Outdoor cats

Ok, so I'm pretty new to cats and cat-life. So I'd like to hear your feedback/opinions about this article. I know that there are risks with having an outdoor cat, but kinda saw it as the best and natural way for the cat.
What do you think? 

http://www.catster.com/lifestyle/cat-health-indoor-outdoor-cats-ask-a-vet

Hi @Chint.

 It's a question that comes up quite a bit on TCS.  One thing we do find is that different countries will have different attitudes.

Here in Australia people are encouraged to keep their cats in, and I'm definitely an advocate for that.  I also have a cat enclosure, so that gives them some outside options.

I'm sure you'll find more members will put their ideas forward, but in the meantime, here are some articles that may be helpful:

 [article="33261"]The Five Golden Rules To Bringing An Outdoor Cat Inside​[/article]  

 [article="30395"]How To Keep Your Cat Safe Outdoors​[/article]  

 [article="22426"]Beating Boredom What Indoor Cat Owners Need To Know​[/article]  

And a couple of previous threads:

 [thread="233858"]Indoor V S Indoor Outdoor Domestic Cats​[/thread]  

 [thread="105308"]Outdoor Vs Indoor​[/thread]  

That is an interesting article. Here are my two pennies worth on some of the points made.

I care for a colony of 22 former feral and rescued stray cats. They all have indoor access through a cat door and they have a huge fenced-in outdoor enclosure.

Outdoor cats are less prone to obesity.

Sure, the fresh air and exercise must do them some good, but one of my cats is over 8 kilos at the moment. I think it's the same with cats as it is with humans. Exercise can help you to maintain a healthy weight, but if you over eat you're still going to pile on the pounds.

 [thread="320305"]Little Boys Diet Thread​[/thread]  

Outside time allows cats to hunt.

but you have to make sure they are wormed frequently and you have to accept the fact that you are going to be fishing dead voles out from under the fridge and cleaning mouse guts off the floor on a pretty much daily basis during the warmer months. Also, if you allow your cat to hunt in an area where people put down poison to kill rodents there is a very good chance that your cat will catch one of these poisoned mice and ingest the poison himself.

No stinky indoor litter box.

This afternoon I discovered the spot under the deck which the cats had been using as a litter box ever since it started snowing. Do you know how much poop 20+ cats produce over three months? Wanna come help me rake it out and bag it up?



If I don't let my cat out he urinates inside the house.

My 2 indoor sprayers are Susy, a 6 year old spayed female, and Hiro, a 3 year old neutered male. They spray inside the house when they are stressed. Letting them outside makes absolutely no difference at all.

I think letting cats outdoors in an enclosure or on a leash is beneficial for both cats and humans, but you have to understand that you are only cutting down on the risks, not eliminating them completely. We should also take into account the fact that 100% indoor cats sometimes escape. If they have an idea of what lies outside the front door they stand a much better chance of finding their way home again.

Some pictures of my colony and their enclosure here.

 [thread="276982"]Moving House Taking The Colony With Me​[/thread]  

Thank you for the feedback I lean on the decision to keep the cat inside, after weighing the pros and cons, and checking up on it.

I have pretty strong (but still flexible) opinions on the subject of outdoor vs indoor cats.

None of my opinions are rooted in expertise.

I think if you are raising a cat from a kitten and can provide them with a stimulating indoor life, that's great. Go for it.

I took in my guy in as a fully grown outdoor cat who had been abandoned, but well socialized. There's no way I can convince him that the indoor life is good enough. We've been together 4 months, I let him out after 1 (cautiously, with supervision, and a bag of treats). Waiting that long was a struggle. He knew what doors were and that they led to the big, wide world, and he proclaimed his desire to take part in it loudly and frequently. That said, once he got a taste of what was out there, he very rarely strayed past the balcony. Due to circumstances far beyond my control, we had to move a month ago. Now we have a yard - with plenty of intervening random neighbourhood cats of varying levels of friendliness.

I don't let him out when I'm not home, and he's very quickly adjusted to the boundaries of the yard. (He's a neutered male).

He's had a couple of run-ins with aggressive cats - fortunately he's big and strong and seems to have staked his claim over the yard - even against the neighbours' small dogs. I'd probably take a different approach if he didn't seem so good at being who he is.

I'm sure it could be argued that human children would also be much safer if they never went outside. But we all deserve to smell the fresh air every now and then. If you keep your cat indoors, I hope you consider safe outdoor time - whether it's on an enclosed balcony or on a harness in the yard under your watchful eye.

The downside of keeping your cat fully indoors is that, on the (actually fairly likely) chance that they do manage to get out, they will not know what to do, will hide somewhere very obscure and it will be very difficult to find them and bring them back.

Having an outdoor cat means being willing to spend a little more on vaccinations, and monitoring their behaviour and health closely. But I truly think that it's the best option. If your cat is an uncontrollable wanderer, that's a bit more difficult.

My philosophy is that cats deserve a rich, full life. It's our job to protect them as best we can, but if it makes them miserable, it's not worth it. Incorporating the outdoors is dependent on their personalities and what you and they can handle.

I'll be sad if I lose my cat because of something that happens to him outdoors, but I think he'd be sadder if I kept him inside for the rest of his life. Right now he's sitting on my porch next to me, happy to take in the sights, smells, and sounds of the outdoors. I think he knows I'll protect him against the dangers he experienced when he had no owner.

If you want to debate my opinion, please do so respectfully.

Thanks.

The thing that was heartbreaking about having outdoor cats as a child was that one day they just disappear. If they are sick, they go away and hide before they die. You are left to wonder what happened to them, what did they die of, could I have helped them? It still haunts me all these years later.