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.

Give me cats over dogs any day of the week. Much better animals! Dogs are yappy, stinky animals who are needy and annoying, and they are a huge tie. Also, I am sick of seeing dog shit everywhere I go all over pavements. There are so many irresponsible dog owners. I have yet to see cat shit lying anywhere - and I have NEVER seen anyone savagely attacked by a domestic CAT.

Yes, there definitely are - Cats Protection, RSPCA, Celia Hammond, and many independent cat charities do this.

I believe it's to protect the local wildlife from the cats.

We make laws with mostly peoples safety in mind. By your logic we should contain all wild animals! You cannot control nature really. There is a line already drawn that keeps people (mostly) safe from attack / danger. And also gives animals a level of comfort that respects their natural behaviours. Cats do roam. Dogs stay in their pack.

You are also incorrect about the dangers cats face I think - they aren’t at great risk of getting lost. A few get lost; and even then there are reasonable steps to prevent this and reduce risk. Same for car accidents. It’s actually statistically a very low risk for most cats; and people can take steps to mitigate this risk by not allowing them out at rush hour or if they live on a very busy road. There’s not many cats in that situation.

Indoor cats are more likely to get lost if they ever do escape, though, because they don't know anything about the area. Although I hear even they are not terribly likely to get lost as they tend to panic and hide near their house.

Lots of people where I live let their cats out, and it's a busy road in town. I've seen the same cats roaming the streets for years, and seeing off the foxes.

We did let our cats out for about fifteen years; but a few years ago, one of them was hit by a car (I expect by a car manoeuvring on a driveway, rather than a car racing along the road; I think this is probably even more dangerous to cats). Luckily, a neighbour found him, he survived, had a lot of treatment, and is still going strong several years later. As a compromise, we then got cat-proof fencing (freely rotating horizontal rollers on the top of the fence, by Katzecure), restricting him to our large garden, which has worked for keeping him in. This was a very expensive undertaking, as we had to have all the fencing re-done, as it was falling apart. So it can be done, keeping cats in a garden, but it's not cheap or easy.

Cat owner, 2 cats who are, largely, indoor cats but have a contained garden they go out in. Also both trained to do some things dogs do (fetch, sit, etc.). Cats are extremely intelligent and great companions. I refute a lot of what’s been posted here about their limitations. I would say our cats have never known any different though, I think containing a cat that’s been used to a life of free roam would be tough on the cat. My MIL also has lead trained cats, we don’t walk ours as they have roam of the garden. I do agree with others that I don’t like the idea of inflicting my cats (and their poop) on people.

You probably don't see cat shit everywhere because they are doing it in other people's flower beds🤷
Cats do shit, you know, as do the King and Queen.
I live in a sizeable town and rarely see dog mess on the pavement or in parks. I suppose experiences vary. I wouldn't be a good cat owner as I'd worry where they were all the time, but dogs and cats are very different, and think it's natural for cats to roam.

*accidentally posted twice

Cats are not dogs.

Owner of both

yes!

not true and certainly not here in the UK
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds states that while pet cats catch millions of garden birds every year in the UK, there is no clear scientific evidence that this predation is causing overall wild bird populations to decline. Instead, the charity emphasizes that major declines in bird numbers are driven by larger issues like habitat loss and agricultural changes

many birds here in UK annihilate thousands of other birds ( the crows near me have a field day with the smaller birds )and a further 30 million die flying into windows not to mention humans spraying pesticides on their food sources, and building on green land meaning less trees and bushes for their food sources
also, it was on the news today that blackberry fruits have started to ripen 2 months before they are supposed to, also many of the fruit's won't ripen because of the drought and heat we have had .
your analysis isn't correct

I was answering a question specifically about Australia not the UK.

It used to be normal to let pet dogs roam. Ours didn't but many local to me did back in the 80s.
By that measure, I suppose one day it might become less normal to let cats roam than it is now.
Cats are different though so maybe not. I'd be taking my life in my hands if I tried to put a lead or a harness on my cat 😂

Not much point in saying that again here though. The RSPB analysis has been put on this thread many times already, but people keep ignoring it 🙄.

Along with various other things like average lifespan of cats - if I see someone saying cats live to 2 years old on average if they go out I may scream, they can't seem to understand the difference between feral/stray cats and "owned" cats who go out.

Dogs often did roam about

there were certainly less dogs around that are considered dangerous Rottweilers etc and many of us had been nipped by a dog. Alsatians became popular in the 80’s they were often seen as dangerous as were stronger than dogs many people had had before and this coincided with more awareness of safety around dogs

thankfully, majority of us, have higher standards around safety of children now