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Cats are by nature quite independent, curious and lovers of new adventures. Many people think that cats need open environments and freedom to be happy and maintain their wild instincts, but there are many cat owners who are uncomfortable or afraid to let them out.
Letting a cat out can be beneficial to your physical and emotional health, but at the same time, it's important to do it with caution and be aware of possible complications this may entail.
If you're wondering if it's bad not to let your cat out into the street, the answer is in balance. Keep reading this PeritoAnimal article where we will teach you how to get to that point where your cat is happy and you can be calm.
Benefits of letting your cat out into the street
For domestic cats, making an escape once a day, offering them positive natural stimuli, so much so that it can seem like a real amusement park. Furthermore, help them to be in a good mood: trees to climb, branches to play with, mice and insects to chase, and sunlight to feel the heat and have a refreshing nap after your adventure.
Cats that can go outside can have the freedom to take care of their needs elsewhere with a more natural look and feel, thus reducing or eliminating their owners' need to clean the litter box and buy sand so often.
It is said that domestic cats do not have the extreme need to go outside and that a house cat does not have to become a lazy and obese pet like the "Garfield" cat, even more so if you take care of it and provide it with a good and interesting life inside the warmth of home.
However, we cannot deny that cats like to go out and walk free like the wind without answering anyone. They can benefit from this physical activity and distraction they want. If you are in favor of cats being the owners of their own freedom, that they can come and go as they please, and want to give this benefit to your feline, it is important that you first take certain precautions that will then protect you when you find yourself alone in the "wild World":
- Be sure to take your feline to the vet to review its health status and cat vaccination schedule.
- If you are going to let it out, it is very important that you sterilize or neuter your feline. Cats that roam freely outside and have not received this attention contribute to the unwanted pet creation, of which the vast majority, end up wandering the streets abandoned.
- Put your cat in a harness or collar with an identification tag that has your contact details.
- If you cut your cat's nails completely (something many owners do but which is unhealthy for the feline) you shouldn't let him out of the house, as he won't have the capacity to defend himself against other animals.
- put you a microchip. Many cats go out in search of adventures but get lost in the attempt and then cannot find their way home. The microchip will allow you to find and identify him.
Disadvantages of letting your cat out
All decisions you make regarding your pet will have an important effect on your life, whether in the short or long term. let him out whenever he wants you can directly influence your life expectancy..
Cats that live abroad have a shorter life expectancy than cats that live comfortably in the safety of their home because they run the risk of contracting diseases and suffering accidents such as fights with other animals, theft, being run over and can even be poisoned by people who are not very fond of cats.
Many cats that live on the street can carry diseases that can later transmit to your pet. Some can be serious or even deadly, not to mention those that can be contracted from rotten foods and agents in the outside environment. Among them we can mention:
- feline AIDS
- feline leukemia
- feline distemper
- Feline infectious peritonitis
- Fleas and ticks
- intestinal roundworms
- fungal infections