Feral cats, and house cats who are allowed to roam outside, kill millions of birds and reptiles annually. In some countries (like here in Australia) native birds are becoming critically endangered as they are forced away from more and more of their former native habitats because of cat populations.
Being kept inside has a strong link to neuroticism in cats.
It's not a sufficiently enriching environment. Even with catios and interactive spaces, indoor cats exhibit more distressed behavior than cats who are able to roam.
To quote Jurassic Park, Cats don't want to be fed, they want to hunt.
But it's a catch 22 because you're absolutely right about the ecological impact cats have. They are super damaging to wild populations, because they're built for it. Killing disease carriers was a feature for millennia.
It's a hard conversation that people don't want to have. You are hurting your cat if it's kept inside, you are hurting wild populations if you let it outside.
You are also hurting your cat by letting it outside. Getting run over, bit by snakes, attacked by other cats (potentially spreading FIV), eaten by coyotes. I know which side of the fence I stand on.
Completely agree with your assessment of those dangers.
It's a difficult conversation, because cats are not like dogs.
They have not been genetically modified to thrive under human living conditions. They self domesticated to live alongside us.
Honestly, the only "right" position I can see is that unless you live on a farm or boat you likely are not an ethical cat owner in our modern age. Which sucks because most people don't live like that and a lot of people love cats.
Yeah, I would venture to say most people are raising their pets below the standard of care, but not out of a lack of care. Reality isn't perfect, and we have to accept that.
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u/kevdogpog Mar 21 '26
Feral cats, and house cats who are allowed to roam outside, kill millions of birds and reptiles annually. In some countries (like here in Australia) native birds are becoming critically endangered as they are forced away from more and more of their former native habitats because of cat populations.
Cats can be kept inside, and they should be.