AIBU to think cats should not roam unsupervised like dogs?

Cats are part of the impact humans have on wildlife.
Not the only part but definitely a part.
You pick up an animal, put it down in an environment where it doesn’t belong, and then artificially feed it to boost populations.
Introduced species are a massive problem world wide.

Because when my cat has been allowed to "safely experience the outdoors" he has been stressed, sick and unfulfilled. He needs to be out and he needs to roam and do normal "cat" things. When he can't do that, he gets so unwell he gets stress-related urinary blockages and needs to be medicated and regularly treated at the vets.

Bugger that! Seeing cats out and about make me smile even on my darkest days. They even poo in my garden. I don't mind though.

Eh? You said "as far as responsible ownership goes, they are exactly the same".

They are not. Even the law says they are not.

My cats are generally in at night and they don't keep us awake, they usually sleep on or near one of us!

They go where they like during the day, we live rurally and have fields behind our houses for them to roam around. They don't bother anybody or cause any trouble unlike the incessant yapping/barking from neighbourhood dogs and they don't leave big stinking heaps of shit all over the place either.

It's tricky. The nature of cats living with people has long been that they are on the periphery of our homes, coming and going as they please.

I dont want cats to be hurt but equally, its such an enriching part of their lives and unlike dogs, most cats just aren't happy to be walked on a lead. Its not their nature to go roaming and racing around like dogs, they like to sniff and scratch and climb trees, all hard to do on leads.

I think you should base what you do around where you live. We live in a quiet estate at the top of a hill and backing onto a tiny quiet cul de sac, beyond that is trees, fields and a play park, so there is not much traffic around us and the cats tend to go behind us where its very safe, instead of down into the estate where there are more streets.

Our cats are always so close nearby. They come to the park and for little walks with us, the older one comes on the school run with us most mornings. You can go outside and call then and they are very likely to come within seconds. We dont have a garden (though they do use the unused garden below us) so keeping them in seems cruel and our relationship with them is strengthened by them spending time with us outside. I love them and would be devastated if anything happened, but it seems wrong to not let them out

If people are concerned about wildlife and cats then spread the message to flipping owners. If you have a friend with a intact cat, call them out on it.
Friend from CP is completely knackered trying to pick up the mess of people getting cats, not neutering them and letting them out, losing or abandoning them. This creates many more colonies and cats will then breed over and over. She, and other cat rescue spaces in a reasonable sized town have hundreds of cats & kittens on waiting lists to be helped, mostly down to not neutering. A female cat can get pregnant at 4 months old and can have 20-25 kittens per year. See the issue?

Responsible cat ownership in this country is going downhill rapidly. If people had cats at home, even allowed out and they were looked after, neutered then there would be far fewer cats in the UK. As usual, it is human activity behind the problems. Buy a cat from gumtree for £20, then do sod all cat care.

I agree OP. Personally I don’t think cats should be locked inside. I have an indoor cat.

But the same way nobody locks their dog inside they take them for walks- I believe care should be given to your cat to ensure they get enrichment. My cat is the same as yours. Has a catio, comes on holiday with us etc. I’m not sure why people think that the only options are having an outdoor cat or locking them inside without entertainment and having them bored all of the time?

I think we should exercise responsible pet ownership and that begins with not letting your cat outside where they have a much higher rate of dying but also playing with, spending time with and putting measures into place where your cat can access an outdoor area safely. We wouldn’t just lock a dog inside, we know it will make them crazy so we put them on a lead and take them for a walk. Why can’t we think of ways to safely let our cats experience the outdoors? I don’t know why these rules apply for all other pets but not cats.

I remember this in the 90s. People just let their dogs out on the council estates where I lived in the north east. Some of the neighbours dogs would play with us on the field which was nice. Not saying this was a good idea mind, like there was dog crap everywhere.

Have you only ever had the one cat? Their personalities can differ wildly. Like people.

One of our cats has a similar temperament to your girl's and would be probably be happy to come away with us. The other of our cats would absolutely hate this and would scream, cry, throw up in the carrier after about ten minutes in the car.

Wildlife also kills wildlife (or domesticated animals - hedgehogs can kill a whole brood of chicks fairly quickly).

And if you'd bothered to read my post, I didn't say that they were, however much I believe they should be.

Exactly. Cat owners seem to be in denial about this key point.

This. Foxes, badgers, stoats, birds of prey, all these are out there killing wildlife its the circle of life. Your average pet cat actually doesn't kill much because they are fed at home so not hunting to feed themselves. And actually much of what cats kill is small rodents that to be honest need to be kept in check in urban areas anyway?

I have a cat as do many people i know - its really rare for them to manage to catch birds - which is what people claim cats are out there doing, killing all the nice birds - in reality birds are pretty good at flying away. Rodents is the bulk of what they manage to catch.

And your point is?

And these pet friendly air b and bs have catios and cat proof gardens? Cos you have already said that is what cats should have access to, when responding to people who said cats should not be kept inside.

Actually...
We used to take a previous generation of cats on holiday with us to a holiday cottage in the Malverns. We even let them outside there - they seemed to love it (lots of trees to climb) and the second time we went they clearly recognised the place.
Never underestimate a moggy 😹

Just because your cat likes something, doesn't mean all cats do. HTH.

Cats aren't wildlife, they're domesticated animals. It's like saying that it would be acceptable for dogs to chase and kill wildlife just because they're animals.

Humans kill far more.
Destruction of habitat.
Millions are killed by flying into buildings.
Wind turbines kill thousands.
Cars.
Pollution.
Pesticides.
Farming.
Climate change.
Humans, not cats are responsible for many birds becoming extinct.

You're ignoring my point that cats, both domestic and native species, can - and frequently do - live in this country without being dependent on a human owner. Given the huge range of cats - including wild cats, farm cats, feral colonies and domestic moggies, all of which frequently inter-breed, a blanket ban which didn't adversely affect wild, working or stray cats, would be complicated to implement. Owners of specialist, dependent breeds, such as ragdolls, should, of course, keep them in to keep them safe but most moggies are capable of looking out for themselves.

Now I know you're pulling our legs. I can't imagine anyone taking their cat on holiday. Cats like their own territory. It would be so upsetting for most cats to go on holiday for a week.

I do know some people use catteries but we never have, and to be fair they are (hopefully) totally set up for the comfort of a cat, unlike a holiday home.

I've never even had a cat who was happy in a car!

It's 100% neglect, you just don't want to admit it because that would make you a bad person.

Exactly lol. It's just a slightly bigger cage.

We tried cat-proofing and we tried a catio - it just made him miserable in a slightly larger area 😂