There might be a difference in the percentages of cats kept indoors,
that's all. My cousin who lives in Virginia Waters (England) keeps her
two cats indoors.  And let's not forget it's illegal to declaw in
Britain, something that's done quite willingly by many vets in the
States if the owner just asks.

..  Steve  ..

It just isn't the same in the USA as it is here.  Yes, there is a huge
cultural difference, like declawing being offered at the same time as
speutering presumably because of an assumption that most cats will stay
inside and furniture is king..
BUT.  They have the most awful predators there.  Cat-eating ones, which,
apart from the renegade fox, we don't have here.
Mountain lions, coyotes, bears are just waiting to snap up your cat.  And
big bad traffic like we have never experienced.
At least I think this is the reason that I've learned from this group why
cats are mainly kept inside in the USA.  Yes?
Or is it really just cultural?  and some of it not necessary, because this
made me think hard.

Tweed

That's the way it is back home in Mexico. And that's how we kept our
beloved Quetzie. We went through half a dozen cats that way, many would
just disappear and would be presumed dead.

Cats are not people.

We have 7 indoor-only cats. Of those 7, Xoxo spent the first 2 years of
his life living outdoors exclusively. Guess which one of our cats shows
absolutely no interest in going outside?
It's not cruel, as long as you provide them with enough toys, cat
trees, etc., to keep them busy. Cats sleep up to 18 hours per day!

Indoor-only cats live longer, healthier lives.

Might be. But I'm not american and after our Quetzie died in surgery
after being run over by a car I swore I'd never again allow one of my
pets to be hit by a car. It's a 100% preventable accident, and I choose
to prevent it. I will never go through that much pain if I can help it.

Cheers.

Victor

I live in the US, close to DC, and I keep my cats indoors because:

- There are lots of animals out there that may cause physical harm.
Foxes, feral dogs and cats, skunks, etc.  Rabies is relatively common
all throughout the mid-Atlantic region.  Lyme disease is also very
common in my area.

- There's a lot of native wildlife that I don't think should be
pillaged by my non-native cats, including birds and insects.

-  I see it as my responsibility to keep my pets off of other peoples'
property.  My choice to keep pet cats should not affect my neighbors -
no pooping in their gardens, no digging up their potted plants, no
antagonizing their pets, etc.

- On a related note, there are people who do not take kindly to having
their yards and gardens disturbed by loose animals, and they can and
will call animal control, or deliberately poison wandering pets.

- There is a ton of traffic everywhere in the DC area.  Even if traffic
was slow, it only takes one car to flatten your cat.  In fact, one of
my aunts lives in farm country where traffic is light, and she's had
two cats killed by passing cars in the last five years.

When I decided to adopt cats, I took responsibility for their welfare
and their behavior.  I provide an interesting, continuously-changing
indoor environment for them (luckily, that often means moving cat trees
around.  As far as they're concerned, if it's in a different room, it's
a brand new toy :).  I make sure they get a healthy diet and plenty of
exercise, and I'm still debating building them an outdoor enclosure.

Outdoor enclosures really seem to be the best solution.  They allow the
cats access to the outdoors, which many seem to enjoy, while protecting
them from most of the dangers.

I don't think it's really cultural; it's just practical.  Unless
feeling responsible for your cats health and for not bothering your
neighbors is a cultural thing  :)

Also, keeping cats indoors really doesn't seem cruel at all. Seriously
- I know many many indoor cats, and the only ones that seem "unhappy"
(anthropormorphizing, I know) are the ones that seem bored, but indoors
does not have to equal bored.

It really is most common (and recommended) in the US to keep cats
indoors, or at least in outdoor enclosures.

--
Jennifer

It may be partly cultural, but I think it is also at least partly
environmental.  There are numerous natural predators in the U.S. (predators
that prey on cats, that is) that apparently are not a problem in England.
We sometimes have problems with acts of deliberate cruelty plus instances of
accidents (such as, ingestion of antifreeze).  I can't really address that
last point in a comparative sense with any real accuracy.  In addition,
there is a problem that surely occurs in *both* Britain and the U.S. -- that
is, automobiles.  It only takes one car at the wrong time to kill or badly
injure a cat.

All of my cats have been very happy as indoor cats, even the one that
started life as a feral cat.  He showed a great interest in going outdoors
for about the first year but not afterwards.  None of my others have even
shown an interest in going outdoors, although I realize that this is not
true for many cats.  I do provide lots of attention, toys, scratching posts,
and cat trees.  I personally think that they are happier -- and certainly
more healthy -- than many outdoor cats that have been injured in cat fights
or other ways.  I do realize that I may be rationalizing and there is room
for a true difference of opinion, but I also believe that each situation
(indoor vs. outdoor) has some advantages and some disadvantages.

MaryL

My cats --
Duffy: http://tinyurl.com/cslwf
Holly: http://tinyurl.com/9t68o
Duffy and Holly together: http://tinyurl.com/8b47e

I agree with you whole-heartedly. Love of confinement is not something
that comes naturally to any animal.

I do not own a cat, but have a "relationship" of sorts with "stray" one
that visits me almost daily. I give her some food and you might think
that's why she comes, and so would have I if it were not for the fact
that she visited me (actually my 3rd floor porch, I was a just a side
attraction) for 2-3 months before I started feeding her.

Some well-meaning friends have suggested I "adopt" her. Even if I was
tempted for a moment, I have been stopped by remembering the life two
of my friends' cats have, and then watching this one jump the fences,
sniff the entire yards, chase after a real or imaginary mouse, climb up
three floors to sun-bathe, scan three backyards from there and rush
down if she saw something interesting, and many such activities. She
comes inside, wants to be petted, sits on different rugs for 10-15
minutes each, even watches TV now and then, but always wants to return
to outdoors after 1-2 hours.

If you live in an area with lots of wild animals, or in an extremely
urban environment, confinement may make sense. However, in most cases
cats deserve more freedom than we give them. I am happy to hear about
their life in UK.

My friend, Bubba,

http://www.sonic.net/~claudel/bubba/bubba.html

absolutely refuses to go outside. If I leave the
door open he will go to it and look out, but
won't step thru unless I'm right there and coax
him to do so. I think that the last time he was
outside he has at least one bad experience resulting
in him winding up in the pound, where he found me.

The other day I left the door open and one of
the neighbor's tiny kittens came inside. When
Bubba saw it he went over to check it out and
it arched and hissed at him. Bubba ran off and
hid behind the couch for awhile. All 20Lbs of
him afraid of a little black kitten 1/10 his size...

He's not at all skittish with people though. He's
very outgoing and friendly. I think he believes
that he's a human or something.

Claude

America is obsessed with safety. For example, everything
has to be  'safe for the children'. Political correctness
is another national obsession. Of course, the fact
is that we are a  violent, inhumane society.

My 3 cats are indoor only cats and here's why;
My 1st cat (when I was 4), run over by car
2nd cat (I was 16) died of Feline Leukemia
3rd & 4th cats run over by car (I was in college).
And the 4th cat was only allowed outside while someone was watching it....
So my mother got to watch the cat get run over by a car.
Its deplorable how long it took for me to learn this lesson.

About cats wanting to go outside; a heroin addict wants to shoot up too.
I don't think either is good for their health.
And all indoor cats aren't declawed.
And all vets don't agree with declawing cats and some of us out right refuse
to do it completely.

These are just some of my many un-humble opinions.

Oh yea, indoor only cats can live 20+ years (mine are now 14, 14 & 16).
Average life expectance for an outdoor cat (at least in these parts) is 8
years.

(I'll try not to fall off this very tall soap box).

I live in a rural area in Western Washington, and my experience has
made me wary.  I see freshly killed animals on the road every day,
including a few cats.

My cat, Tweaker, came to be my pet because I found him on the road
after being hit by a car.  He had been an outdoor barn cat.  Once he
recuperated, it was very clear he had no desire to go anywhere.  So, I
keep him inside.  Once in awhile I let him outside for a little while,
but only if I am standing right there.

I was taking care of an elderly (14-yo) dog for a friend who got
flooded out of her home.  Early this spring, he wandered onto the road
in front of my house while I was inside looking for my car keys, and
someone ran him down and splattered him down 150 feet of pavement.  It
was easy to see what had happened.  The driver crossed the center line
to hit the dog.

I have a lot of equipment and junked cars here, most belonging to a
tenant who is a mechanic and uses them for his projects.  We stay on
top of anything important, but that's about it.  My next-door neighbor
here is a yard & garden enthusiast, and he hates me, although we have
never met or spoken.  He is also the macho type, and had a sign in his
driveway warning that he will shoot intruders, but I think maybe the
cops made him take it down.  He complained to the county, but it
backfired because we aren't doing anything wrong.  I'm pretty sure he
ran the dog down.  I hear gunshots in his backyard now and then, and I
imagine he might kill any cat or dog that set foot on his property,
especially if he thought it belonged to me.

So that is the cultural milieu in which I am operating.

Charlie

 Cats are domesticated.  Most do not mind being kept indoors.  Between
my own cats and my family's, I've known 11 cats and all were indoors and
all were happy.
 I truly feel it's cruel, at least where I live, to let my cats out.  
We live so close to the "wilderness" that at nights I hear the coyotes
howling, so there are definitely predators.  We're right next to a busy
highway, and I couldn't bear knowing I let my cat out just to get run
over on the road.  There's a lot of crazy people in the world who think
it's fun to torture animals.  Add disease on top of that and there's
four extremely powerful reasons to NOT let your cat outside.

Stacia

troll

mlabofski yahoo.co.uk wrote:

             

Its a cultural thing.  Most (>60%) cat owners in the U.S. feel that its
cruel to expose cats to the stress and dangers outside of a safe home.  An
outdoor cat lives a more stressful life than an indoor cat.

If you know a little about cats, and if you're sensitive to your cat's
needs, you can provide your cat with a rich, happy, healthy, and safe life
indoors.

Phil