AIBU to think cats should not roam unsupervised like dogs?

[estrogone]

AIBU to think that if you dont leave your dog to roam streets unsupervised, then you shouldn't let other pets (cats), for the same reasons.

It blows my mind that people let their cats out because their sleep is disrupted and I wonder why they think its OK, when its highly unlikely they would put Fido outside if he kept the family up.

I agree cats need to get outside and roam.

I’ve lived in London all my life and always had cats. They’re fine.

I definitely think a person should attempt to look for the owner or knock on houses etc. it’s common for cats to continue running to the side of the road and die elsewhere, so drivers will think it’s got away unharmed. I’ll be honest, I’m not sure I could pick up a dead animal and put it in my car.

I live in London and I have had several cats over the years. They have all lived long, happy lives (my longest living died at 24, youngest went at 16).
They all went out on their adventures and were/are very contented. They had/have their vaccinations each year (Including feline AIDS).

If I try to keep them inside (if they have a vet check up for example) they hate it.

Until recently I also had a dog who was great friends with all the cats we had during her lifetime.

You sound like you are not from the UK (USA?).
You also sound quite unwell. I hope you feel better soon.

I find this a really bizarre argument, in that it appears to be offering a moral judgement on the cats?

I think it's worth noting that there is a genuine debate about whether cats impact wild bird populations in the UK, and that the RSPB continues to believe they aren't a significant factor.

Have you tried keeping a cat indoors when they really want to be outside? I had a house cat that wouldn't venture out of the garden. When he passed away we got another kitten & tried keeping him inside. He was having non of it & would escape out of windows or as soon as a door was open he'd dart out. If we didn't open the door for him he'd howl & become distressed so we'd have to let him out. He now only goes around the doors in back gardens & the front street but won't stay inside for more than a couple of hours at a time.

Who the hell has told you that cats kill squirrels and Hedgehogs? I have videos of my cats around a hedgehog that is a frequent visitor and there's no desire from my cats to hunt them or the squirrels that a big in numbers in my area! Don't tell stupid lies please, it really isn't fair or helpful!

Cats can still be disruptive towards them and scare them without killing them. What lie have I told?

Wow! Are you always so aggressive?

Where did I say that exactly?

My cat wears a tracker and I know where he is at all times. Before he was neutered we had to keep him in and it was tricky, even as a kitten he was desperate to get out and explore. Keeping him indoors would be cruel, he’s incredibly active and I think he’d go nuts if he was cooped up. I understand the OP’s concerns about wildlife but only to a point - mice are vermin and my garden is teeming with them. The local corvids play chicken with both cats. The foxes stay away. My ‘baby’ is a one metre long, 2 yr old Maine coon. His interests include climbing trees, sitting in bushes, not coming when he’s called, chasing leaves, hanging out with next door’s girl cat, and, looking at his tracker info, zigzagging across the same area of woodland about 20 times. There’s no equivalent for any of that indoors! I couldn’t do it to him

1. Those animals are indigenous. Domestic cats are not
2. I never metioned stray or feral cats - you made that up
3. How have you managed to extrapolate, from my perfectly calm post, that I would enjoy going around poisoning and shooting cats? Hysterical much?

Why not?
Dogs used to roam free.
We then started sticking dogs on a lead.

I have had cats in London my whole life and they have all lived long happy lives outdoors. Cats are smart. Smarter than dogs 😁I accept the risk I run by letting my cats out to roam because I think it’s small and worth the happy outdoorsy lives they live. Having said that, I live on a quiet road and my cats mostly hang out in our big gardens and surrounding big gardens with lots of trees to climb. Cat heaven in the middle of London!

Oooh nice idea and cheaper than a cattery
X

I mean, in your post you said:

Domestic cats - which are not indigenous to the uk - kill around 270 million animals a year. That can’t be right can it?

So I ask you, and all the other posters who seem to think cats are such a huge problem to wildlife in the UK - if we remove cats from the equation, either by culling them or keeping them cooped up in catios cages, what do you propose to to do to deal with the subsequent massive rise in the rodent population?

When was the last time a cat mauled or killed someone? And I don't mean the kind you find in Africa, or zoos.

Domestic cats may not be indigenous, but they've been here since Roman times, so they're very much not a new introduction for native wildlife.

Cats have always roamed. Cats is not the biggest threat to wild life even if I do get sad when my cats mostly hang kills a bird too.

A number of postera on here have this morning demanded that all pet cats be locked up for life and all strays and ferals should be killed! The responses you are reading are in response to those people.

Cats are crepusculer animals. Their prime hunting time is dawn and dusk. That's why they like to out at those times. It's just nature.

Cats are a different beast to a dog, they don't have any similarities in mental state to a dog. Cats would hate being on leads and it cruel to start trying to force that on to them. It's very dangerous because they'd be defiant and panic and try to get out of that lead / harness and othey get out of it somewhere, they've gone! They are lost! The nearest walking place to me is a beck and it's always got lots of dogs on there so why would I do something so cruel as to drag my cats down there on a lead / harness and subject them to the terror of dogs and potential to be attacked! My cats pretty much stay in my garden and cause no issue and I have no intention of ever inflicting that sort of cruelty and danger on my cats!

One of our neighbours cats was roaming yesterday morning. It walked our perimeter fence and then decided it would be ok to drop down into the garden. It was quite amusing when it hadnt spotted my 2 dogs literally waiting quietly for it to come around the corner. It got the fright of its life and managed to escape at the last second.

Would i wish harm on the cat? - Nope i dont.

But i did want it to get a lesson in life for its own safety. Come in my garden and theres a good chance 2 dogs are coming for you.

If you dont want cats in your garden, dogs are the best deterrent

No the responses I am reading have quoted me directly. Nowhere have I advocated either of those things.

Cats are natural roamers and indoor cats don't live such a full life as cats with open access to outdoors.
Having said that, cats decimate our native wildlife which is already struggling due to food scarcity and habitat loss. I have already decided that any future cats I have will be kept in at night which is when most killing takes place.

I don’t think cats need to roam, they just need to practice their basic feline behaviour which is stalking and hunting. If you have a garden that’s all they need as they can chase flies etc. Unfortunately they do get the very occasional bird. Our solution is to make sure our cats don’t leave our garden so they can’t be a menace anywhere else and can’t get run over.