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Should cats go outside? It’s a question that stirs up lively debate, on both sides of the argument. In some countries, like the United Kingdom, it’s generally believed that keeping cats strictly indoors is cruel, while here in the U.S. many believe that indoor cats are much safer and healthier than their outdoor counterparts. In 2015, several Australian cities even passed “kitty curfews” that prohibited cats from running wild outdoors – although technically these laws weren’t passed to protect the cats, but to protect several native wildlife species whom the cats preyed upon.
There are pros and cons to both scenarios. So what’s the best option for your kitty? Here are several things to keep in mind when making the decision to either allow your cat to go outside, or to keep him indoors.
Risks To Cats Who Go Outside
Statistically speaking, the numbers are firmly on the side of indoor cats. The average lifespan of an indoor cat averages 10-12 years (or longer), while cats who spend much of their time outdoors have a lifespan of only 2-5 years. This is mainly due to the sheer volume of potentially dangerous situations faced by cats who spend time outside.
These risks include:
- Being hit by a car.
- Being attacked by wild predators, including coyotes (which are found even in urban areas), snakes, hawks, owls, foxes, and if you live in the south, alligators.
- Getting into fights with other cats, which can cause severe injuries and abscesses.
- Being attacked by dogs.
- Exposure to contagious diseases, such as rabies, feline leukemia and FIV, feline distemper, FIP, ringworm, or common herpes viruses that cause upper respiratory and eye infections.
- Picking up and spreading parasites, both external (fleas, ticks, ear mites) and internal (roundworms, tapeworms, giardia, and coccidia).
- Becoming trapped in garages or sheds and being unable to get out.
- Exposure to toxins such as antifreeze and rat poison. Cats who eat a rodent that has consumed rat poison can die.
- Getting stuck in trees. This happens more often than you might think, and cats who become trapped in trees can remain there for days. If they’re not rescued, they can become weak and dehydrated until they eventually fall, causing serious injury or death.
- Exposure to toxic pesticides/herbicides sprayed on lawns and gardens.
- Sunburn and skin cancer (especially in white or light-colored cats).
- Hypothermia/freezing to death.
- Becoming trapped in a leghold trap meant for wildlife.
- Animal cruelty. Sadly, cats who are outdoors are always at risk from humans who wish to harm, poison, torture, even kill them.
Additionally, letting your cat go outside may not be so neighborly. In a suburban area, cats can dig up flowerbeds, stalk and kill songbirds around bird feeders, cause excessive barking in neighborhood dogs, and walk across neighbors’ clean cars with muddy paws. Even if you don’t care what the neighbors think, you certainly wouldn’t want anyone to become angry with your cat just for doing what cats do and retaliate against your cat (or you).
Risks To Keeping Your Cat Indoors
To be fair, confining a cat to the indoors also comes with risks, although they are much less dire than the risks faced by cats who go outside. These include:
- An increased risk of obesity (which can lead to diabetes) due to lack of exercise.
- Boredom, which can cause the cat to engage in destructive behavior like clawing furniture.
- A higher risk of cats in multi-cat households developing territorial aggression issues.
And although it’s certainly not a “risk”, keeping your cat strictly indoors means that you will have to keep multiple litter boxes around, and keep them cleaned regularly. Although no one likes to scoop poop, there is an upside: having access to where your cat does his business every day can alert you to potential health problems like chronic diarrhea and urinary obstructions.
The Best Of Both Worlds
So is there a happy medium, one that allows your cat to be safe inside yet still occasionally enjoy the outdoors with minimal risk?
Fortunately, there is. For cat parents who don’t mind investing the time in training, cats can be harness-trained to walk alongside when you take a walk. A Figure-8 or H-type harness works best for cats, and it needs to fit well – you should be just barely able to get your finger between the cat and the harness. Start off slowly, putting the harness on for just a few minutes at a time (while giving treats or playing with your cat so he associates it with something pleasant), then taking it off. Once he tolerates the harness, add the leash and let him drag it behind him while you give lots of treats and praise. Then during the next sessions, pick up the leash and let him take the lead walking around the house. Finally, choose a quiet area outdoors (where your cat won’t be surprised by loud noises, strange dogs, or children) and keep your first session short. You can gradually work up to walking down the sidewalk and increasing the length of your walk. This entire process can take several weeks; the trick is to not rush it and be patient.
Another option for bringing the great outdoors to your cat is to create a “catio”, a safely enclosed area outdoors. This can consist of an enclosure made from wood framing and chicken wire or wire mesh, or be as simple as installing cat-proof netting to the top of traditional fencing. If you create a catio for your cat, try to construct it so that there is partial shade available, and include fun structures for climbing and resting. And for safety reasons, never leave your cat alone and unsupervised in an outdoor enclosure.
Keeping Your Indoor Cat Happy
So how can you make sure your kitty has a rich, fulfilling life indoors? There are lots of ways to provide environmental enrichment to keep your cat mentally and physically stimulated.
- Provide a playmate. Contrary to popular belief, cats are social creatures who enjoy the company of people and other pets. Another cat or dog can be a snuggle buddy and keep your cat company when you’re not around.
- Spend dedicated one-on-one playtime with your cat. This not only helps your cat to bond with you, but it also increases his confidence – and it’s fun!
- Choose interactive toys. Cats love toys that simulate moving prey, like wands with feathers attached to the end, or chasing the little red dots from laser pointers. This also helps them burn excess energy while getting additional exercise.
- Create a fun indoor environment by “catifying” your home. This can include window perches so cats can watch wildlife outside while sunning themselves, cat trees so they can climb, multi-level kitty condos, scratching posts, cat hammocks, beds shaped like little caves, and shelving attached to walls to create vertical “kitty highways.”
- Give your cat unexpected presents to discover. Leave treats in various places around the house for your cat to hunt down using his sense of smell.
- Offer the option of Cat TV. There are lots of videos designed specifically for cats that contain beautifully recorded scenes of birds, squirrels, and swimming goldfish to keep your cat entertained.
- Harness-train your cat to accompany you on walks. Not all cats enjoy walking in a harness, so take cues from your cat as to whether this is a good option for you.
- Provide water features like cat drinking fountains or tabletop fountains. Cats are fascinated by running water. Plus it’s been shown that cat drinking fountains keep water fresh and aerated, so your kitty drinks more – which is great for his health.
- Make sure your cat gets plenty of exercise, and don’t overfeed. You can slow your cat’s eating pace (as well as exercise his brain) with puzzle feeders and meal-dispensing feeder toys.
Inside Or Outside?
So when it comes to cats going outside, in which camp do I fall? I can answer that question with a simple story.
When I was growing up in Ohio many years ago (how long ago are we talking? Let’s just say I grew up watching the Brady Bunch. On network TV. In primetime. Feel free to do the math.) my parents, along with every other family on our block, let our cats go outside. I’ve previously written about our family cat Carla, who used to walk my sister and me to and from the school bus stop every day.
However, I learned pretty quickly about the dangers lurking outside when Carla disappeared once for 3 days. We searched everywhere for her, my sister and I calling her name for hours, but she didn’t come home. We were devastated… until the morning of the fourth day. Carla showed up on our back patio, crying pitifully with her back leg dragging a still-clamped-on muskrat trap behind her. It had rained hard the night before, apparently softening the ground enough so she could pull the legtrap out of the mud and come home for help.
We removed the trap from her leg and immediately took her to the vet. Eventually she fully recovered – but stuck very close to home after that. It still breaks my heart to think about how she was trapped for days, suffering, with no food or water, and how if it hadn’t rained, we would have never known what happened to her. When I grew up, I was determined to protect my cats and keep them safe from anything that could harm them – especially the things I can control.
What are your thoughts on indoor vs. outdoor cats? Please share with us in the comments below!
Interesting and a subject which concerns a lot cat owners.
I have 2 cats .
First was my Bongo i got him when he was just 3 months old. He was very attached to me ( still is ), rushed home from work every day because i didn’t wanted him to be alone…played with him every day when he was awake .
After a year i thought i need a playmate for him, found one in a small kitten of 3 months .
From the moment i brought Misha in the flat they bonded like they meant to be together,, they share the litter box ( one use the left, the other the right site :D.
Both are neutered so no fights only the usually chasing each other from the flat to the Veranda and on my bed while i am sleeping ( oh boy what nights do i have 🙂 )
My Veranda is closed with a fence up to the roof so they cannot escape. Have 3 scratch cat trees outside, 2 plants where they sit when is very hot .
Not once they scratched my furniture ( 4 years now )
Chairs are covered with bed sheets so they can hide underneath,,,, 4 big glasses ( yes glasses my cats are spoiled )with fresh water on different places …
Doors to the Veranda is open 24/7.
Not bored or overweight my ” babies ”
leaving them to go outside was a NO GO for me since people are poison most of the cats in my area…
If I missed anything what else I can do, please let me know…..
Great post! My kitties are indoor only for now. I am hoping that when we finally get our own place we can build an outdoor enclosure for them! I’m not the kind of pet parent that can just let their pets wander around unattended so they will never be freely outdoors. We’ve harnessed trained them in the past but I can’t walk them where I live now, too many dogs and too much traffic.
My cats also, only indoor but have access to my Veranda which is fenced up to the roof,,,,Veranda is playground for my cats ,,, put them 3 different kind of Cat scratch trees which they full occupy :),,,,doors to the Veranda are open 24/7 so they have plenty of space to run around.
My chairs are covered with a light blanket since they like to hide underneath…
NO WAY to let them out since in my area all cats disappear
None of them ever scratched on my furniture
That sounds beautiful!
Camile ,,, and they are still happy 🙂
Hi Katerina! Glad your kitties are doing well! 🙂
Yes, I neglected to mention that it can be a problem if there are loose dogs in the neighborhood – that would be terrifying for a poor cat walking on a leash!
I’ve only had one cat and she was indoor only and she lived to be 23 which was somewhat of a surprise to all of us since dogs don’t live nearly that long.
I did often wonder if she would have been happier having more access to the outdoors. I tried getting her to walk on a leash & explore around the yard sometimes, but she was pretty overwhelmed by the whole experience. But then again I didn’t have much experience with cats and I was probably trying to push her too fast.
She absolutely loved her kitty condo and all the shelves she could climb onto. If I’d known about Jackson Galaxy back then I probably would have made even more awesome up high places for her to chill out.
When I moved into my current home out in a pretty rural area I was shocked by all the outdoor cats. I’d leave food & water out for them & spend hours petting them out on the porch. Unfortunately they just disappear after awhile, and although I don’t know exactly what happened I’m sure it wasn’t good. I just don’t know if I could ever get to the point of being comfortable having my cat go outdoors unsupervised – there’s just too many dangers out there.
Jen., cats have a longer live span than dogs.
I bet your cat would not have survived more than few years in the open
I dont know what Camille will tell you but as long as your cat was happy ( and i believe she was ) all is fine.
Agree with you on ” Unfortunately they just disappear after awhile “…same happened in my area,,, I feed them and after a while none of the cats are coming back 🙁
Wow, 23 is a long, wonderful life! My aunt’s cat lived to 21 and that was the oldest I’d ever heard of (except for those cats in the Guinness records that were supposedly over 30). It’s interesting how every cat has their own unique personality when it comes to wanting to be outdoors. Some can’t stand to be cooped up inside, while others have zero interest in going out. Your kitty may just have been an indoor girl. 🙂 Both my previously feral boys spent the first year of their lives outside, and now that they’ve been strictly indoors for the past 8 years, they have absolutely NO desire to go back out there!!
This is an interesting debate, Camille. When we had our last cat, he was strictly an indoor cat and we played with him a lot and we were very bonded. When he got older, near the end of his life, he darted out the door on a few occasions, which was very unusual for him.
The first time it happened, we found him close by in a neighbor’s yard within a few hours. The second time he darted out, he was gone for three days and didn’t seem to want to come back inside and didn’t seem happy to be back home. I’ve always wondered if he wanted to have some adventure before leaving this world or if he wanted to maybe go off and die somewhere.
It’s always made me feel a little strange, why he did that, since he was so bonded to us for most of his life.
Hi Elaine! The scenario you’re describing can actually be quite common in older kitties who are nearing the end of their lives. In vet tech school we were told the prevailing medical theory was that cats tend to try to escape from pain, illness, or impending end of life by running off and hiding (hence the old term “going off to die”, and why cats who are sick tend to hide in unusual places). When they are sick or at the end of their lives, their instinct also drives them to not appear weak or vulnerable to potential predators. That very well could have been what was happening with your kitty, so please don’t feel badly that he was trying to escape or seemed distant! It would not in any way reflect on the bond he had with you during his life.
hi naim.this is awesome post because cat is little animal.when my first cat.iI play with him
my neighbor is allowed a therapy cat even though i reported her for it wondering outside at night and when she is not home and scratching up my screens on windows and spraying near front door.. why is she allowed to abuse this program
I’ve always had cats since I was a little girl. We had a cat that was indoor/outdoor. He would sit at the door to let us know he wanted out. We kept a liter box but mostly he would use the out doors. The down side is he got hit by a car. As an adult, I keep my cats indoors. I have two now that are 2 years old; they are buddies and keep each other company. My two previous cats were also indoor. One lived until she was 18 years old. The other lived until she was 15 years old. I think I like them to be indoor cats; it’s safer that way and they can live a lot longer.
Rena sorry to hear about your indoor/outdoor cat :(,, thats the problm with cat, they dont undertand about cars at east most of them.. good to know the lifespan of your indoor cat xxx so i will have mine for sure another 10 Years
I once had a perfect situation with my cats- I adopted them as a mother/daughter who were abandoned. They were used to being outside and would roam close to home, needed no litter, but would hang out on the back porch and often would come into the house to say hi. We moved and they disappeared the first night never to return. Fast forward a few years and now we have 2 new kittens. They are so desperate to go outside that they will dart through your legs. We’ve been taking them out back in a controlled fenced in area but it hasn’t satisfied them. I’m afraid that once they find the doggy door (in the seldom entered garage) they will be gone forever.
Hi Nikki, I’m so sorry to hear about what happened to your first 2 cats. 🙁 Regarding your 2 new kittens, I’ve found that sometimes ignorance is bliss…if they don’t know what they’re missing, usually they won’t want to constantly try to get out. It can take some time and discipline (and patience!), but if you keep them inside 100% of the time while they are still young, oftentimes they will eventually adjust to being completely indoors. Then maybe when they are fully matured (about 1 1/2-2 years), they might tolerate being taken out occasionally. But I’ve found that with cats going outside, oftentimes it can be all or nothing…once they get a taste of the outdoors, it’s sometimes hard to keep them in! But inside really is much safer. The exception to this is my 2 previously feral cats… they lived outside for over a year, and once they came indoors permanently, they never wanted to go outside again! 😉