Sounds to me like they’re talking about a pampered house cat. My fat black street cat came home the other day with a bad cough. He has short hair, and has never had a hairball in his life. But when he came inside he started coughing and laying around the house like a beanbag. He’s been my best friend since I was 11 years old and he was a kitten, so I was worried. So I stuffed him into a cat carrier and drove him to the vet. And he was really pissed off about it. He hissed and yowled, and started shedding his fur in a way that I’d never seen before. But the vet was a nice lady with lots of experience with cats. She said he had something called “kennel cough”, which is kinda weird since he’s never been in a kennel in his life. She kept him overnight, gave him some shots, and charged me 200 dollars for some cat medicine. And she said “keep him inside for at least a week”. So I bought a litter box and put it in the laundry room, and Gremlin is a very unhappy cat today because he can’t go outside. And Wolfie Dog is laughing at him.
I hope Gremlin pulls through okay. If you live in a state with a cold winter, it might be a good idea to just keep him in through the season. I, personally, think most cats should be indoor only as they can have all sorts of things happen to them on the outside. Now that he’s in his elder years, he may be able to thrive much better if you do. Just give him lots of love and playtime and he most likely will get used to being indoors. Maybe he and Wolfie will become besties! Good luck.