By Steph Selice

The current consensus about American dogs focuses on their healthy lives as largely indoor pets who enjoy the outdoors while leashed or closely supervised by their humans. Some of the now-approved outdoor spaces for them include designated dog parks and public venues in cities and suburbs, and hunting with their humans in designated rural areas.

Whose Cats Are They Anyway?

But arguments about indoor versus outdoor cats rage on. In January 2024, Jonathan Franzen’s New Yorker article “The Cats of L.A.” ignited an Internet firestorm about how America’s outdoor cat populations should be treated. Animal rights and rescue organizations weighed in on trap-neuter-return (TNR) policies, indoor/outdoor cats, pet adoption, population management, wildlife predation, and animal control laws.

Franzen’s article and many media reactions to it raised various issues about outdoor cats that many believe should concern us all.

• What are our responsibilities toward so-called community cats who live outdoors exclusively? How can we manage their health and safety, and their populations?
• Should cats who are indoor pets be allowed outdoors? When and how can we safely share the outdoors with them?
• What do veterinarians, conservationists, birders, and animal control officers have to say about cats going outdoors, or living outside in our communities?

Community Cats and Their Lives Outdoors

Outdoor kitties used to be called strays or alley cats and were once thought to “belong” to no one. Yet American attitudes toward community cats have changed significantly over the last 40 years. Animal rescue groups encourage feeding of cat colonies and promote trap-neuter-return (TNR) policies to control and care for these creatures, beloved by many in their neighborhoods.

But as Franzen and others note, even with the efforts of thousands of dedicated TNR and other volunteers nationwide, unfixed outdoor cats still produce litters of kittens at regular intervals, often more than once a year. And community cats do hunt wildlife (particularly birds and small rodents) efficiently, even when they’re fed by humans.

What should communities do to effectively control their outdoor cat populations while allowing these cats to live full lives? Arguments abound over what life means to a cat without a human’s home. Franzen writes that “A neighborhood overrun with cats is a spectacle of contradictions. . . . At the root . . . are difficult choices that haven’t been made.”

Cat lovers would respond that the incredible gains made in caring for community cats is hard-won progress that should be acknowledged and supported by lawmakers and the public. But many communities will face evolving challenges with them , including how to promote, fund, and perpetuate their care.

Indoor Cats and the Allure of “Outside”

Though cats were once all assumed to be indoor-outdoor creatures, most American felines now live indoors. Veterinarians consider this safer and healthier for them, and their wildlife neighbors. Of course, cats remain carnivores with innate hunting instincts, which can be partially redirected with a little help.

Many articles and books published recently focus on how we can help cats enjoy the indoors and outdoors safely while respecting the lives of wild (and other) creatures. Colleen Grablick wrote an overview in April for The Washington Post about her cat’s experience and her own research on what cats want or need when going outside. She highlights the main issues concisely:

• What do your cats want? Present your kitties with choices about the outdoors, acknowledging their age, experience, and temperament.
• Go slowly, at each cat’s pace and respecting his/her wishes and readiness.
• If you do bring your cats outside, supervise them at all times.

Grablick also addresses how to manage outdoor time with your cat if he or she already goes outside. Humans can help their cats accept a more indoor lifestyle by gradually introducing a leash and harness for walks. They can also use a catio, glassed-in spaces, or other outdoor enclosures to seemingly bring the outdoors inside. In any case, experts only recommend what Grablick calls “supervised hangs” outdoors.

Other animal behaviorists such as Mikel Maria Delgado, Ph.D., recommend playing with your pet to make indoor life healthier and more fulfilling. Delgado’s book Play with Your Cat! includes chapters on why cats play (because they hunt!), how to find what works best for your cat, and which of many techniques could encourage your cat to hunt and play safely in your home.

Because We Love Them . . .

Dogs and cats remain the most popular indoor (and outdoor) animals in America, so what fosters their health and happiness will always concern those of us who love them. And we will, no doubt, continue to argue about what’s best for them all.

Steph Selice volunteered as an adoption counselor at King Street Cats in Alexandria for seven years.

Resources

Mikel Maria Delgado, Ph.D. Play with Your Cat! The Essential Guide to Interactive Play for a Happier, Healthier Feline. New York: TarcherPerigee, 2024.

Jonathan Franzen. “The Control of Nature: The Cats of L.A.” The New Yorker, January 1 & 8, 2024. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/01/01/how-the-no-kill-movement-betrays-its-name

Colleen Grablick. “The Home You Own: How to (responsibly) let your cat outside.” The Washington Post, April 9, 2024. https://www.washingtonpost.com/home/2024/04/09/how-to-let-cat-outside-outdoors/

CDC Information About Pets
“Healthy Pets, Healthy People,” CDC, November 8, 2023
https://www.cdc.gov/healthypets/index.html

“What You Should Know about COVID-19 and Pets,” CDC, January 11, 2023
What You Should Know about COVID-19 and Pets | Healthy Pets, Healthy People | CDC