To want my cat to stay indoors for a very silly reason?

[monkeysafari]

I have a 4 month old kitten. My partner wants to let her out soon. I really don't want to let her out at all, ever. Why? Because I don't want her bringing home dead, or living, birds/mice etc.

Is it really wrong to keep a cat inside? Do they have to go out??

As I said, if you live somewhere where you feel it's safe to let your cats out like I do, then fine. I think they should be given the chance to go outside.
My sister had a lovely cat, it never got outside as she lived in a second floor flat.
It was perfectly happy and well loved.
It would be a shame not to get a cat if you really want one as you can't let them out.

The arguments about following its instincts don't wash with me. If that was so important the animals wouldn't be neutered for a start.

No animal would live in a cage.
Before mating males would fight it out who got the privilege.
Cows wouldn't be separated from their young 36 hours after birth.
No dog would be muzzled or kept on a lead,

etc.

I have a friend who owns indoor declawed cats. They are an unusual special anti-allergen breed, unsuited to outdoor weather, & have a fab life. I'd be delighted if after I died I was reborn to live as a cat in her household.

Well if you are someone who approves of the declawing of cats it's hardly surprising that the argument for allowing a cat to follow its roaming instinct doesn't wash with you.

I totally disagree with declawing btw.
That is just cruel.

"I have a friend who owns indoor declawed cats. They are an unusual special anti-allergen breed, unsuited to outdoor weather, & have a fab life. I'd be delighted if after I died I was reborn to live as a cat in her household."

Not sure where to start. I would have to get past the "special" breed that's unsuited to outdoor weather before I could even start on the de clawing.

If you live in a flat, most shelters have cats which they struggle to rehome, who are unable to go outside for example because they are elderly, or have a contagious disease (eg FIV). Why not just adopt one of them, if you want to keep your cat indoors?

It's cruel to keep cats in. I would prefer to have my cat be run over but lived a happy life than stuck indoors and have a miserable long life.

I feel sorry for indoor cats that need their freedom

For all those saying it is cruel to deny cats their natural instinct...

The instinct that a cat is born with is to chase/try to catch a small moving object. Every single act of the hunt (and examples of what is good to eat) is taught (or not) by the cat's mother as a kitten and re-inforced through play.

A cat's prowess as a hunter is mostly down to how good a teacher their mother was, genetics might play a small part - cats that have more recently been domesticated appear to be more efficient, which would make sense.

Therefore, a cats instinct can be fulfilled with a torch flashed against the wall or a fluffy mouse dangled from a rod just as well as gnawing on every bird it manages to catch.

Yes I have three indoor cats (who have supervised access to a secure outdoors) but I've also spent many years studying feline behaviour (if it didn't pay so badly I'd readily be a counsellor )

Oh just to add to this highly amusing thread with some people having no clue what they are talking about but just arguing for the sake of it (like I am now doing), yes when I was breeding I could sue you should have been in breech of my Contract, had I so wished to. I also took 3 cats back after selling them to people with various "catty issues" people.

Keep them in. Domestic cats kill an estimated million songbirds www.rspb.org.uk/advice/gardening/unwantedvisitors/cats/birddeclines.aspx a year, which has a massive impact on species that are already suffering from habitat loss.

Any tag stray on to PIL's farm get shot - they're bl

Um, Malinois, Your link is broken...
But IT actually says

No evidence

Despite the large numbers of birds killed, there is no scientific evidence that predation by cats in gardens is having any impact on bird populations UK-wide. This may be surprising, but many millions of birds die naturally every year, mainly through starvation, disease, or other forms of predation. There is evidence that cats tend to take weak or sickly birds.

Are you sure you meant to link to it?

Actually Ruby, there was a survey in the US recently that said cats over there kill an estimated 6 million songbirds per year. There is lots of research recently which is showing just how devasting the cat population is on native fauna.

yes but in the uk at least, cats are part of our 'native fauna'. cats killing sickly or weak birds is part of natural selection.

it's very well being sentimental, but obviously if wild birds lay 6 or so eggs a year, over several years, they aren't all destined to have a long and happy life.

it's a bit different in somewhere like new zealand, where cats were introduced relatively recently by europeans, and they really have contributed to the decline of native birds such as the kiwi which are not adapted to deal with them.

Cats in the UK at least have been part of our domestic arrangements for hundreds of years. Back when we were less sentimental about these things, they weren't pets, they were killers of pests. If you didn't have a cat then your food was eaten by rodents. There's very little you can do to deter a pack of determined rats, apart from a good ratting cat or terrier.

If we suddenly want furry bundles of non-killing fluff who are there to make us feel good about our cat-loving abilities we should not be breeding from a beast with such a lineage.

We can however make domestic cats part of our families in a responsible manner. Make sure they are speyed or neutered if they are not for breeding, give them free rein to exercise their natures and welcome them into our homes on their terms not ours. Then we will have a stable population of loved, wanted and contented cats.

Fair enough Callisto, but why would anyone post a link that says the exact opposite of what they want to prove?

I'm glad my neighbour has such a good mouser/ratter because I can't keep a cat and Poppy helps keep the local pest population down without resorting to poisons which other wanted parts of the local wildlife might stumble upon.

You could of course train your outdoors cat to become a feline Artful Dodger like this one:

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2205461/Real-life-cat-burglar-Family-pet-Dennis-Menace-stolen-hundreds-items-neighbours-garden.html

I have a 'Poppy'...Ruby

I have a Poppy too!

We have had loads of cats over the years and they very rarely bring 'presents' to the door. I agree with other posters that it is cruel to keep a cat stuck in doors. Imagine if you were stuck in all the time.

i was brought up with siamise cats and moggs, the siamise have allways been house cats, my parents leave the front door open in the sumemer, the older one will go as far as the front garden but will mainly just sun in the door way.

i also have a plan old moggy thats been a house cat. iv had her from a kitten though . weve moved into a flat now, but had she been an out door cat to beging with /at our old house i wouldnt have been able to take her as i do think its cruel to suddenly stop them from going out. our oreo is a lazy moo and just enjoyus laying in the sun, will even perch by open windows (on the 1st floor so isnt a massive drop even if she decided to jump for it lol) she has no reall intrest in going out unless shes on heat, in which case we have to be extra carfull about keeping the front door shut. hussy!

long as they have things to stimulate them i thihnk its fine to have an indoor only cat. though some just come with a personailty of wanting to be free and come home to feed.

oh can i add my cat is a very good hunter.. will happly "hunt" flys moths and spiders. she still has her hunter skills intact ;)

"I agree with all posters saying it is cruel on cats not to be kept indoors"

Have you asked that cat?

None of these postres know the breed of the cats, so how can they feel sorry for them? Some cats like staying in.

or even kept indoors....

Sometimes I wish my cat would stay in, but come hell or high water, he won't.
I hate that he kills things but have to accept it's his instinct.
He loves his freedom and will actively give me hell to gain it, he doesn't bring dead prey indoors he leaves them on doorstep or windowsill and once brought a little live mouse through the dining room window :@ twat then sat looking at me like he wanted my jugular when I scooped up little mousy and saved her life.

My DP's mum believes cats shouldn't be allowed out, hence why she spends a fortune on expensive breeds. Granted, you wouldn't really want to let a £300 + persian out on the streets but while I was cat-sitting one of her babies he escaped and was missing for a few hours. I was beside myself worrying for his safety as he is NOT at all "streetwise" nor very much "catwise" for that matter. He only goes out on a small harness in the garden, doesn't pee anywhere to mark his territory or the like, has no idea about risks (dogs, bigger cats, the foxes on the field) So I was afraid he wouldn't find his way home. So for the purposes of a kitty knowing where he lives, in case of escape, I think they should be allowed outside.

If you have a dog it's cruel If you don't walk it. Same applies.