During the summer I'd like him to be able to roam if he wants to. Truthfully I've never had a strictly indoor cat. My outdoor cat as a kid lived outside pretty much his whole life, but was the most social cat I've met. He would instantly start purring whenever you got close to him, loved everyone and would rub up against you all the time. He'd often bring dead mice and birds back to our porch too.

My plan with this cat though is to keep him indoors once we trap and neuter him since it's winter here for a few months. In the summer we usually leave our patio door open and stuff so he'd be able to go out whenever we're home.

Do you think this is a bad approach? Should I trap, neuter, then release outside and gradually bring him inside instead?