Indoor or outdoor?

emma512

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I'm UK and all my cats have been indoor outdoor, I personally would not keep mine as soley indoor cats. It is a personal choice though and you do have to really take into consideration where you live (are you on/near a busy road etc).

As for their safety, I have personally never had any of my cats suffer any kind of injury/illness that came as a result of them being outside. I'm sure that is partly due to luck but I also think that when you read things like this thread you can get the impression that these kinds of injury are really common but if you asked how many people have had indoor-outdoor cats who have led long lives and died of unrelated causes you would also get an abundance of replies. 

I adore my cats and their health is incredibly important to me, but so is their happiness. I totally agree that cats can lead happy lives indoors but mine love being outside and I can't deny them that. I don't think that letting them roam freely is irresponsible in any way. 

Whatever you decide I'm sure they'll be happy and they're lucky to have an owner who is putting so much thought into it!

P.S Mine wear reflective collars when they go out and they are kept in overnight. They also only go out when I am at home.
 

teddytimble

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I'm UK and all my cats have been indoor outdoor, I personally would not keep mine as soley indoor cats. It is a personal choice though and you do have to really take into consideration where you live (are you on/near a busy road etc).

As for their safety, I have personally never had any of my cats suffer any kind of injury/illness that came as a result of them being outside. I'm sure that is partly due to luck but I also think that when you read things like this thread you can get the impression that these kinds of injury are really common but if you asked how many people have had indoor-outdoor cats who have led long lives and died of unrelated causes you would also get an abundance of replies. 

I adore my cats and their health is incredibly important to me, but so is their happiness. I totally agree that cats can lead happy lives indoors but mine love being outside and I can't deny them that. I don't think that letting them roam freely is irresponsible in any way. 

Whatever you decide I'm sure they'll be happy and they're lucky to have an owner who is putting so much thought into it!

P.S Mine wear reflective collars when they go out and they are kept in overnight. They also only go out when I am at home.
I think here in UK we have different ideas about letting cats out to cat owners in the USA.  I agree with you, it does depend on the type of area you live in.  I read somewhere on this forum someone said "they are not wild", well I disagree, if anyone has ever watched a cat outside hunting for a mouse or whatever, they clearly revert to their natural instincts, we may have domesticated them but they still have that wild side to them.

I think a good compromise if possible is to have an large outdoor cat run/enclosure.  I also agree that letting your cat roam freely is not irresponsible provided you do not live near busy road.
 

catpack

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A little off topic (and I ask this purely out of curiosity) those of you who are ok with cats free roaming with proper id, would you also allow a dog to free roam so long as it had proper id?
 

pinkdagger

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I agree, it really depends - from what I've read of other cat owners, people in the UK and especially away from major or busy roads tend to be fine with having indoor/outdoor cats as long as they're spayed and neutered. In Canada and the US, there tends to be more traffic, there are more predators, and potentially more sickos who would sooner snatch or harm an animal roaming outdoors and the vast majority of city-dwelling owners here are vehemently indoor-only. When I spoke to a rescue on the phone, they didn't contact me back to arrange a meeting with a cat I was interested in because I answered honestly that while I wouldn't let my cats outdoors, I have contemplated bringing them out (supervised) to my balcony while on harness, because we're up high and our balcony is connected to our neighbours'. That was enough for them to scrap my adoption application.

My boyfriend's cats used to be indoor/outdoor because his parents lived on a large plot of land and there was very little traffic out there... and what traffic there was, was often seniors driving pretty darn slow anyway. It's mostly farmland. I grew up in an area immediately off of two highways and the neighbourhood used to be forested land where coyotes are still spotted. Now we live together in a big city close to two major roads, two highways, and an airport - obviously one of those situations is more conducive to having indoor/outdoor animals than the others. Where I was raised and the way we treat animals here obviously has an impact on how I feel and what I would generally recommend for other owners.

If owners are willing to take the precautions and vaccinate, as well as spay/neuter their pets, and accept the inherent risk that you can't control what happens when they're outside, then all the power to them. I'm a control freak, so a cat run would be the ideal situation for me too. :p
 

emma512

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A little off topic (and I ask this purely out of curiosity) those of you who are ok with cats free roaming with proper id, would you also allow a dog to free roam so long as it had proper id?
What do you mean by roam free exactly? As in just letting them off the leash at the park, or actually having free access to the neighbourhood? 

If its the latter, then no I would not. Letting a dog roam free is totally different to a cat in my opinion. I've never owned a dog so please correct me if I'm wrong but I believe they'd be less capable of finding their way home if left to roam. They are also potentially more dangerous than cats. Some dogs have issues with strangers/children/cats/other animals. I know some cats do too but cats are generally less confrontational than dogs. They're probably also more likely to get injured, being more excitable are often more confident with people and traffic than cats. Cats are generally pretty wary creatures, I'd be concerned a dog would run out into the road etc.

I generally just think dogs are much less suited to roaming freely, for many reasons. They are just two completely different species. My opinion on letting cats roam freely is based specifically on cats behaviour and my experience etc. It isn't transferable to other species because it's not as simple as that.
 

teddytimble

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A little off topic (and I ask this purely out of curiosity) those of you who are ok with cats free roaming with proper id, would you also allow a dog to free roam so long as it had proper id?
In UK our laws say that dogs should be kept on leads when in public places, the UK law also recognises that cats are "free roaming" animals and should be allowed to do just that.
 

zorisuzaru

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I am not sure what it is like where you live but if you live near any busy roads I would advise keeping them as indoor cats. We live on a main road, so have always had persians which are more "indoor" cats anyway, we are quite lucky in that we have a big garden for them though, which we spend a lot of time ensuring is secure so they cannot wander off. They have the option of going out in the garden in the daytime (we shut them in at night because of aggressive toms who live down the road!) but quite often they prefer to stay inside, especially if the weather isn't great like today!
 

horserider101

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I keep my cats indoors and indoors only. I think i would be a nervous wreck while they would be outside wondering what they are doing. Once my cat molly got out and i searched all night for her and the next day she found her way home. I honestly don't trust cars in my area and their are some mean people out there. I once witnessed a person swerving to hit an animal on the road it was a terrible experience. These are just things to consider currently my cats haven't tried to get out only one time recently my cat jack got out but is so scared of the outside would he ran straight back inside lol.
 

betsygee

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I generally just think dogs are much less suited to roaming freely, for many reasons. They are just two completely different species. My opinion on letting cats roam freely is based specifically on cats behaviour and my experience etc. It isn't transferable to other species because it's not as simple as that.
I agree with you on that. 
 

my-boy-jasper

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Tough question and one I have struggled with since getting Jasper a year ago. I got him at 2-3 months old and have kept him indoors. I live on a very busy road and couldn't justify the risk of letting him out. Unlike your vet, mine actually encouraged me to keep him indoors which is unusual in Australia where cats are mainly indoor/outdoor. My friends and family think I'm being cruel or not letting him be a cat. To an extent, I agree with them too. It would be much better if he could run outside. I do think it's unnatural to keep them inside but I also think it's unnatural to let them out when there's a constant flow of cars outside the front door. My five previous cats have been indoor/outdoor. One was hit by a car, one went missing, one got pregnant and died giving birth, one effectively rehomed himself and one died naturally. Not exactly a great track record, though I will put a lot of that down to my parents. I can't say Jasper is totally happy either. He gets restless and cries at the back door even though he's never been outside except several times on a leash. He expresses his frustration through biting me, something I don't think he'd do if he could go outside and hunt. He's also very sweet and mostly content. We've bonded in a way I never have with an animal. I didn't realise how much time an indoor cat would take up in playing, petting and making sure I'm home a lot to give him company. If I do it again, I would certainly have two indoor cats rather than one. I have to move house very soon and will be boarding Jasper because I can't take him to mums, where he would have to go outside. So that's going to cost a lot of money. Even now, I'm not entirely sure that when I move he will stay indoors as that depends on where I move to. Hopefully I'll get my own flat but if I have to do a share arrangement it might be hard to find someone willing to take an indoor cat - being Australia. I am a very anxious person too, and while keeping Jasper indoors prevents the anxiety of worrying if he'll get lost or hurt, it also brings with it a whole new set of anxieties. I find that the feeling of responsibility weighs a lot more heavily on me, which sounds naïve because adopting an animal should be a big responsibility.  But I do lay awake worrying about whether my circumstances will permit keeping him indoors. If I let him become indoor/outdoor and something happened, I can't comprehend how guilty I would feel.

On the subject of letting dogs roam, my dad had a dog who was free to roam in a somewhat rural area and he passed away last year from age/species related health problems. When I was a kid, we had a dog (he belonged to the house rather than us) that was free to roam. He was shot by the park ranger for killing livestock, but survived and went on. We had another that would escape and he also got shot but didn't survive. All three were part Labrador, so maybe it's a breed thing but they definitely had no problem knowing where home was.
 

caterina28

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I've always looked at this site, but never become a member or posted until now.

I know cats are naturally outside. However, the ONE indoor/outdoor cat I've ever had was bitten by a snake, which killed him. I will never have a cat that lives outdoors again. I know that predator/prey is normal, but it's also not normal to love a wild animal.

Another reason I will not is because of sick people. Last summer there were a lot of teenagers who were literally smashing cats heads in around here for fun. Those kids were never "caught" but being a high school teacher I "hear" things and basically "know" who was responsible. Also having a black cat makes that so much more dangerous. 
 

horserider101

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That is absolutely terrible I don't understand how some people can be so cruel
 

raintyger

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I'm sure it's not cheap, but there are backyard enclosures for cats advertised all the time on this site.
 

spanish queen

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I wonder how indoor outdoor owners keep cats in their yard without an enclosure? When I was young, we had a neighbour with an indoor outdoor cat. Very soon, we were no longer able to use our sandbox and ended up tossing an entire crop of veggies and could also no longer have a garden. My parents trapped that cat about 4 times and talked to the owners numerous times before it came to that. There is an indoor outdoor cat in our neighbourhood now that sprays our door, garbage cans, BBQ, etc all the time. How do you make sure your cat stays/"goes" in your own garden? I have a cat now, but she is strictly indoor only for this exact reason.
 

spanish queen

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Ok, on second read, that comes across a bit snarky. What I mean is, obviously, those others owners were terribly irresponsible and how can I allow my cat to have fun in the sun without being irresponsible?
 

caterina28

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Ok, on second read, that comes across a bit snarky. What I mean is, obviously, those others owners were terribly irresponsible and how can I allow my cat to have fun in the sun without being irresponsible?
I don't think that it's possible even a well trained cat is going to wander the neighborhood, especially if there are other cats. That cat may come home every night, but they are not going to stay confined to the yard of their owner.
 

mycatwasthebest

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I've had cats my whole life, and up until recently they've all been indoors, though plenty of people tell me I'm "not letting them be cats", but it's stupidity. Over the years I've had nine cats, four of those are my recent outdoor cats. The other five have lived long, LONG, perfectly happy lives. Three of them are still alive. They would be let outside occasionally with supervision, and they were fine with that. In fact two of them didn't even want to go outside. I would open the door and they would just sit there, or walk away. 

I guess it comes down to personal preference but to me, cats are indoor creatures. They simply belong inside, they're domestic, not wild. It's much much safer inside than outside, and for me it's very stressful to have outdoor cats. I worry constantly that something bad is going to happen to them. There are so many outdoor threats like cars, other animals, other animals with illnesses they could pass on(for instance my neighbors cat has FIDS), not to mention people. Where I live people will throw things or even shoot at stray cats, or any cats. If I hear rowdy kids walking down the street I run outside and put my cats out of sight. 

I was convinced once to allow my cats to roam wherever they pleased. Of course, since they were kittens at the time, I put them up at night, regardless of what everyone else was saying. It was awful. We had a horrible time with raccoons trying to get to them, and then one night one of them didn't come home for bed. We found her later in the road. Now I keep the others in the yard with regular checks to make sure they're still there, since they're still not allowed inside. I'm building them an enclosure so they don't have to be locked in a crate at night and when I'm away. I don't care what the family says, I'm keeping these cats safe. 
I'm confused. Are your cats indoors or outside in a crate? I hope that enclosure is finished soon.
 

yayi

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I don't think that it's possible even a well trained cat is going to wander the neighborhood, especially if there are other cats. That cat may come home every night, but they are not going to stay confined to the yard of their owner.
Maybe my cats are different because they do not wander the neighborhood and there are lots of other cats most of them strays. Come to think of it, my cats are busy keeping other cats away from the property. 
 I had one who used to walk on the perimeter wall and if a strange cat came within a yard of the wall he would yowl and the rest would come running. It was like a scene from a western movie about defending the fort against indians. 
 
 
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zorisuzaru

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I keep my cats indoors and indoors only. I think i would be a nervous wreck while they would be outside wondering what they are doing. Once my cat molly got out and i searched all night for her and the next day she found her way home. I honestly don't trust cars in my area and their are some mean people out there. I once witnessed a person swerving to hit an animal on the road it was a terrible experience. These are just things to consider currently my cats haven't tried to get out only one time recently my cat jack got out but is so scared of the outside would he ran straight back inside lol.
completely agree, there are some real sickos out there
 
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