I had a cat that walked on a leash with no leash training. I remember telling a coworker about that and they acted like the idea was an abomination against god.
The entire world except for the US lets their cats out. Cats aren't decorations. When you force cats to stay indoors, the flying rats will literally mob people walking out of grocery stores.
Sorry but I'm European and that's just wrong on top of a silly argument. Letting your cat roam freely almost halves their life expectancy and wreaks havoc on the local rodent and bird wildlife. Don't let your pets whether cats, dogs, rats or turtles roam the environment unless you somehow like hurting both them and your surroundings' biodiversity
Then they kill local wildlife until they themselves die a horrible death like getting run over by a car more often then not. If you want a pet care for it.
What a privileged mindset born from never having lived in a place where cats can't roam. We didn't domesticate them because they're cute, that's just a bonus. We live with them because they destroy vermin.
I live in a country where it used to be the norm and it still happens dipshit. Do you have any idea how many species are in danger because of domestic cats? They destroy waaaay more then vermin. Unless you're living on a farm in the middle of nowhere, be responsible for your cat or don't get a damn pet. Also much better for them to not get in constant fights till a car eventually runs them over and they die in a bush somewhere
your "points" are complete shit. i live in a place where people let their cats roam, and guess what, they get eaten by birds, coyotes, bobcats, and are often shot by other people or run over. i like cats, i dont want this to happen, but it WILL if they are left out all the time unsupervised. my yard used to be full of song birds until the cats started to kill them. do you know how many cats ive picked up off the road because people dont care and just hit them? its all around sickening. there are ways to let your cat outside without these things happening.
So, I'm on the fence about letting cats roam free personally because, we are artificially raising their numbers, that's why they do so much damage.
I think it's almost certainly better for their mental health; however, it's bad for literally everything else (their health and safety, the environments health) which isn't an opinion, it is a fact.
You should educate yourself on why to understand what other redditors are saying.
It has nothing to do with privilege, you are just being stubborn by not accepting that there is a valid and sensical argument to keeping PET cats indoors.
Like, if we all owned pet lions, and we let them roam free and they killed every animal but humans, you'd understand "oh shit lions are bad, they leave carcasses of every animal everywhere, and they get sick because of parasites, and die because of vehicle accidents."
But we are talking about small lions, who kill small animals you can't see, and you barely notice their deaths.
Regarding their mental health, it isn't that difficult nowadays to make sure they have enough enrichment inside that that absolutely shouldn't be a problem, just need to give them enough space to play and climb and everything. Completely agree with the rest though
I agree for the most part, I just equate it to keeping an animal in a zoo. I feel like they must have a natural urge to want to go out and explore the outdoors as they find it fascinating, which is why they sit at the window all day, and occasionally try to call birds haha.
Does that inability to act on their urges outdoors affect their mental health negatively though? I can't say with any certainty which is the whole crux of my being on the fence.
I know it'd kill me if I was trapped and could see but not explore the outdoors, but do cats share even remotely that same level of mental acuity? I can't begin to know.
The entire world except for the US lets their cats out.
And that's why 30-50% of all humans in the world, literally billions of people, are infected with permanent cysts in their brain in the form of toxoplasma.
Both of my human nieces had tried to get into the dishwasher when they were toddlers, so I am very understanding of his desire and don’t hold it against him. I think it’s some kind of animal instinct to duck your head into a weird looking cave.
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u/ceciliabee Apr 14 '26
Please spay and neuter your pets like a responsible pet owner