Cats (as in the kind that meow and purr)

[Godot]

I'm still reeling from the wife leaving and was looking at getting something warm and affectionate back into the house.  I'm a cat person; but the wife was alergic.  No wife, new cat.  Well, maybe.

The intent is to buy myself a liveaboard sometime next year.  I don't have any specifics, yet.  Too many things up in the air.  Obviously, the cat would move with me.

What are the issues of taking a feline into a liveaboard situation in a marina?  I know there are some problems with foreign travel; but I'll cross those bridges later. 

[SV Wind Dancer]

In the marina I'm at, just leave a little food out and in the night you'll hear the pitter patter of little feet!

[Shipscarver]

leave a little food out and in the night you'll hear the pitter patter of little feet!

Yeah, but what about the cat?   ::)

[s/v Faith]

I am a dog person.  Actually, some folks think I AM a dog (not in the contemporary sense, more philosophically).  Dogs make good Master-at-arms, and have the concentration to hold a course for those late short handed watches off shore.... can't see a cat doing that.

  That said I think a cat would be about the purfect on board companion.  ;)

  They don't take up much space, don't eat a lot, are mostly self sufficient, and need not be rowed ashore to take care of business.

  Good luck with whatever you decide.

[Godot]

I was thinking of a dog; but my hours at work can be oppressive.  A cat might get moody if I work a sixteen or twenty four hour (or more) shift, but would otherwise be ok.  I don't know too many dogs who would take kindly to that at all.

[Captain Smollett]

What are the issues of taking a feline into a liveaboard situation in a marina?  I know there are some problems with foreign travel; but I'll cross those bridges later. 

Short answer is every marina will be different.

Here, we have a cat on board.  She mostly stays on board, though.  We have a harness and leash for her, but she hates, HATES, to be walked like a "dog."  (Sorry, Craig...hehe).

There are also about a half-dozen 'community' cats that live around and get fed/watered (and maybe even taken to the vet once in a while).  It is claimed that they are tolerated because they keep the vermin population down.  I wonder at this, though, due to the apparent total distaste expressed the day I saw a black rat snack on the walk between B and A docks...it made me wonder at the truthfulness of why those cats were kept around.

One of the down sides of cat vs dog that I see is that when the cat DOES get off the boat (and it likely will eventually...ours has a few times, even staying gone as long as a day or two), it will probably make itself at home on another boat.  I see a dog less likely to do this, especially if you are there to yell "NO" to the dog.  Preventive behavior is harder to 'encourage' in a cat.

Just like in the house, our cat likes to find strange, out-of-the-way places to hide/sleep aboard.  She can almost disappear in the chain locker, for example.  She also curls up inside (or under) the children's sleeping bags, a sail cover or whatever she deems snuggly at any given moment.

She's a long-hair, so shedded cat fur all over the boat is a nightmare of a cleaning problem.  The Furminator (sp?), though expensive, helps.  We have a 12 V vacuum that really helps, also.  It helps with the other issue...she tracks litter from the litter box all over as well.  I worry about this getting into the bilge and damaging the pumps over time.

Odor from the litter box is not too bad if we are religious about keeping it clean.  We use the Arm and Hammer additive in addition to a natural litter product in a covered box.

Punchline: the cat will add to your daily maintenance probably a little more than it will in a house (ie, smaller space aboard = more % of space affected by the cat, if that makes sense).

She is at this very moment curled up in a ball behind me, purring to beat the band.  She adapted to life aboard instantaneously.

[nowell]

Im a dog person. If your looking for love and unquestioned loyalty a dog will give that, not so much in cats. They tend to look at you as a food vendor, and a maid for their litter box. I also work long hours, so I got a breed that was fairly self sufficient. Its a dog that likes being by itself. Granted, she misses me terribly, but, is a great companion. she doesn't mind day sails at all (granted started with her at 8 weeks). Yea, the upkeep is a little higher on a boat with a dog, but I couldn't see my life without her now. Through the revolving door that's been my life with women, she is the ONE constant.

Actually, some of the women were even jealous of the fact that I told my dog more than them. She knows my fears, shes the shoulder I cry on, and the one I talk to after a long day. I could go on, but its sounding like a rant now...

My vote? Crew dog! Arrgh!

[CapnK]

Our marina is in the process of putting into place a "No Cats Allowed" policy. No, this is not the result of a CrewDog-spearheaded anti-cat campaign ;), it is because a girl here had cats, let them out at night without watching them, and over time they did several thousands of dollars of damage to a guys boat (shredded upholstery, carpet replacement, canvas messed up, etc...). I saw this before with some other liveaboards who had a cat - altercations between them and people whose boats were used as litter boxes.

I like cats alright, and think they can make great company aboard (depending on the individual cat), but maybe not so much in a marina situation. Their natural inclination is to prowl, and when they have the room, that means they will, which is gonna be on other folks boats. Whether that causes strife, depends mostly on the cat, but also on the temperament of the boat owners whose boats they 'borrow'. :) There is another cat here, named Xander, who prowls the marina but who never does the 'bad things' that these other cats have done.

Maybe a smallish dog is the way to go, Adam. It'll only use as much room as a cat, but will be less likely to jump up 3 feet onto someones gunwale in order to have a 'nature break'. ;D

That said, and as much as I love the CrewDogs (as much as they make me laugh, smile, are a pain in the arse, have to be escorted ashore, shed, slobber, love me back unconditionally, etc...), once they're gone, that's it for me. It'll be a sad, sad day, of course.

[AdriftAtSea]

Cats may be  a better choice for a liveaboard.  They can often recover from a pet overboard situation, as they can climb back aboard if you have a heavy piece of rope hanging down into the water... a DOG can't do that.  They're also far less maintenance....no need to be walked. This becomes even more important should you decide to set sail. :)

[Godot]

This is why I'm asking.  If I was planning on staying shoreside, I wouldn't hesitate.  I /LIKE/ cats.  Of the cats I've known, all but one (who was badly abused as a kitten) where very affectionate. Cats, while they often do what they want to do, not what you want them to do, are not so cold as to only look at their owners as cleaning and feeding staff.  They are (mostly) social animals, too. However I am afraid of the roaming the docks, thing.

I think cats, as pets, should generally be kept as indoor pets.  For their own safety (I've know too many to have altercations with cars and other animals).  I don't know how that would work in a marina.

[Captain Smollett]

I think cats, as pets, should generally be kept as indoor pets.  For their own safety (I've know too many to have altercations with cars and other animals).  I don't know how that would work in a marina.

Well, as I said, our cat is aboard MOST of the time.  She's inadvertently gotten off twice in just under a year aboard here.

The second time, when she stayed gone a day or so, she climbed out a hatch opening we did not think she could/would get out.  We've learned that lesson, and don't give her that opportunity anymore.

It can work....she seems happy enough living aboard.

[Godot]

Got the cat.  Meow.  Oh, well.  I'll figure it out as I need to.

[Delezynski]

Godot,

We got a cat years before we moved aboard. It used to be a she, but when she got "fixed", we did not leave here go outside AT ALL. When we moved aboard, she had NO problems adjusting. She was taken down below and NEVER even went on deck. The only time she left the boat was when we took her to the vet. We were in the marina over 6 month before anyone even knew we had a cat. We never had a problem at all.

BUT, we have been been marina where cats went wild and di mess up a LOT of boats! Mostly Jibs and mains that were not removed. Also, if they could get into an open port, the boat was messed up.

Our cat made a GREAT boat pet! :D

See her at: http://delezynski.tripod.com/album1/albm119.htm

Greg

[jotruk]

I have an old tom cat that was fixed fairly early and he traveled with me when I drove trucks cross country. He has and is still a good traveler. I have not had him on the boat but I think he will do well on board. now he travels in the motor home when we go in that. He is a good traveler named of all things Trucker