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Optimizing an Indoor Lifestyle for Cats
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People benefit from living with pets. As companions, they provide stress relief, stability of routine, and improved health. Yet how to best care for our cats remains controversial, and there are cultural and regional differences in what people believe is the best way to house cats.
Margie Scherk
DVM, Dip. ABVP (feline practice) - catsINK, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Dr. Scherk graduated from the Ontario Veterinary College in 1982 and opened the “Cats Only Veterinary Clinic” in Vancouver in 1986, practicing there until 2008. She has written numerous book chapters and has published several clinical trials on feline topics; she is also an active international speaker and enjoys teaching online. Dr. Scherk has served extensively within the American Association of Feline Practitioners as well as other veterinary organizations, and is co-editor of the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery. Her interests include all things feline, but in particular analgesia, the digestive system, renal disease, nutrition and enabling more positive interactions with cats.
![Margie Scherk](/sites/default/files/images/media/image/114.jpg)
Key Points
- Cats restricted to indoor living have a reduced risk for vehicular trauma, predation, aggressive interactions with cats and other animals, and exposure to infectious diseases.
- Indoor living is not without risks.
- Not all cats can adapt readily to an indoor lifestyle, and may be at increased risk for certain behavioral and medical problems.
- All environmental and social needs must be met for successful indoor living, and the well-being of each cat needs to be evaluated repeatedly over time.
- Predictability, familiarity, routine and having a sense of control are key factors in reducing stress.
- Offering outdoor access does not compensate if the cat has poor conditions indoors.
Introduction
As long ago as 1997, between 50-60% of cats were housed strictly indoors ( 1 ) in the United States ( 2 ), whereas in the United Kingdom the majority of cats were allowed outside ( 3 ), whilst a study from Melbourne, Australia reported that 23% of cats were “mainly indoors” ( 4 ). Why are there such “cultural” differences? The decision to keep a cat indoors may be practical: living on the 21st floor of an apartment building in a busy city prevents ready access to the outside. In other situations, it is true that keeping a cat indoors reduces the risks from wandering, poisoning, automobile accidents, contagious disease or fights with other animals ( 5 ) ( 6 ), and owners may also believe that it removes the risk of internal and external parasites (e.g., heartworm, fleas). Other reasons to keep cats indoors include avoidance of unwanted pregnancy (assuming the pet is not spayed) and to protect wildlife.
What are the effects of indoor living on cats?
Are there any downsides to keeping cats strictly indoors? There is a reality-perception mismatch if owners think that their indoor cat’s life is free from perils, as the indoor cat experiences different hazards. These include falls from balconies and windows, kitchen scalds or burns, and access to toxic cleaning products, unsuitable food (e.g., onion, garlic) and plants ( 3 ) (Table 1). Studies comparing mortality of cats housed indoors with those allowed outside are not available in the North American veterinary literature ( 7 ). However, cats have not been selectively bred to be indoors 24 hours a day, and many do not adjust to living in close contact with people ( 4 ). For this adaptation to be successful, a cat must have had complete and successful socialization to people prior to eight weeks of age ( 4 ). Additionally, because fearful traits can be inherited, some cats will be unsuited to close human contact ( 4 ). Similar concerns exist when trying to integrate cats from different sources: this requires early socialization and cats have different personalities (e.g., sociable, timid and unfriendly, active and aggressive) that may be incompatible ( 8 ).
A monotonous and overly predictable environment is stressful ( 9 ). Cats may not be able to perform behaviors that express their natural telos – their cat-like nature. The resulting psychological and physiological stress may develop into either problem behaviors (natural behaviors that are unwelcome, e.g., spraying or scratching), behavior problems (e.g., obsessive grooming), or physical illness. Signs of stress and anxiety may be overt (e.g., changes in appetite, grooming, increased vocalization, hiding, vigilance, aggression, spraying or compulsive behaviors (Figure 1)), or subtle (e.g., decreased activity, play, exploratory behavior/inquisitiveness, facial marking, affiliative interactions with people and other animals) ( 10 ).
Certain physical illnesses are more prevalent in indoor cats (Table 1) although it can be argued that indoor cats may be more closely observed, so that behavior changes are more readily noticed, or they receive more frequent veterinary care, so that diseases are identified more readily than in free-roaming cats, but this is only conjecture. One source states that “the disparity between physical and psychological stressors is an illusion. Host defense mechanisms respond in adaptive and meaningful ways to both” ( 11 ). [...]
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