wife and daughter adopted Tommy and Chili Pepper. The ladies give them the frequent attention that they deserve, and I enjoy them very much, every 4-6 days.

So, here is the thing. During their house training, we kept them in a spare bedroom. Their training has gone very well, and they are ready to graduate to haveing run of the house, but my wife and daughter say I need to get some kind of net or screen to fill the gaps beteen the ballastes of the stair railing so the cats don't stumble over the edge and kill themselves.

I have been telling my wife this will be unnecessary because the cats know instinctively not to throw themselves into the great abyss that is the stairwell to the basement. I'm saying "You bought them a climbing structure on purpose where they can sit on a perch 5 feet above the floor!" The stairwell is only a few more feet."

IMHO, cats are born to climb and the risk of them stumbling and falling a long distance and getting seriously hurt i.e. trip to the vet, would be extreemly low.

Am I crazy, or not. If any PriusChat cat lovers or cat experts have had a cat fall and hurt themselves bad enough to be permanently hurt or killed, please tell me about it and make me a responsible cat owner's husband.

While we are at it, we might as well address these too:

1. If you stap a slice of buttered bread, butter side up on a cat's back, and drop the cat, what will land on the floor, cat's feet or buttered side of the bread?

2. If a man says something in a forrest, and there is no woman around to hear, is he still wrong?

[Econ]

I have a visitor cat. He is very smart. He can jump from the floor at least 5 feet with ease. and gets down off a 6 foot cabinet at his home. I would not be concerned. Placing netting on the stair well would be dangerous because they my get tangled in the net. That is how the fishermen catch fish. Stay away from the net. you will be ok

[ursle]

Myrna Milani presents MMilani.com - Integrating the Human-Animal Bond, Animal Health, and Behavior

You might consult with this person to see what her take is.
Give your girls something to read anyway.

[cheeper]

I agree with the previous posts. I've had cats for years; they are very smart! I would NOT use the netting as previous post said; could get tangled in it.

BTW, Myrna Milani is a dear friend and mentor; I worked with her years ago.

[Fujisan]

Cats are smart, they might (sorry, will) stick their heads through the railing to have a look, but they will not jump, stumple or fall through the gaps.

[Bica2go]

No, don't block the ballasters. As others have said, putting a net there would be more dangerous (crazy kitties might even try to climb the net and walk along the railing!).

How old are the kittens? You may want to watch for them chewing on wires. Mine tried that for awhile so we put covers on them and bitter apple to discourage her. Thankfully, she grew out of it.

1. Probably the cats feet, but then you'll get butter and bits of bread spread around the house as the cat goes running and rubbing everything. I recommend you don't try this at home!
2. Yes, he is still wrong!

ps. I like the name Chili Pepper. It was my kitten's first toy and she loved it.

[Dave_PH]

My cat Mia has fallen off the mantle piece above the fireplace twice but that's because it's fairly narrow and she gets up there and rolls around. Pretty surprising because she's a very athletic cat. Both times she landed on her feet and the only injury was her pride. I don't think they'd be likely to do that on the stairs you described.

Yep, they always land on their feet. They always know where down is so you'd get butter on the floor. There's an animal planet video that explains why but it would take me too long to search up. So don't put up anything that would screw up their ability to detect the ground.

[TonyPSchaefer]

Originally Posted by Bica2go

No, don't block the ballasters. As others have said, putting a net there would be more dangerous (crazy kitties might even try to climb the net and walk along the railing!).

I only disagree in that you give the opportunity that they might not. They will. It's that simple. They will climb the meshing, tear it down, get tangled and freak out. Trust me: telling a tangled freaked cat to calm down does not work.

Originally Posted by Dave_PH

Both times she landed on her feet and the only injury was her pride..

If there was damage to her pride she'll never let it show.

[biscuit]

I agree with all of the above.. kitties and netting/screens don't mix. You'll be inviting a whole other host of issues unnecessarily. I would only worry about stairs for brand new fragile little stumbly kittens that haven't yet mastered going up and down. If they are beyond that stage, they are pretty much made of rubber. My 3 cats had some crazy spills in their time, and all resulted in a slow strut away from the scene and an "I meant to do that" expression.

[fuzzy1]

As a long time cat housemate, I don't believe the net is at all necessary to protect the cats. It may protect whatever they try to push off the stairs though, but the tangling hazard may not be worth it.

Your other questions:
(1) Cat claws are strong enough to remain embedded in your arm, preventing the cat from dropping at all;
(2) Yes.