Posted on 11/22/2013 5:45:02 PM PST by Perdogg
It's a question all cat owners must ask themselves; "Should I let my cats outside?" The opinions and feelings of cat lovers are varied. Lets take a closer look.
I have been on both sides of this topic. I grew up in a small city, and our cats always went outside.
They were careful about crossing the street, and mostly stayed in the yard. They all lived full lives as well.
Now, as the owner of two great Maine Coon cats, we keep them indoors. Our breeder specified it, and I agreed. You may wonder why I see things in a different light.
Most veterinarians and experts agree that cats do not need to go outside. In fact, the benefits of keeping them in far outweigh the risks of letting them out.
If your cat or kitten came from a breeder, you probably were required to agree to a few terms. Spaying or neutering of your cat, no declawing, and keeping your new pet as an indoor cat.
Did you wonder why that is? Nowadays, as pet owners are becoming more conscious and aware, more and more people are doing their best to make responsible choices for their pets.
The old belief is that we need to let our cats outside in order for them to be healthy, happy and fulfilled. After all, they really want to go out! But just like children, animals don't necessarily know what's best for themselves.
Life Span:
The life expectancy for outdoor cats is roughly 4-5 years. For indoor cats, 12-15 years is average with many healthy cats living to be about 20 years old!
Simply by keeping your cat inside the house, you protect him from a variety of dangers. It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that these things probably won't happen.
But this is exactly why the life span of an outdoor cat is so short. Here are some risks involved in letting cats outside: Being hit by a car Death or injury by dog attacks Being attacked by wild animals Parasites: fleas, ticks, worms etc. (Lyme disease in cats is a real danger. Tapeworms come from fleas. And heartworms are transmitted by mosquitoes.) Getting lost or picked up by Animal Control Being stolen and used for sadistic purposes Being stolen and used as laboratory animals Being poisoned either accidentally or intentionally Roaming into neighbors yards, causing irritation Death or injury caused by cat fights Picking up infectious diseases from other cats, such as: Feline Distemper, which is highly contagious and deadly Upper Respiratory Infections (URI) There are multiple varieties FELV: Feline Leukemia, the most common killer of pet cats. An infected cat will spread it before any symptoms are shown FIV, Feline Immunodeficiency Virus FIP, Feline Infectious Peritonitis, which is always fatal. Cats who contract it are usually euthanized
Although we all know there are lots of risks for letting cats outside, seeing it listed out like this puts it in a pretty strong light.
If you find that your cat is obsessed with escaping (it's a bit like living in a house with children in the center of an amusement park) there is one popular solution. Outdoor cat enclosures are gaining popularity among indoor cat owners. They provide cats with the outdoor time they crave, in a safe way.
Of course, the choice is completely up to each owner. But new cat owners of any breed, may be wondering, "Should cats go outdoors?" or "Do I need to let my cats outside for their overall health or happiness?" The short answer is no. Experts agree that indoor cats can live happy, fulfilling lives, right in the house.
Daddy had a rule. He would give milk to his cat but it had to earn everything else.
I used to think cats needed to be allowed outside. Not any more based on heart-breaking experience.
Remember “Yakkety-Yak” by The Coasters? There’s one verse in the song that sounded sort of cruel to cats. “....and when you’re finished doing that, bring in the dog and put out the cat.” I was thinking that Kitty was curled up in front of the fire and some giant picks him out and deposits him outside in the wind and the rain; Fido is hustled back in the den to take the warm spot recently vacated by Kitty. We keep our cat, an ill-tempered Persian named Buddy, on our screened in porch all year (we’re in FL). Our new cockapoo puppy, Bailey, only goes out on a leash.
By natural design, cats are made to specifically live
outside. Year around all weather. They are naturally born
with a fur coat, teeth and claws and an agility that
gives them an advantage over their prey. My personal point
of view is, let the cat decide.
Wouldn’t the expert on fulfillment be the cat itself? Or were these experts cat whisperers?
My dad used bring my cat table scraps from Golden Coral. He would even swipe leafovers left on other tables and I have never seen a cat’s tail go so high and a meow go so deep when my dad got home. LOL!!!!
We live in the city. Lady a few doors down has several cats - I don’t know if she just feeds strays or she got them on purpose.
If I leave the garage door open, they slip in and crap in odd places. If we let our dog out (who doesn’t leave the yard otherwise), and a cat is out there, there’s a chance our dog will chase after it.
I find them to be a nuisance. If I wasn’t worried about hitting the neighbors in such a closely packed area, I’d be shooting them.
IMHO, if you want to let your cats out - fine. Keep them in your own yard. If you can’t, then don’t let them out.
Coyotes feast on outdoor cats around here.
It has to be a horrible death for the moggie.
I have had cats that targeted my bird feeder and I had dead birds and squirrels or squirrels with missing tails. Many cats got reincarnated. If you let cats outdoors, don’t cry if they get karma.
I live in a townhouse and because I’ve kept my cat inside since a kitten, when he does go outside, he never leaves the yard.
My other cat, when she gets outside, will hop the fence but she never goes farther than the next yard.
Both come when they are called.
Yours sound most like my last beloved cat.
As a child we had our first family cat. He was wonderful and lived entirely in the house his whole life. Died at 11 of intestinal cancer (blockage).
My last cat (looked much like the 1st) was intended for indoors, but met up soon after housebreaking with my sister’s stupid flaky cat when she came in to live with us again (basement apt). He discovered she was urinating anywhere she wanted and soon, he stopped being housebroken too and did the same thing. We gave up and tossed him out. He became an outdoor cat (as did the dumb girl), and very good at it. Over the years we had a few cats come and go, but he was always boss no matter what, and stayed in our areas.
As he got older, he sometimes slipped in and we got to trust him more and more to use the litter. So he got to be more of an in/out cat. I even moved far away into an apt and he was just fine staying in the area of the apt even though it wasn’t our old home. He spent most of the time inside but I let him out to try to minimize the cat litter issues.
By the time we returned home, he was mostly indoor, but still went out.
Also - he treated indoors as his vacation time. Excellent hunter outside, but disinterested in mice indoors, even right in front of him. He became useless indoors for pests.
Trees aren’t always an adequate protection for cats against coyotes, because coyotes can jump upwards of 6 feet off the ground.
if you don’t give a crap bout following leash laws, dont’care your neighbors don’t want to hear you scream at the top of your lungs for your cats, have your cats get into fights with other cats, and crap and hunt in your neighbors’ yards, then yes it’s okay.
if you want to live by the golden rule and realize your don’t have a right to unleash your animal on other peoples’ property, much less you come walking over other peoples’ proprty looking for them and yelling for them, maybe realizing your behavior may not be appreciated by others, then no.
Our Russian Blue loved to hunt mousies at night. So did the owl ….
I might ask... Should you be allowed outside???
Perhaps you would live longer not being subjected to the dangers of the out doors...
Huh?
Perhaps you intended to reply to someone else; I said nothing about *trees.* [sic]
You brought up coyotes and I was just stating a fact about them.
LOL. that is SO true. We have two cats...they are indoor/outdoor. Many is the time we have watched from the window as we observe them "hunt" a squirrel...as we are indoors begging them, KILL IT, KILL IT! It has never happened. They crouch, slink, and stalk as if their very existence depends on capturing the squirrel...only to eventually just sit. 6 years now. Never finished the job. We're pretty sure they are mentally "limited". :)
Our vet has indoor/outdoor cats...our cats have all their rabies, leukemia shots..and all their claws. :)
My cat Spider, he's 9 now, started doing the same thing in our house. He now lives in a heated horse barn and is very happy, he's lived there 7 years now. I am happy too, it's nearly impossible to get rid of cat pee smell.
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