Should you let your cat outside?

[Just Me]

I know they are little killers. :lol: Never would have thought it was as bad as this though.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21236690

New Zealand is even considering a ban on cats.

What say you? Should pet cats be indoors only? I am not sure where I would stand on this if I had a cat. In the past, I have had both indoor and indoor/outdoor cats.

 

[Bocefish]

If they are your "pet" then you are responsible for everything they kill.

 

[LilyEvans]

I guess I never thought about it from a "my cat is gonna kill everything" perspective. I keep my kitties inside because I live in an urban area with lots of cars. Surprisingly, there are also lots of wild animals around that could really hurt a cat-- racoons, opossums, foxes, coyotes, and even feral cats and dogs.

 

[Bocefish]

Surprisingly, there are also lots of wild animals around that could really hurt a cat-- racoons, opossums, foxes, coyotes, and even feral cats and dogs.

Imagine that. There's even raptors like owls and hawks too.

 

[RoseCavilla]

Telling people to keep their cats in to save the birds is like telling people to not drive or get a hybrid because greenhouse gases kill the environment. No one's going to listen because they don't see their contribution as being large enough to care. Personally I think banning cats is silly. Wolves kill deer... Let's ban them too! Oh, but wait. The deer are becoming too many and are eating all the grass. We should ban them as well!

Soo that aside, I think letting your cat out depends on where you live. And possibly how much you hate your cat. I live in a very busy city and have a bitch cat. So I think I'd be as inclined to let her out as someone who lives in the country miles and miles away from any neighbor.

Really interesting post though. I love weird news like this. Not to steal the thread but did you hear about the one country (I think it was Greece) that inadvertently banned electronics for a few days? I doubt it was enforced.

 

[LilyEvans]

Surprisingly, there are also lots of wild animals around that could really hurt a cat-- racoons, opossums, foxes, coyotes, and even feral cats and dogs.

Imagine that.

I just meant it's surprising because I'm in a big metropolitan area, not out in the boonies somewhere.

 

[Red7227]

Telling people to keep their cats in to save the birds is like telling people to not drive or get a hybrid because greenhouse gases kill the environment. No one's going to listen because they don't see their contribution as being large enough to care. Personally I think banning cats is silly. Wolves kill deer... Let's ban them too! Oh, but wait. The deer are becoming too many and are eating all the grass. We should ban them as well!

Soo that aside, I think letting your cat out depends on where you live. And possibly how much you hate your cat. I live in a very busy city and have a bitch cat. So I think I'd be as inclined to let her out as someone who lives in the country miles and miles away from any neighbor.

Really interesting post though. I love weird news like this. Not to steal the thread but did you hear about the one country (I think it was Greece) that inadvertently banned electronics for a few days? I doubt it was enforced.

Cats in countries like Australia and New Zealand are a massive problem, because we don't have a naturally occurring predator with the same behaviour. Cats have exterminated many species in both countries and will wipe out many more if not controlled. Shooting every cat you see in the country is pretty standard back when I used to travel.

 

[RoseCavilla]

Telling people to keep their cats in to save the birds is like telling people to not drive or get a hybrid because greenhouse gases kill the environment. No one's going to listen because they don't see their contribution as being large enough to care. Personally I think banning cats is silly. Wolves kill deer... Let's ban them too! Oh, but wait. The deer are becoming too many and are eating all the grass. We should ban them as well!

Soo that aside, I think letting your cat out depends on where you live. And possibly how much you hate your cat. I live in a very busy city and have a bitch cat. So I think I'd be as inclined to let her out as someone who lives in the country miles and miles away from any neighbor.

Really interesting post though. I love weird news like this. Not to steal the thread but did you hear about the one country (I think it was Greece) that inadvertently banned electronics for a few days? I doubt it was enforced.

Cats in countries like Australia and New Zealand are a massive problem, because we don't have a naturally occurring predator with the same behaviour. Cats have exterminated many species in both countries and will wipe out many more if not controlled. Shooting every cat you see in the country is pretty standard back when I used to travel.

guess I never thought of that. I'm from the UK, no one pay attentions to cats and whatnot. And now I live in NYC... Where people care more about not getting stabbed then keeping cats inside or out.

 

[Bocefish]

[I'm from the UK, no one pay attentions to cats and whatnot. And now I live in NYC... Where people care more about not getting stabbed then keeping cats inside or out.

How's that gun ban thing workin' for ya?

 

[Rose]

Around here it's illegal to let your pet outdoors if they aren't in a fenced yard, cats included. They will get picked up by animal control and taken to a shelter. If they aren't chipped or have tags, they'll be put up for adoption or put down.

If they're chipped or have tags with your contact information on it, animal control will attempt to contact you, warn you if it's a first time offense and give you a time window to get your pet before they drop it off at the nearest shelter. If you have multiple offenses, you'll have to pay a hefty fine before you can get your pet back. Used to be if it happened after X amount of times then the next time they picked up your pet, they'd just take it straight to a shelter and put it up for adoption.

 

[Keithy]

I'm more concerned about the cats getting run over than what they're killing. I've actually watched a truck slam into a dog and fly through the air. Sat there with the owner while blood started coming from the dogs mouth and nose. Waited until the dog was gone.
I see cats on the side of the road all the time.
So the question is, do you want to find your cat on the side of the road?

And yes, the municipality here makes it so if your pet is caught loose 3 times, it's a heavy fine or forfeiture of the pet.

 

[Deleted member 8603]

I'm more concerned about the cats getting run over than what they're killing. I've actually watched a truck slam into a dog and fly through the air. Sat there with the owner while blood started coming from the dogs mouth and nose. Waited until the dog was gone.
I see cats on the side of the road all the time.
So the question is, do you want to find your cat on the side of the road?

And yes, the municipality here makes it so if your pet is caught loose 3 times, it's a heavy fine or forfeiture of the pet.

Even worse is the amount of people who will TRY to hit an animal if its in the road.
Like its some wacked out video games and they're racking up their points on who can go to hell fastest.

 

[Bocefish]

I'm more concerned about the cats getting run over than what they're killing.

Then keep the pussies inside!

If a cat owner lets their "pet'' roam free where there's a real danger of getting run over, then it's their own damn fault and they shouldn't be "pet" owners in the first place.

 

[VeronicaChaos]

I just recently started letting my oldest outside a few days ago. When I got her she was a country cat, and she was an adult, so she had been raised going outside and hunting mice. At the time I was living on a dead end road and let her outside because there was very little traffic. Then I lived in the country and let her out there as well.

When I moved to my current town, I lived in a series of studios in very urban areas with busy streets and kept all the cats inside. But since I moved to a place with a backyard and on a quieter one-way street I started thinking about letting her back out again. She never liked being an indoor cat, and I could tell she was simply not as happy. So it became a question of what was more important; her safety or her happiness?

I chose her happiness. She's a smart cat, and she's been outside most her life. Now that I started letting her out, she doesn't even really stray that far from the house. She just likes hanging out on the back porch, and honestly, I haven't seen her this happy in a long time.

My youngest, on the other hand, hell no. The one time she accidentally got out she ran up a tree so high I had to get the fire department to get her down (yeah, they actually do that!). I don't think she's really proved herself to be responsible enough to be let outside, even though she's technically an adult now, and Luna was going out at her age. So, for me, I look at it at a case-by-case basis. And even though Luna is technically safer inside, how many times do I put myself out there in the world, in potentially dangerous situations? My mom had to let me leave home, and she has no idea where I am at any given point. I'm sure she's worried sick about me often, but that shouldn't stop me from living a life. Sometimes, freedom is worth the risk. Seeing as Luna has experience being outside, and has been in much busier areas before without any problems, and that I'm not directly on a main road, I feel the risks are reasonable to permit it.

Sorry, that was long. This is something I've been thinking about a lot lately.

 

[Rose]

I chose her happiness. She's a smart cat, and she's been outside most her life. Now that I started letting her out, she doesn't even really stray that far from the house. She just likes hanging out on the back porch, and honestly, I haven't seen her this happy in a long time.

My youngest, on the other hand, hell no. The one time she accidentally got out she ran up a tree so high I had to get the fire department to get her down (yeah, they actually do that!). I don't think she's really proved herself to be responsible enough to be let outside, even though she's technically an adult now, and Luna was going out at her age. So, for me, I look at it at a case-by-case basis. And even though Luna is technically safer inside, how many times do I put myself out there in the world, in potentially dangerous situations? My mom had to let me leave home, and she has no idea where I am at any given point. I'm sure she's worried sick about me often, but that shouldn't stop me from living a life. Sometimes, freedom is worth the risk. Seeing as Luna has experience being outside, and has been in much busier areas before without any problems, and that I'm not directly on a main road, I feel the risks are reasonable to permit it.

Sorry, that was long. This is something I've been thinking about a lot lately.

This is different. This sounds more like responsible pet parenting to me.

Around here the issue though is that people will let their un-fixed cats run amok and cause trouble: generally in the way of hiding under cars and getting run over once the car gets started, mating with other stray cats or wandering into other people's yards and attacking their pets that are fenced in. You said that your oldest generally likes to stay on the porch, and that seems reasonable to me: your cat isn't wandering around posing a danger to herself, other animals or other people. It's different when you let 'responsible' pets have some leeway versus just letting your pets go nuts. :twocents-02cents:

In my case, I love my dogs to death, but even if I had a fenced in yard I would not leave them outside unattended. Sammy simply can't handle it and would cause issues (Lord knows after his 2 hour escapade in the blizzard the other day that he's definitely shown he can't be trusted). Sadie, on the other hand, could handle being allowed to be outside unattended but because of her breed, it's not safe to leave her out there because there's a really good chance somebody would snatch her up in an instant and then she'd be back in dog fighting arenas. :? It's different for each pet and whether you have a yard or not. It's a shame more pet owners around here don't have any common sense at all.

 

[Elysia36]

I don't see anything wrong with letting cats outside as long as they are relatively safe. I keep my two cats indoors because I live in a neighborhood where people don't know how to drive. It is common for a lot of people to hit your animal and keep right on going.

 

[southsamurai]

im of the firm belief that if it isnt a working animal, any and all pets should be inside when the owners are home. otherwise wtf is the point? a dog on a chain or in a pen outside is just a neglected toy, not a pet. cats should be inside animals unless you're on a farm or ranch and need them for rodent control ( a working animal) simply because of the dangers to them. usre, if you have a good sized yard chain up the dog when you go to work if the weather is decent, why should it be stuck inside all damn day? but it should be with it's pack when the pack returns home.

i know, i know, not everyone feels this way, but dammit, these animals share our lives, give us joy and companionship, they give us so much more than the pittance of food and medical care we return. im a bit of an asshole when it comes to how humans treat critters

 

[Jessi]

I used to live in a neighbourhood that had an IN-FUCKING-SANE stray cat problem. No one spayed their pets, and there were easily 20-50 cats running around people's yards, digging in the garbage, dead on the side of the road etc. Id see them every time I was walking to school. It was heart breaking. There was also a feline lukemia and aids epidemic going around, so these cats were mostly dying slow painful deaths if they were getting squished by cars. I had to pull a dead cat off the road a couple times a month there. It was so disgusting, I get angry thinking about it.

If you INSIST on letting your cat out please
- At least live in a rural area, not a fucking subdivision or city
- Get their shots up-to-date so they arent spreading diseases around
- GET THEM FIXED FOR THE LOVE OF ANIMAL KIND. Having a litter every several months isnt pleasant for your cat, shortens her life, and causes overpopulation of unwanted animals.
- Put a bell on their collar so prey animals at least have a chance.

 

[Jupiter551]

Cats should be outdoor preferably, but if it's an environmental concern or you cant let your cat out for whatever reason then indoor cats are fine. As others have said, indoor or outdoor, it's getting them fixed that is the bigger issue.

 

[CharlieKat]

I'm more concerned about the cats getting run over than what they're killing. I've actually watched a truck slam into a dog and fly through the air. Sat there with the owner while blood started coming from the dogs mouth and nose. Waited until the dog was gone.
I see cats on the side of the road all the time.
So the question is, do you want to find your cat on the side of the road?

And yes, the municipality here makes it so if your pet is caught loose 3 times, it's a heavy fine or forfeiture of the pet.

Even worse is the amount of people who will TRY to hit an animal if its in the road.
Like its some wacked out video games and they're racking up their points on who can go to hell fastest.

I used to live in the deeeep South, so I'd see this frequently. Good ol' boys in their big trucks hitting whatever they can just for sport.

Disgusting.

But to the point, I'd never let my babies outside, moreso because I don't want them to end up dead. Frankly, I live in a bigger city, so I have no qualms with them murdering little critters. :whistle:

 

[AnaVictoriaXO]

I would never have a cat that I only kept indoor (not knocking anyone who does!)

I just think its sad to let them have such a tiny world. Granted, they can be happy being indoor but personally I feel better knowing my cats see more than just the inside of a house.

But, I dont live in a big city, nor would I have cats if I lived somewhere quite so dangerous. I live in a gated community, on a dead end street that gets very little traffic and everyone looks out for each others animals here. I also keep my animals fixed, shots up to date etc.....its insane how people are so irresponsible with their pets and not getting them spayed/neutered.

I did end up having to move to a busy area in the past and instead of letting my cats out to roam I purchased (a very expensive but worth it) outdoor kitty enclosure so that they could at least be outdoors somewhat.

I have to agree with Jup, I think the bigger problem is getting them fixed. I saw this poster in a vets office years ago, makes me cringe:

 

[TashaDutch]

my vet always told me that well fed cats don't go on killing spree
they might feel the need to hunt once a week or so, but if it's not for food.. they won't kill hundreds of birds and such
i have a neighbour that has his cats outside in the freezing cold, for days AND nights.. i think that's cruel
especially cause his sweet lady befriended me, and tried to come inside in my house

but i also believe that cats need a little outside time if they choose to
i have 3 cats, catootje doesn't care for it except for spring/summertime, she's lazy as fuck... and always knows when rain/snow/cold is coming
and the casper just goes outside to poop, and generally comes back inside... they're so spoiled haha
btw... he has two girlfriends! haha he's such a casanova, probably the main reason he wants to go outside all the time :lol:
miko is 9 months and isn't fixed, and i always choose to have cats inside untill they're a year old

having lost 2 wildminded cats.. it's gonna be very tough to let the little boy outside once he's fixed, but he wants to go with his bigger brother soo bad.. i can't see me denying him that

 

[VeronicaChaos]

im of the firm belief that if it isnt a working animal, any and all pets should be inside when the owners are home. otherwise wtf is the point? a dog on a chain or in a pen outside is just a neglected toy, not a pet. cats should be inside animals unless you're on a farm or ranch and need them for rodent control ( a working animal) simply because of the dangers to them. usre, if you have a good sized yard chain up the dog when you go to work if the weather is decent, why should it be stuck inside all damn day? but it should be with it's pack when the pack returns home.

i know, i know, not everyone feels this way, but dammit, these animals share our lives, give us joy and companionship, they give us so much more than the pittance of food and medical care we return. im a bit of an asshole when it comes to how humans treat critters

I actually think the opposite. I don't let my cat stay outside when I'm gone, simply because I don't like being away from the house knowing she's "out there" somewhere. When I'm at home, I go outside for frequent smoke breaks and can check up on her constantly. She's always within my supervision. Since letting her outside, there has never been one time that I've gone outside and not hung out with her on the porch.

If I were to go to the bar and leave her outside while I'm gone, I wouldn't even be able to enjoy myself because I'd be worried about her. Also, if she wanted to go inside I wouldn't be there to let her in.

What is the point of having an animal? For me, to ensure they have the best life possible. Of course there is a side of me that is selfish with my cats; I feed them and take care of them and I expect them to be able to, in some capacity, bring me joy and companionship. But I'm not going to keep them inside while I'm home just because I need their undivided company.

Not trying to be defensive, because I understand why people think cats should be indoor-only, but anyone who thinks I'm a bad cat-parent because I let my cat outside, after much deliberation, who only hangs out on the back porch all day and has been an outdoor cat most of her life and who I took in as an unwanted animal and would most likely be dead or feral at this point without my intervention can seriously suck it. I've spent a large portion of my adult life making decisions based around what would be best for my cats.

My point is that I think it's presumptuous to look at it so black and white. Which is why "I only like to hang out on the backporch cat" gets to go outside and "I will climb a tree so high you have to call the fire department to get me down cat" has to stay in.

I don't live in a rural area, and in many ways it's safer that I don't. There are very large animals in the wild that can attack cats. Personally, I feel a lot safer knowing that my backporch kitty isn't going to run into any coyotes.

I agree with everyone that all cats should get fixed if you're planning on letting them outdoors. It would be incredibly irresponsible not to.

OK, getting off my soapbox now. It's just that I REALLY love my cats, so I do get a bit defensive over how I chose to take care of them.

 

[LadyLuna]

I think you should get your cats fixed whether you plan on letting them out or not. Cats will disappear sometimes, maybe they got out, maybe they didn't. The point is, no matter how much you think "I'm keeping them in", they might still get out, and that's all it takes.

So spay/neuter your pets!

 

[Nard99]

I think you should get your cats fixed whether you plan on letting them out or not. Cats will disappear sometimes, maybe they got out, maybe they didn't. The point is, no matter how much you think "I'm keeping them in", they might still get out, and that's all it takes.

So spay/neuter your pets!

Exactly. I currently have two indoor male cats and they have both snuck out at least once and there is a bazillion unspayed females running around here that belong to nearby redneck assholes who are too cheap, lazy and uncaring to get their cats fixed. At least I know mine are fixed and won't ever contribute to the problem of unwanted feral cats. As far as I am concerned it is mandatory to get indoor males neutered anyway because it has been my experience that they will piss all over everything you own if you don't. :?

 

[Mirra]

I find I should not let my cat outside. It always leads to questions like "Whose cat is that?" "Where did you get that cat?" or "What are you doing with my cat?" It gets terribly awkward.

 

[Anonymous]

Around here it's illegal to let your pet outdoors if they aren't in a fenced yard, cats included. They will get picked up by animal control and taken to a shelter. If they aren't chipped or have tags, they'll be put up for adoption or put down.

If they're chipped or have tags with your contact information on it, animal control will attempt to contact you, warn you if it's a first time offense and give you a time window to get your pet before they drop it off at the nearest shelter. If you have multiple offenses, you'll have to pay a hefty fine before you can get your pet back. Used to be if it happened after X amount of times then the next time they picked up your pet, they'd just take it straight to a shelter and put it up for adoption.

I wish Animal Control would do something about this situation with this guy and his Doberman. He owns a pool/spa business and keeps his dog there outside, and the dog always wanders off into the road or into my neighborhood. One of my neighbors ran a home daycare, and she said that one day the dog had wandered off into her backyard and was peeking into her back window. SMH. Both she and I have called Animal Control several times, and the guy always says "The dog is under voice command." He tells that to Animal Control, and then they do nothing.

It's ridiculous. And I don't care for the "Well, Dobermans are harmless" excuse either. That's beside the point. If you're gonna have a pet, take care of it and keep it under control, and don't let it walk around loose in an area where there's a busy road/shopping center/nearby neighborhood! I don't like walking to the store and looking behind me to find your loose dog literally at my ass.

 

[Miss_Lollipop]

I used to live in a neighbourhood that had an IN-FUCKING-SANE stray cat problem. No one spayed their pets, and there were easily 20-50 cats running around people's yards, digging in the garbage, dead on the side of the road etc. Id see them every time I was walking to school. It was heart breaking. There was also a feline lukemia and aids epidemic going around, so these cats were mostly dying slow painful deaths if they were getting squished by cars. I had to pull a dead cat off the road a couple times a month there. It was so disgusting, I get angry thinking about it.

If you INSIST on letting your cat out please
- At least live in a rural area, not a fucking subdivision or city
- Get their shots up-to-date so they arent spreading diseases around
- GET THEM FIXED FOR THE LOVE OF ANIMAL KIND. Having a litter every several months isnt pleasant for your cat, shortens her life, and causes overpopulation of unwanted animals.
- Put a bell on their collar so prey animals at least have a chance.

I used to live in a rural area and let my cats outside.They were both fixed, had all shots, collars etc.

Coyotes got them.
Never ever again.

Just cos its rural and they wont be getting hit by cars as easily or chasing/killing birds etc does not mean they are safe.


I have a friend who walks his cat on a leash. I love it. He has his cat outside with him during the day while he works on his car, tethered on a very long leash, so that he cannot leave the front yard.


A cat that never leaves the back porch ? No... I dont think thats really what we're talking about veronica. Its basically not leaving your LIVING space...

 

[EmelieSky]

I'm Gladly surprised about all the responsible cat owners on here. We have big issues with homeless cats here in Sweden and people just don't realize that "taking a litter cus my cat is soooo wonderful and four people want a kitten from her" is a really terrible idea. I DON'T CARE!! Because at least one of those kittens will get an owner that says the same thing, and yeah, the ball is in movement... And then one of THOSE kittens will be abandoned and have litter after litter out on her own until the delivery of them one time gets really bad, and the whole family dies, the mother because of (insert one of the many things that can get wrong during birth) and the kittens will either starve to death or freeze to death. But since the now dead female have already had five previous litters, it never stops. *banging my head to a wall*

Ive had both indoor and outdoor (working) cats. I've had them run over, disappeared and had an unexpected litter (ofcourse it went bad, had to go to the vet in the middle of the night). One got poisoned etc, etc.

Today- I've learned my lesson. My parents have learned the lesson. They still have two outdoor cats, but they live on a place were I can see it work out. I live in a place veer many people would probably let their cats out, but I won't. Nowadays I have a pure breed cat and she's to stupid to be out on her own paw. And people would steal her and think they could breed her and make money on her. But she's neutered.

I do take her out on a leash a few times a week. I'm gonna build in my balcony with net so she can be out there too when it gets warmer (first summer in this apartment). I do think that even indoor cats feel good about dealing the wind in the fur, walking on grass, listening and watching the birds and so on. I had a cat before though that really wasn't interested in that so I didn't forced him. I gave him the opportunity to choose.

 

[BeaWithMe]

I know cats cause a huge amount of carnage, but I also guess it's kind of the circle-of-life effect. You can't blame a cat for being a cat.

That said, I worry precisely zero about my cat ever catching or killing anything, because if he were actually capable of doing that, he wouldn't have nearly starved to death when he was living on the street. :lol: I suspect his mum died or was hit by a car or something when he was too young to have learned to hunt; he still tries to scavenge even now.

I do worry about cars though. I don't have a cat flap, so I only let him out when I'm at home, and he's way too lazy/wussy to go more than about a hundred metres from my building, but all the same.