Rockfish Wildlife Sanctuary has admitted nearly 200 patients since 2020 due to cat attacks. Any cat-caught animal
must be seen by a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. Even if you don't see any obvious physical damage, cat teeth and claws can often cause teeny tears that trap dangerous bacteria beneath the wild animal's skin. This can lead to a systemic infection and death very quickly.
Why do cats belong indoors? Outdoor and feral cats are an invasive species. Domestic cats were introduced to North America and have not evolved here in tandem with our native ecosystems. Like House Sparrows, European Starlings, Nutria, feral swine, and red-eared sliders, outdoor cats wreak environmental damage. A
study published in Nature Communications found that "free-ranging domestic cats kill 1.3–4.0 billion birds and 6.3–22.3 billion mammals annually. Un-owned cats, as opposed to owned pets, cause the majority (~69%) of this mortality. Our findings suggest that free-ranging cats cause substantially greater wildlife mortality than previously thought and are likely the single greatest source of anthropogenic mortality for US birds and mammals.” While feral cats cause the majority of the damage, owned outdoor cats still kill between 2-7 billion wild animals
every year.
Outdoor cats are also the definitive host for Toxoplasma gondii, a protozoan parasite that can make any warm-blooded mammal sick - including humans. When free-roaming cats defecate in the environment, they shed oocytes (eggs) that are
environmentally robust. That means the oocytes are tough, and few disinfection methods deactivate them other than heat (boiling water or blow torch). Exposure to
T. gondii can cause toxoplasmosis disease, which can be dangerous for immunocompromised individuals and pregnant individuals. Toxoplasmosis can infect the unborn fetus via the placenta, causing miscarriage, fetal death, or severe congenital defects.
Now don't get us wrong - we love cats! It's because we love our furry feline friends that we believe they should be kept indoors. Indoor cats
live longer, healthier lives than outdoor cats. Free-roaming outdoor cats are more likely to be exposed to parasites like roundworms, fleas, and ticks and diseases like feline leukemia. They are more likely to come into contact with poisonous substances, whether by stumbling upon poison themselves or by hunting rodents that have ingested rodenticides.
If you'd like to give your cat outdoor access, consider constructing an enclosed "catio" or walking your cat on a leash, picking up its feces like you would with a dog. Catios don't need to be fancy, though there are plenty of awesome, complex catios out there for design inspiration! You can also purchase a catio enclosure, often for under $200. We think that's a price worth paying, for your beloved kitty's safety and for the safety of native critters.