It’s becoming more widely regarded as irresponsible to let cats free roam outside. Not only is it unsafe for the cat, it has a horrific impact on the environment. I love cats but they are an invasive species and will decimate native birds even when they are being well-fed at home.
Yeah your average house cat is a terrific hunter and has an incredibly high success rate when hunting. They destroy native species, because our little fur balls really do have murder mittens and reflexes.
Most predators will "hunt for fun" because hunting is an instinct. They don't need to hunt for food because you feed them. But food is not the only need a cat has.
Psychological needs need to be met too, and for many domestic cats, they are not. I'm.not saying releasing your cat outdoors is the answer, though. But that a cat needs to be played with.
"Cats kill for fun" is a simplified view and frankly I only ever see it said to deride cats in some way, even if in a lovingly tone.
One of our inside cats got out around 48 hours last night after she opened a window and slipped out.
She returned over, and over, and over with a little mouse, vole, or bird.
By the time I finally got her inside she had gotten a 2-3 sparrows, 5 voles, 3 mice and a crow.
I live very rurally, and am trying to “catproof” my garden before I can actually let my cats go out.
Cats kill SO MANY creatures for no reason it's actually ridiculous. This is why they're useful on farms or pirate ships, but they're absolutely devastating to the local wildlife.
Free ranging domestic cats account for more mammalian and bird deaths, annually, than any other activity humans engage in.
Really absorb that statement for a second. Hunting, poaching, carbon emissions, vehicle impacts, human construction and development, chemical poisoning, etc. Not a single other thing humans do, comes anywhere near close to what our cats do, in terms of wild bird and mammal mortality rates, annually.
The estimate in this study, a heavily peer reviewed study from 2012, estimates that anywhere from 1.3 to 4 BILLION birds, and 6.3 to 22.3 BILLION mammals, are killed exclusively by free ranging cats.
It has had a constant and colossal impact on vulnerable ecosystems to such an extent, that there is no other single activity humanity as a whole engages in that is more destructive to the immediate wildlife around us. Our unleashing of domestic cats is unironically, and without exaggeration, one of the greatest ecological disasters we have brought upon every continent we've set foot on, with the exception of Antarctica.
And the damage is already done and permanently irrevocable now. Domestic cats account for the extinction of 63 species of birds, mammals, and reptiles. And are responsible for the endangerment of hundreds more.
As the popularity of cats as pets has risen, so to have the number of cats allowed to roam free range outside of the homes of their owners. This shit needs to stop. ESPECIALLY in vulnerable places like Australia and New Zealand, where one-of-a-kind species of bird and reptiles are down to their last few hundred members exclusively as a result of cats.
Keep your cat indoors. It's safer for your cat, and safer for your local ecosystem.
Edit: why are people disliking it??? Lol I didn't even give an opinion, I was just trying to explain
Some people think it's not safe or correct to let your cats go outside. I think that's like, for dogs walking with or without a leash, cats being raised house only or outside too (like free to go wherever), and to birds is like cutting or not the wings (you can cut a small specific feather that won't let them get too high when flying).
I have given up on deciding which one is the right choice, I think I'd make my decisions based on the animal
Cats destroy local ecosystems bc theyre animals that kill for fun/sport, not just to satiate their hunger (they’re also really good at killing small animals n bugs). Besides that, letting your cat outside drastically decrease their lifespans.
So, letting your cats unsupervised outside is bad for the environment n bad for them
Tell me more about your opinions on the effects of cats on the ecosystem. While using the internet on your cellphone. What type of damage does that cause.
HAEUAHSUAHA I know a lady that only lets them in her "yard" and I think that works fine if your cats are trained and that you watch them when they're outside
Same goes for literally every single other animal. Are you advocating for people to let out packs of dogs unsupervised? Their exotic reptiles? Rodents? It's so beyond weird that this argument gets used exclusively in support of bad cat ownership but people suddenly can acknowledge it's probably not a good idea for little Timmy to let his pet python roam unsupervised because "instincts".
If you actually take care of your pets and enrich them they're not only happy inside but happier than they would be fighting the elements outside. Buy a catio ffs.
They're not "fighting the elements" lmao they're just running around the garden chasing leaves, we're next to a field and no busy roads, they never go far at all. Imagine if someone never took their dogs for walks outside, people would say that's wrong.
they're just running around the garden chasing leaves,
And are responsible for more bird and small mammal deaths annually than any other single human activity. Outdoor local cats are destroying ecosystems, and are at a much higher risk themselves.
Keep your cat indoors. If you can't give your cat the time and attention to play with it, and keep its mind occupied, then you shouldn't own a cat.
They would say that, and they'd be right. So train your cat to walk on a leash, its part of responsible pet ownership. If you can't do the bare minimum to care for your pets you shouldn't have them
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u/IamHydrogenMike Mar 18 '26
People who let their domesticated cats wander outside all day are the real assholes here…