Safety net brings peace of mind

A day of frantically searching the streets of Epping for her lost cat was enough to convince Marija of the merits of cat confinement.

Even before the City of Whittlesea announced new cat welfare measures would be introduced in August next year, Epping local Marija had cat-proofed her courtyard.

“My cat Piper was adopted from a rescue and had ended up in a shelter in the first place because of her escaping,” she said.

“I fully support the upcoming new regulations as I am all for keeping cats safe and confined.”

From August 2023, the City of Whittlesea will introduce a 24-hour cat curfew and mandatory desexing for newly registered cats.

Marija said securing her backyard has been a simple and relatively inexpensive do-it-yourself process using materials purchased from Catnets and Bunnings.

“When I was researching cat-proofing options, the best resource I found was the Agriculture Victoria enclosures and fencing website, which has an entire section on cat confinement,” she said.

“I also found some very useful information on the Catnets website, as well as the Bunnings Cat Hacks Australia group on Facebook.

“People often think that cat-proofing your yard or making a cat enclosure is a difficult and expensive exercise, but not necessarily.”

Although Piper has plenty of room to roam within the confines of her backyard, Marija supplements this with regular walks on a lead and harness.

“Walking a cat is a great conversation starter!” she said. “Piper and Woofy, my dog, are well known in my area and people are always delighted to see them out on a walk together.

“If there are any people out there wondering if they should explore harness walking their cats, if your cat wants to go outside, absolutely, go for it.”

“Keeping the cat safely on my property is a no‑brainer compared to the vet costs to treat an accident or injury – a cat enclosure is well worth it.” – Marija, Epping

Visit our website for more information about cat management.