AIBU to say that no one should own a caged pet?

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My parents loved animals and hated to see caged pets ie rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs etc. I did end up having one or two of these as a child but they always hated it really.
Now I have DC and they ask regularly for a rabbit, hamster etc. I just can’t agree. I think it’s so cruel. Hamsters gnaw on the bars all night to try in vain to get out.
Rabbits stuck in hutches or small runs all day.
Many people claim to love animals but how can they when they are caging animals? I can’t even stand to see fish in a tank!
Hate house cats too. Also think it’s cruel.

Kittenlicker

Depends on the personality of the cat. My mum's cat would be utterly miserable as a house cat and loves to be outside. My two cats spend 99% of their lives sitting on someone's lap- they like to be with a person constantly and just are not bothered about going outside. We had the back door open all day yesterday and they didn't venture out once.

I agree. Friends of mine keep lots of snakes and reptiles, and I can't bear if - snakes in plastic boxes. It's so wrong. What a shitty life they lead.

@Covidpolice are you a rabbit? How the hell do you know that the rabbits were pretty happy to be caged up??
Animals should not be caged!

Ha, the irony of this is that so many dog owners think it’s fine to stick their dog in a cage overnight for “crate training”.

Fucked up.

I have always hated caged animals. When I had a rabbit as a child I used to take it to field to graze on dandelions (lived next to a large field of cows)From a very young age I was aware of animal cruelty and neglect and my mum used to show me pictures of clubbed seals etc!! Obviously this has damaged me a bit mentally but also made me aware of what was going on in the world too. My daughter has two rabbits and they have an enormous run with upstairs area to sleep so very lucky rabbits lol.

Yes it makes me feel uncomfortable, like zoos. But my dog has a life of everything a dog could wish for and she’s clearly very happy. I’ve always said I would never have a caged pet. It’s strange because I have family members who are animal lovers, vegetarian and are ok with it, I don’t understand it.

@AlabamaArkansas But they have the choice, right?

My rabbits never been in a hutch. He would be most put out by the suggestion of being shut in anywhere. He's a free range house rabbit and sleeps where he likes. More like a dog. Goes in a little trey ( castrated so smells less) and generally is our very own Lord muck. He thinks we live in his house I think.

I agree I wouldn't like to cage a animal.

YANBU about rabbits. They need an enormous amount of space, and should never be made to live alone, but thousands of people have them malingering sadly in tiny hutches by themselves.

I think it’s a little easier with mice / hamsters / gerbils etc, but these tend to make bad pets for children because they’re mostly nocturnal and they don’t like to be picked up (especially by children who might squeeze too hard or drop them).

I don’t personally think it’s cruel to keep house cats so long as they have always been house cats and they have plenty of enrichment (things to climb on, regular play etc).

IMO pet shops have a lot to answer for in selling small mammals to people who don’t really know how to care for them or aren’t bothered about doing it properly.

There is a trend that is moving towards rabbits being cage free and there is a large rabbit community on Instagram and Facebook. I challenge you to look at most of the these rabbits and decide that it is cruel and they are unhappy. I have 2 house rabbits myself and they are little trained and sociable. Yes, keeping rabbits in a tiny hutch is cruel but to tar all rabbit owners with the same brush and to suggest they shouldn't be kept as pets is ridiculous. Does he look unhappy?

We have chickens who roam but in a cage. It is to protect them from predators. They are healthy and happy. We also adopted a rescue house cat who won't go outside even if all the doors and windows are open. None of these animals is suffering.

He certainly isn't scared of me 😄

"Pet slavery"? Slight oxymoron there. I also enjoy that you have a dog. Where would the dog be if it wasn't a much loved pet?

I have chickens (free range) pretty impossible to tell if they are happy or not. They are chickens and not the most expressive of animals. but I would argue free range is always better.

If they are not in tiny cages I can't see a problem. I haven't seen a run with a wire floor for years and years they just go directly on the grass?

With hamsters if you get the right size cage and the right bedding etc then there is no issue. None of my hamsters have even chewed their bars?

What's wrong with having a house rabbit. Then you don't have to worry about locking them away?

The OP is talking about caged animals. Just to clarify and hamsters would need an enormous cage to meet their needs, much bigger than the standard ones you see for sale.. They like to burrow. If they are unable to do that it’s unfair.

HarlinRay, what a load of rubbish. Outdoor cats should be vaccinated so no disease spreading going on, they might try and catch the odd bird but that's hardly 'destroying the local wildlife' and they have more right to be outside than a car does (as a living thing) so it's really people driving cars that should be more careful.

We have an outdoor cat. He spends at least 4-5 hours a day outside, he tends to go out and come in various times a day and he's never been injured or run over and he isn't spreading any diseases. He's never brought a dead animal back because he's well fed and probably can't be bothered with the effort of trying to catch and kill a pigeon.

He is also chipped and registered at the local vet so I'm pretty sure if anything happened to him, we would be contacted. Our area is ideal for outdoor cats, a suburb where the main road is quite far away, far enough away that it's out of our cats perimeter anyway. They tend to make a marker of about 100m-200m around their house and that is where they roam outside. It's not common for them to venture further unless they do so to run away from a dog, a fight with another cat etc

Thanks for all the points of view- very interesting to read. A few points:
Please note that is wasn’t me who said about dog slavery. I think dogs as pets are fine as long as you are not out at work all day and have space in your home / garden. If cats are given the option to be out but chose not to that is different. I am talking about buying a cat or kitten and then not letting it out. If pedigree cats can’t be let out then they shouldn’t be bred IMO.
All rescue pets are in a different category as I have said before, and I understand will have their own rules. It’s really the pets that are bought from pet stores etc that I am thinking about.
Some people here have really tried to give their pet more space and it’s lovely to hear that some are given much more room to roam about.
My problem with it all is that we are keeping animals for our pleasure. (Not rescue). If this was stopped then there wouldn’t be many to rescue in the first place.
If a large predator kept you well fed and cleaned in a jail cell with just a yard to exercise all day with one other person, spent money on extending the yard, putting things in for your entertainment would you be happy? I know animals don’t have human brains so you can not compare directly but this is how I feel.
Also the ‘safer in captivity’ argument doesn’t really hold with me. I am sure many animals are safer in captivity but would you rather live for 10 years free with fellow humans or 50 years in the jail cell and yard? I know which I would chose.
As I say it’s lovely to hear that people make such an effort with their pets and letting them roam the house is at least better than stuck in a cage!

YANBU at all, I completely agree with this. I hate seeing caged animals, particularly birds. It makes me so sad. I have two pampered cats that come and go as they please, we have a fairly equal relationship!

@Kittenlicker hamsters would need an enormous cage to meet their needs

We used an Alaska cage which was cheeper than a tiny one and meant you could put enough bedding in to let them burrow. We also put tubes etc under the bedding. It can be done very easily

@grumpyorange maybe you think it can be done very easily but most folk do not go to those lengths sadly.

YABU. I had rats for a while, they lived in a massive cage with lots of sections and layers for climbing. Mixture of fresh and dry food every day (I even cooked them tortellini cos it was their favourite food) and plenty of time to roam around. We were really closely bonded, they helped enormously with my mental health at the time, and they were very happy. It makes me sad to see rats that aren’t properly taken care of- the cages you see them in at pets at home are way too small for example, and they shouldn’t live alone- but I don’t think cages in general are the problem.

I also agree with everyone. Great points brought up.

Another thing I cant stand is seeing animals in dreadfully small enclosures. I love visiting zoos and aquariums and wildlife parks. But just cant stand the small enclosures. And sometimes extremely dirty too.

@Kittenlicker I do feel that pet shops should only stock appropriately sized cages. And the face they are cheaper too it is silly people don't get them!