I am begging you, PLEASE keep your cats indoors!

I 100% disagree that cats are happier outside. How does one even know this?
My mom had a cat who went outside and finally we all agreed she was safer to live inside. Toutoune made the transition and never acted any different. Never acted depressed, stopped eating, sleep more, nothing because she could no longer go outside.
On the weekend, I showed my cat Pearl the outside. She nearly clawed me to death and ran back upstairs to her safe home. Pearl was a stray cat, found outside, two years ago.
My cat Cally, was found as a stray outside... 18 years ago. Cally is now 20. Living indoors a full happy life. So no. I don't believe cats need to go outside. Ever.

Many cats love being indoor cats, im not saying that you must take them out or your a bad owner. Im just saying that many cats do seem happier when you take them out for a small "adventure". Many people here seem to let their cats out by either a leash&harness or they have a small run in their backyard with toys and things to climb on. You could say that some dogs are happy being indoor dogs. (Im dog sitting two chihuahuas who NEVER go out side.) But you could also say taking a dog out for a walk is also important for them. Its hard to really know, but im sure if your cat is comfortable out side they would love to be there with all the new smells and sunshine etc.

Ya, I suppose if the cat is comfortable outside, then the fresh air is good for them. But I really don't think they "need" it to be happy. My neighbour's cat lives outside pretty much and he's always got some new cut or leaking eye or something. I hate that.

Some cats will obviously be fine indoors, but I don't think any of our cats would be happy. There's some of them that are really quite lazy (and one of them a bit strange more than anything) and spend most of their time inside anyway, but they definitely like having the choice and knowing that they are able to go outside.

All of our cats were kept inside when we first got them, for a period of time, and all of them would then clearly want to go outside. The first day they would always be nervous to go outside but then absolutely loved it and wanted to go back out again.

Honestly I think the risks out way the benefits ten fold concerning letting your cats out ALONE.. of course I don't mean to never take them outside if you are willing to take all safety precautions then they are perfectly safe and can really enjoy themselves in a secure pen or on a leash... but cat just running loose to get into cat fights ( had to break one up the other night.. not fun), get hit by cars, get picked up as a stray, get killed by a predator or even fall victim to a terrible human being. Yes some cats enjoy going out but it should be done with are and caution, you wouldn't let your dog just roam the streets.. they go outside with a leash and supervision... I think it should be the same for cats..

I have taken my cat out on a leash, he hated it and ran right into the house again ha ha. I dunno so yea cats can really enjoy being outside and probably benefit greatly from it, others will get stressed out and prefer indoors but i cant agree with letting a cat roam free with no safety precautions or supervision i think it is honestly just stupid.. Sorry not trying to be offensive but i have seen so many injured and dead cats that would still be alive if they had been supervised while outside or kept in. ( the aforementioned kitten being the most recent) I just see no reason for it... even my aunt who lives in the country, middle of no where, lost her cats because they left one day and just never came back. In the city its cars in the country.. its predators. Just doesn't make sense to me to risk it..

Any ways at the time I posted this I was very upset and angry i may have worded my tilte/post wrong.

you'd be surprised at all the predators(let alone people I hesitate to call humans)a big city has. eagles hawks turkey vultures etc prey in the city, as do wild dogs coydogs coyotes fishers minks released ferrets raccoons even the occasional roaming black bear&im talking the most heavily urbanized places in my state. I try to look out for outdoor&indoor/outdoor cats when I can but the risk is very big even to healthy cats let alone the young&old. if someone tells you cities don't have predators refer them to the city at night cameras in the area(aka creepy cams) being nocturnal ive had the pleasure of visiting friends&seeing a bear go up a fire escape after a cat&a german shepard climb a fence

jorats said:

I 100% disagree that cats are happier outside. How does one even know this?
My mom had a cat who went outside and finally we all agreed she was safer to live inside. Toutoune made the transition and never acted any different. Never acted depressed, stopped eating, sleep more, nothing because she could no longer go outside.
On the weekend, I showed my cat Pearl the outside. She nearly clawed me to death and ran back upstairs to her safe home. Pearl was a stray cat, found outside, two years ago.
My cat Cally, was found as a stray outside... 18 years ago. Cally is now 20. Living indoors a full happy life. So no. I don't believe cats need to go outside. Ever.

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In my case with Steve and Simon I would have to disagree.
They run to the door to be let out meowing and purring.
It literally stresses them out to stay inside all the time.
I would LOVE to keep them inside and I have tried MANY MANY times to change it.
I believe that for the most part cats like to stay indoors but for my two boys?
It's a whole different story.

I was on the fence about the indoor/outdoor cat question until I was walking down the street, looked down and saw a cat against the curb in between parked cars. He/she'd been sleeping behind or underneath a car and got run over when they pulled out.

Growing up in Toronto, I listened to raccoons slowly killing a cat one night... nothing I could do to stop them, they were up in a tree somewhere and they were not going to stop their attack no matter what I did.

That's not even taking into account all the people that want to intentionally harm cats, all the damage cats inflict on people's gardens (do you want cat feces on your vegetable garden?? in your kid's sandbox?), and their damaging effect on the urban ecosystem. There was a research paper released recently (I know a lot of cat people contest the findings) documenting the harmful effects of cats on native wildlife... IMO it's really not acceptable to feed and care for an invasive species that then goes out to displaces native species.

Yes, some cats will be miserable indoors - for a while. But they do adapt and they live longer as a result. If you really want to let your cat outdoors, put up a gazebo or something similar in your yard.

victoria said:

I was on the fence about the indoor/outdoor cat question until I was walking down the street, looked down and saw a cat against the curb in between parked cars. He/she'd been sleeping behind or underneath a car and got run over when they pulled out.

Growing up in Toronto, I listened to raccoons slowly killing a cat one night... nothing I could do to stop them, they were up in a tree somewhere and they were not going to stop their attack no matter what I did.

That's not even taking into account all the people that want to intentionally harm cats, all the damage cats inflict on people's gardens (do you want cat feces on your vegetable garden?? in your kid's sandbox?), and their damaging effect on the urban ecosystem. There was a research paper released recently (I know a lot of cat people contest the findings) documenting the harmful effects of cats on native wildlife... IMO it's really not acceptable to feed and care for an invasive species that then goes out to displaces native species.

Yes, some cats will be miserable indoors - for a while. But they do adapt and they live longer as a result. If you really want to let your cat outdoors, put up a gazebo or something similar in your yard.

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Yes this! cats kill so many native species just for sport ( they aren't hungry since they are fed at home) My mom loves to watch the bird and she always feeds them but we had to stop because there are like 7 cats in our yard all the time now and all our birds were being killed ( I have also stumbled upon a few killed rats which is extremely upsetting to me understandably though I'm sure my dad is happy they are catching the rats from the garage.

And i definitely agree about predators in the city i see them all over the place I was just saying to the people saying rural outdoor cats are safe when they are likely to be attacked or eaten by a predator. We are in one of the biggest Canadian cities and there are coyotes and raccoons everywhere you look not to mention hundreds of bald eagles and hawks flying around. just so dangerous ( same reason i don't take the rats outside tbh)

The owners of those cats sound awful. I have no doubt that you should report them!

Anyway my cat was born and raised outside (he was a stray). When I found him as a wee kitten. Well I had always seen him staring out of the window soaking up the sunlight so one day I tried to let him out. I swear for a second he had a look on his face that said "Really mommy, you WANT ME to got out there! Then he ran back in the house and laid on his cat bed. I think I spoil him a little too much. :lol:

I live in the UK so there's nothing like racoons or anything.

Like I said, the first time our cats wandered out doors they were nervous too. They obviously wanted to go but it was completely new to them and took them a few hours to actually get used to (then they always wanted back out again). Seeing how much they enjoy being outside, I definitely do think they benifet from it. Of course you wouldn't let your dog wander about all over the place - but you do take dogs on walks, let them off their leads etc, they aren't kept indoors and they also benifet from getting outside.

Yea I just saying if you wouldn't let your dog run round killing birds, digging in peoples gardens, getting onto the street , getting into dog fights then I don't really see why anyone would let their cat do the same thing.. just doesn't make sense to me at all.

Cinderwolf said:

Yea I just saying if you wouldn't let your dog run round killing birds, digging in peoples gardens, getting onto the street , getting into dog fights then I don't really see why anyone would let their cat do the same thing.. just doesn't make sense to me at all.

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Exactly. I'm allergic to some cats and if they urinated on my property, that would prevent me from being able to enjoy my yard or deck.

If I let my bunnies into the neighbours yard to eat their plants it would be unacceptable but when it's a cat, for some reason people think it's ok. Coincidentally, I had a woman insist to me that her rabbits are happier and better off living outdoors. Yet she doesn't seem concerned that her rabbit passed away unexpectedly at the age of 5 (life expectacy is 8-12 years) and it couldn't possibly have anything to do with the fact he lived outdoors.

There is a big difference between adopting an adult cat that was a stray that had a taste of the life of the great outdoors and adopting a kitten and then making the decision to let them go outside. An adult stray may very well never be completely happy indoors. Making the decision to let your 6 month old kitten outside is a completely different story. Once they get a taste of going outside and being allowed to dig in peoples' gardens and get in their garbage and sleep on their warm car hoods - of course they are going to keep asking to go out!

So, if you want to be a good cat owner and you do not have a cat that becomes seriously mentally unstable and aggressive if not allowed to roam and you make the choice to allow them to be an indoor/outdoor cat.... you are not being the best pet owner you can be.

Moon said:

There is a big difference between adopting an adult cat that was a stray that had a taste of the life of the great outdoors and adopting a kitten and then making the decision to let them go outside. An adult stray may very well never be completely happy indoors. Making the decision to let your 6 month old kitten outside is a completely different story. Once they get a taste of going outside and being allowed to dig in peoples' gardens and get in their garbage and sleep on their warm car hoods - of course they are going to keep asking to go out!

So, if you want to be a good cat owner and you do not have a cat that becomes seriously mentally unstable and aggressive if not allowed to roam and you make the choice to allow them to be an indoor/outdoor cat.... you are not being the best pet owner you can be.

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Exactly. My neighbors got 3 different kittens tha thad never been outside and decided" well lets just toss thme out side and leave them all night and not give a rats butt where they are or what they are doing. makes me so frustrated. Now there is a new, adult cat coming into our yard that we dont know who owns it and it is constantly fighting with Sadie. I just want to run out and scoop her up cause she is tiny and limps and is no way equip to protect herself from a strong adult cat.

Cinderwolf said:

Exactly. My neighbors got 3 different kittens tha thad never been outside and decided" well lets just toss thme out side and leave them all night and not give a rats butt where they are or what they are doing. makes me so frustrated. Now there is a new, adult cat coming into our yard that we dont know who owns it and it is constantly fighting with Sadie. I just want to run out and scoop her up cause she is tiny and limps and is no way equip to protect herself from a strong adult cat.

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Sorry, but I don't think you are being fair at all. I completely agree that these people are quite obviously terrible owners and I would definitley report them if you haven't already.

But not all ct owners are just "tossing their cats out" and leaving them all, not caring where they are or what they are doing.
Our cats aren't left outside if they don't want to be and we know the kind of areas that each of them go. For example, one of them just sleeps in a hutch in the garden rather than going anywhere else, whereas others wander in the field next to us for example. The only reason I have considered not getting cats again is because I don't like the effect they could have on the wildlife (which we absolutely love and get a lot of where we live).

I believe cats should be kept safe.....they should NOT EVER be allowed to roam loose....unsupervised. Outside with people on a leash or better yet confined to a secure outside area....If this is not possible or the cats do not like it they should be kept indoors. So many things can happen to a cat roaming outside alone.

This debate always gets me very worked up : (

Edit:
I might just walk away form this debate in fact because it does nothing but get me upset.

I absolutely agree. My cats are indoor and will always be. Some of my reasons for this:

1. Obviously, for their own safety. There are cars, poison, disease, toxicity, dogs, wildlife, humans, etc.
2. You cannot contain a cat in a yard like you can a dog. It's not fair, or okay, to let your cat wonder around pissing and digging in peoples gardens. This goes along with #1 too, there are psychos out there and I know many people who have had their cats mysteriously disappear or outright harmed, poisoned, etc by evil neighbours over this kind of thing.
3. Outdoor cats are pretty quickly becoming an ecological disaster for certain wildlife, like birds.

My cats live happily indoors, they get lots of exercise still and have lots of fun.