The best way to keep track of your cat is to not let it outside. Benefits:
1. Zero cost for cat tracking devices, never need to charge them, never need to worry about the cat losing the device.
2. Dramatically reduced chance of your cat being killed by a car. Despite blogs claiming otherwise, I can find no reputable statistics on the number of pets killed by cars in the US, but there are >250k collisions with animals every year. Most are deer, but anecdotally I know many many people who have killed cats accidentally.
3. Dramatically reduced chance of your cat being killed by a coyote or raccoon. Yes, coyotes and raccoons will absolutely fuck up your cat. Yes, they are very likely in your city.
4. Your cat will not be playing a part in the wholesale slaughter of billions of birds, small mammals, reptiles, and other fauna that domesticated cats are responsible for.
5. Significantly longer predicted lifespan for your cat. The life expectancy for an indoor cat is about 14 years. For an outdoor cat, it's 2 to 5 years.
6. Your neighbors will appreciate not stumbling onto your cat's poop while gardening.
Oslo seems to be well within lynx territory, whom I am sure would be glad to snack on a housecat. Norway also has wolverines and in a few areas, wolves and bears.
Why'd you get a cat if you can't give it a proper life? I find it hard to believe that all areas/countries are equal here. Cats shouldn't be imprisoned if at all possible.
Every time this comes up, anywhere on the internet, this comment more or less appears. Cats belong outdoors, they're animals. You ever see how miserable a cat is indoors once its been outside? It's torture. So what if they have a shorter lifespan or get killed by a coyote - that's the cost of letting an animal outdoors vs confining it to a box. People who have cats in small city apartments are especially cruel.
Plenty of cats are perfectly happy to remain indoors. I have a cat who was rescued from the streets as a kitten. She actively refuses to go outside unless she is accompanied by a person, and even then, not for very long.
But even if you do want to let your cats live outdoor lives, that's no reason to just let them loose on the environment.
> cats in small city apartments are especially cruel.
nah, you're just an uncreative person. you can be involved in your pets stimulation. seeing that you think having a pet inside is just confining, i feel pretty correct assuming you see pets as just an animal you hang out with and feed and not a responsibility to nourish. instead, have the outdoors do your work for you! and if they die, so be it. shows a lot of love and care :)
There’s the academic source, and for my anecdotal one my family’s yard in Connecticut is much quieter on a June afternoon today than it was 20 years ago.
There are responsible ways to keep indoor cats entertained. If someone can’t do that, then it seems to me they’re just as unsuited to having a pet as if they couldn’t keep it fed.
Even if you have a good point people are going to be less likely to listen to you if you start calling them lazy. This comment would be better without the last sentence
fair. projection on my part. i interpret seeing people say indoor cats lives are miserable (and using that idea uncritically to affirm their own choices) are doing so from a holier-than-thou position. to me, it's an uncreative and lazy view on pet ownership, but i getcha: flies, honey, and vinegar and all that.
Mine adores her leash walks. Cats are naturally skittish animals, being both prey and predator. So if they trust you as a source of protection the comfort of walking without worries is a benefit that outweighs the restriction of the harness. Plus it's high quality bonding time.
1. Zero cost for cat tracking devices, never need to charge them, never need to worry about the cat losing the device.
2. Dramatically reduced chance of your cat being killed by a car. Despite blogs claiming otherwise, I can find no reputable statistics on the number of pets killed by cars in the US, but there are >250k collisions with animals every year. Most are deer, but anecdotally I know many many people who have killed cats accidentally.
3. Dramatically reduced chance of your cat being killed by a coyote or raccoon. Yes, coyotes and raccoons will absolutely fuck up your cat. Yes, they are very likely in your city.
4. Your cat will not be playing a part in the wholesale slaughter of billions of birds, small mammals, reptiles, and other fauna that domesticated cats are responsible for.
5. Significantly longer predicted lifespan for your cat. The life expectancy for an indoor cat is about 14 years. For an outdoor cat, it's 2 to 5 years.
6. Your neighbors will appreciate not stumbling onto your cat's poop while gardening.
Seriously, keep your cat indoors.