As much as cat owners hate to admit it, cats are hardwired to hunt. As a result of their propensity for hunting small mammals and a lack of natural predators, cats devastate the ecosystems they’re introduced into. Cats are such effective hunters that they have managed to eradicate 33 bird species. In order to limit cats’ impacts on local ecosystems, cat owners should be required to keep their pets indoors at all times.
Cats have a great deal to gain by remaining indoors. By staying inside, they can avoid a host of nasty diseases, including FIV (the feline equivalent of AIDS), upper respiratory infections and feline leukemia. Some of these diseases have no cure.
Cats can also contract parasites from the environment. Although these parasitic infections are curable, they still put the animal through an ordeal that could have been avoided if the animal had just been kept inside. Cats also face environmental hazards such as cars, intolerant neighbors, poison and toxins.
Some owners may use excuses like “it would be cruel to leave them inside” and “they enjoy being outside” to justify their decision to let their cats roam. In fact, although cats enjoy time outside, it’s actually crueler to let them roam and expose them to all the dangers of the outdoors. Additionally, being confined inside a building does not need to be like being trapped in a jail cell. Owners can periodically let their cats go for a supervised romp by teaching them how to behave on a cat leash. Although it works best the earlier you can teach your cat, older cats can also eventually get used to it.
When cats are confined inside, owners can do many things to enrich their lives. Giving them toys can stimulate and entertain them. Pet owners can also leave a window open, giving cats a place where they can safely experience the outdoors under supervision. Although these tips may take a little extra work to implement, they will improve your cat’s indoor life dramatically. Owners should be willing to put in that extra work.
By requiring pet owners to keep their cats inside, animal lovers will be saving the lives of countless critters and allowing themselves to have more time with their cats. Any cat owner that is not willing to put in the extra work required to keep their pets inside should not have a cat in the first place.