Many people believe that it’s harmless to allow their cat to go outdoors alone. However, there are some very important reasons why pet parents should think twice about letting their beloved feline go exploring unaccompanied, as this video from PETA explains.
For one, it’s bad for wildlife populations. Billions of birds and small mammals are killed annually by free-roaming cats, who have also contributed to the extinction of 63 species.
Being outdoors is also risky for cats, who may die if they get trapped somewhere. They may also be exposed to diseases such as toxoplasmosis, rabies, feline AIDS, and feline leukemia.
They’re at risk of being deliberately hurt in violent acts of animal cruelty, or attacked by other animals. Cats can also fall victim to unintentional harm, such as being hit by a car.
Poisons such as antifreeze, rodenticides, and pesticides can be fatal to a cat.
Due to all these combined factors, outdoor cats have a lifespan of just one to five years, compared to the 12-22 years indoor cats usually live. The lesson? Don’t let your precious cat go outside alone.
What’s New…
Yes; keep them safe!
The outdoors holds soooo many dangers for cats. They can be safe and happy inside, with their families, where they belong.
Great article. I have heard and read about cats dying horrific deaths when their guardians let them outside and then the cat’s human family has to live with the result of their actions. Better to keep cats indoors.
Cats face countless dangers when they are allowed to roam unattended. Being a responsible guardian includes keeping your animal companions indoors and allowing them outdoors only on a leash and harness or in a safely enclosed area, under constant supervision. We wouldn’t let toddlers wander unattended–and doing so with cats is just as dangerous.
This is so important to remember. Thank you for the tips on how to keep our loving animal companions safe. <3
We have been feeding several “fixed” ferals for about 10 years. In all that time I have seen them get two birds and one of them had flown into a window and fell to the ground dead. If cats have been killing this many birds every year please tell me why we still have birds. More and more cats are “house cats” only and not allowed out to hunt. If this were a true statement we would not have any birds. The real reason for the decline in bird population is loss of habitat due to mankind, DDT and hunters.
Sorry – junk “science” again.
I want you to list the 63 species. No one yet has answered me, or anyone else. Because you can’t.
And using the qualifying word CONTRIBUTED is KEY – HUMANS have brought more species to the brink or beyond.
Cats are just convenient scapegoats. Now that WE’VE fk’d up every place we’ve touched, let’s blame cats for our screw-ups. Cats have been around civilization for over 10,000 years. But since WWI our industrialization of the world has changed every ecosystem on Earth. Through greed, and giving HUMAN OVER-POPULATION things they “need”.
Are cats killing off lions, leopards, cheetahs, elephants, rhinos, tigers, primates? Nope. We are. But let’s blame cats.
Cats did not kill of the Dusky Sea Sparrow or the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. Humans did that by taking their distinct habitats, so we could beachfront housing and reclaimed wetlands. Cats didn’t take California Condors or Bald Eagles to near-extinction. We did that with DDT and lead from hunters’ bullets. NOT CATS. Take a stroll around those mirrored skyscrapers and see the bodies of birds that think they’re flying in the sky, and hit windows instead.
Rodents are much more destructive than any cats. Rodents carry disease – hanta and bubonic plague to name two. They raid birds’ nests – eating eggs and hatchlings. Rodents go after reptiles in torpor. In Nat’Geo’s “One Million Cats”, it was found that in Australia, mouse plagues were damaging crops and property, killing wildlife, spreading sickness. Not cats. Yet Australia and NZ keep wanting to exterminate cats. They deserve mouse plagues.
Sorry for the rant, but I can not tolerate blatant stupidity when it comes to cats. I agree that community cats MUST be T-N-R’d – it works. It’s proven. It’s not conjecture. Here’s an interesting video: https://youtu.be/BW9ABxKI4wA
Right on Tricia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_predation_on_wildlife
https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/cats-responsible-for-driving-many-species-to-extinction/
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-21236690
https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms2380
https://news.vice.com/en_us/article/zm5j4y/one-of-the-worlds-biggest-extinction-crises-is-being-caused-by-cats
Unfortunately Brandon most of the information in the identified reports have been discredited. The worst is the last one where, to combat the feral cats, they are suggesting spreading an engineered virus by dropping baited food pellets – has the Australian Govt. not learned by all of its previous disasters eg. introduction of cane toads to eat an insect the toads didn’t like thus leading to the decimation of small mammals, frogs and beneficial insects that they did like.I suppose the baited food pellets will have a label on them saying ‘for cats only’. Heaven forbid the idiocy of the human animal. If you’ve created a problem find a scapegoat – cats are a good villain !!!
Lies, damned lies and statistics.
Bird populations have decreased most in the countryside where there are few cats but, in contrast, bird populations in urban areas have remained static despite being where most cats live. The main reason for the catastrophic plummeting bird populations can only be laid at the door of humans not cats.
Agree totally. Lack of hedges and wild spaces has contributed to the bird population decline. Who here has a wild area in their garden or has trees and plants to help bird and not forget bee populations. BTW I have had cats since a child and they are all outdoor cats oddly every one has lived beyond 20 years so I have my doubts on the figures given.
WARNING: 2 graphic pictures. I would also like to ADD a PREDATOR: Minks.
We didn’t have mink til MAN introduced them-UK that is, but they are destructive- they got all my neighbours hens!
I wish that when they mention birds they would also mention loss of habitat and windows. those two kill more birds than cats. also the wind power that people want so badly.. they kill birds and are not fined when they kill bald eagles.
I have my yard fenced in and my 14 cats go outside all day. my neighbor’s two dogs have killed more birds and squirrels than my 14 cats. so thank you very much for turning an informative article into a cat hating article.
I have two cats, and they have been strictly indoor all their lives. They are fine with that – though I had to separate them when they started fighting.
This case is absolutely appalling – how can such a “evolved” human being treat two innocent helpless dogs in such a manner and then get away with a measly fine of $114. She should BE BANNED FROM EVER OWNING ANY OTHER ANIMAL, locked up in a cell and the key thrown away. Hopefully she experiences some of the pain she inflicted at some stage in her life and may she rot in hell.
We have had cats that have died of feline aids and feline leukaemia. Even though they were vaccinated against it. Such a terrible death.
I have 2 cats. I take them outside with leashes on them. I stay with them while they are outside.
Cats are a danger to others and themselves and should never be kept in the same household as birds and be outdoors only uncontrolled enclosed environments.
What? Ridiculous.