Keep your cat indoors!

It has been common practice in North America to allow pet cats to roam. Unlike dogs, cats have been treated as pets that are easy to replace, i.e., if your cat is killed by a car, you can get another one for free somewhere. Some people who love their cats have believed that cats “need” to wander freely, that a short life of freedom is better than a long life indoors. Many are naïve to the extent of the dangers that await their cats. Here are some of the facts, the reasons why Richmond Animal Protection advocates keeping cats indoors:

• The average outdoor cat lives just 2 to 3 years while indoor cats usually live 15 years or longer.



• Living safely indoors, cats require less veterinary care (including vaccinations) and are protected from fleas, earmites, ticks and worms.



• Indoor cats cannot contract feline leukemia or feline AIDS from neighbourhood cats. These dangerous viruses aren't uncommon. In four years, we took in close to 100 infected cats and are caring for them in segregated areas. People do not realize that their pets are carrying these viruses until they become ill. By continuing to allow their cats outdoors, they are unwittingly spreading these diseases.



• Large numbers of cats are killed or permanently maimed each year on the streets of your city, not just a few. A survey we conducted determined that in the first 10 months of 2002, animal control staff removed 1,064 dead cats from the streets of Greater Vancouver! That number doesn't include cats that were found by their owners.



• Outdoor cats risk attack by dogs, other cats and wild animals.



• Outdoor cats risk accidental or intentional poisoning and injury by people who hate cats.



• Songbirds are needlessly killed by outdoor cats.



• Cats can become temporarily or permanently lost.

Cats raised indoors will not crave an outside life. In fact, many show fear when they are first put out-of-doors.

With patience and perseverance, a cat owner can help an outdoor cat adjust to a safer life indoors. There will be a period of adjustment in which the cat may exhibit nuisance behaviours; however, our experience with hundreds of cats, both feral and tame, proves that any cat will accept such a change to its lifestyle.

Alternatively, you can build an outdoor run for your cat or enclose a back porch with wire fencing.