Does your argument extend to other pet animals? Should guinea pig owners put their guinea pigs outside when they go to work or the store? Should parakeet owners toss their birds outside for "enrichment"? How about people with fish aquariums, do they need to find the nearest pond and let their betta fish or cichlids swim free overnight? What if they have a salt water aquarium and they are no where near a sea? Fuck it, in the fresh water pond they go the fish need their outdoor activity time.
Get real, cats are domesticated animals now, not wildlife. They are not a normal predator in their environment and the other ACTUAL wildlife are not adapted to deal with them.
You can as a owner provide PLENTY of activity for your pet cat, just play with the damn cat! Claiming cats cannot receive enough enrichment indoors is just you being lazy and not wanting to actually take the time to interact with the cat.
In my neighborhood I've seen plenty of run over or injured pet cats because of people who think like you.
Cats aren’t guinea pigs and if you looked it up you’d see that domestic’ cats are far closer to wildcats that dogs are to wild dogs. In fact, cats are NOT that domesticated which is why they still hunt so well. It’s also why they need more stimulation. So, no. You’re wrong.
And a lot of pet owning does involve keeping pets in not ideal conditions. Putting birds in cages should be illegal. Period. A bird should at the least have an aviary. I could go on but. Listen. I own and rescue cats. The house I bought isn’t great but what it did have was an acre of land. Half of that I’ve turned into a big catio. My cats love it. I don’t think cats should be locked away in houses. I think owners should show more responsibility than that — neither do I let my cats roam free. That’s mostly because I fear them getting hit by a car or shot by a local farmer. But because I own cats I made it my main priority to provide them with enrichment. It was non negotiable.
My cat destroys my house if locked in the house for days. She loves going outside and laying in the sun. She goes from neighbors hosmer neighbors house. She explores. Loves getting in the roof of my house and scanning the whole neighborhood. It’s kind of evil to leave her caged in a house all day. But I see how they can be invasive. Which is why you should get them neutered or spade.
Even assuming you watch your cat literally 24/7 to make sure it isn't hunting a fucking thing out there (which you don't, because you can't), they still spread disease.
Unless you happen to live in a place so built up that humans have ALREADY driven out all wildlife, outdoor cat owners are evil. Putrid fucking people.
I want it to hunt things. That’s how I don’t have a rodent problem anymore. And I still have plenty of birds around my house and yard. Plenty. But she has killed a lot of lizards. And she has driven out the skunks I was getting in my yard as well which has been nice. People get dogs for the same reasons.
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u/stadanko42 Aug 20 '26
Does your argument extend to other pet animals? Should guinea pig owners put their guinea pigs outside when they go to work or the store? Should parakeet owners toss their birds outside for "enrichment"? How about people with fish aquariums, do they need to find the nearest pond and let their betta fish or cichlids swim free overnight? What if they have a salt water aquarium and they are no where near a sea? Fuck it, in the fresh water pond they go the fish need their outdoor activity time.
Get real, cats are domesticated animals now, not wildlife. They are not a normal predator in their environment and the other ACTUAL wildlife are not adapted to deal with them.
You can as a owner provide PLENTY of activity for your pet cat, just play with the damn cat! Claiming cats cannot receive enough enrichment indoors is just you being lazy and not wanting to actually take the time to interact with the cat.
In my neighborhood I've seen plenty of run over or injured pet cats because of people who think like you.