My cats have been indoor cats for the past 14 years (this representing at least 2 "generations" of cats adopted as adults). I currently have a screened-in back patio to which my cats have direct access. My cats seem to be neither more nor less neurotic than the "average" cat, so I would say that keeping cats indoors is basically benign. I began keeping cats indoors after 1. reading an article about the impact of feline predation on the wildlife population, and 2. seeing one dead cat in the gutter too many. Additionally, where I now live, I have coyotes. The coyotes killed and ate one of my sheep: a cat would merely be an appetizer.
If possible, I think that the idea of a fenced cat-yard, or, in the case of dogs, a dog park (as an increasing number of towns and cities are beginning to build), is an excellent idea.
>From: Don Westlight
>Reply-To: cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org
>To: cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org
>Subject: [C-L]_Re: Outdoor Cats
>Date: Wed, 29 Aug 2001 11:23:18 -0700 (PDT)
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>Becky,
>
>A year ago we made a search similar to yours and didn't find anything,
>either.
>
>The cat issue is a big one. The fact that dense numbers of domestic cats
>eradicate vast portions of native wildlife is incontrovertable. We have a
>similar problem at Cascadia Commons except that instead of lizards, the
>issue is ground nesting songbirds in our wetlands.
>
>
>
>
>The bottom line is that some of our members (and most of our neighbors) do
>not consider sceintific evidence of cat predation a reason for changing
>the human behavior of keeping indoor/outdoor cats as pets. These
>individuals have grown up in a culture where indoor/outdoor cats are
>synonomous with the good life...
>
>Any meaningful restriction of pet outdoor cats requires the attending
>human to make a behavior change.
>
>We have investigated a number of technologies -- electric collars (which
>cat's apparrently can't wear due to bone structure), bad smelling spices
>and chemicals (very limited effectiveness), automated sensor controlled
>sprinklers (ok for very small plots, but useless for any sort of large
>area, or anywhere with dense plants). We've also tried bells, which are
>admittedly better than nothing, but still not a solution (it takes two
>bells to make any sort of difference)...
>
>The only real option is to physically restrict the cats in some manner,
>either with leashes or with fencing -- neither of which is something our
>community is ready to do.
>
>We have talked about not replacing outdoor cats, but have not passed
>anything in this regard either.
>
>
>For me (and I am not alone) outdoor felines get to a core value:
>
> environmentalism starts at home
>
>My cats remain indoors.
>
>This is an example of an issue where there isn't a huge amount of room for
>compromise. Cats are either restrained or they're not. The argument that
>neighbor cats will still be in the wetlands holds no water with me,
>contributing more is an irresponsible act.
>
>
>
>
>
>That said, I love living in co-housing, and at the end of the day, I am
>able to put this aside and enjoy community life. It is true that issues
>arise from time to time which don't lend themselves to half steps and
>compromises which sometimes characterize concensus decisionmaking on
>difficult subjects. The important thing is to keep talking and not to get
>so polarized as to lose the sense of community we all worked so hard to
>build. In the neighborhood where I used to live, having this discussion
>with my neighbors was unthinkable, so we are in the business of evolving a
>new culture.
>
> Cheers and good luck
> -Don Westlight, Cascadia Commons, Portland OR
>
>
>
>
>
>
> > Date: Wed, 29 Aug 2001 06:11:08 -0700
> > From: Becky Schaller
> >
> > Do other communities have any policies about cats being outdoors. I think I
> > checked this in the archives and read some discussion of problems, but
> > didn't see any real solutions.
>
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