Not long ago, this handsome, two-year-old kitty was brought to the vet by a good Samaritan. He had been hit by a car and was in extreme pain and unable to walk. Fortunately, thanks to a post on Nextdoor, his owners were able to be identified, and BirchBark was able to assist with providing him the surgical care he needed for his broken bones. This was not the first time this cat had been injured outside. Just last year, his family had brought him to the vet because he had bite wounds from a wild animal he had encountered outside. We are grateful that when we provided help with his broken bones, his family agreed to keep him indoors.

We understand that many people feel they are enhancing their pet cat's quality of life by allowing him or her outside. However, relative to an indoor cat's life, the life of an outdoor cat is nasty, brutish, and short. Outdoor cats are exposed to a host of dangers, including toxins, cars, predatory wildlife, pet dogs, rival cats, parasites, and disease. It is sadly unsurprising that outdoor cats live an average of only 2-5 years, compared to 10-20 years for an indoor cat. Additionally, outdoor cats are one of the primary threats to birds, including threatened and native species. The Audubon Society estimates they kill up to 3.7 billion birds every year.

You can give your pet cat a wonderful life inside the house! Google "How to catify your house" to find tips on how to enrich your indoor cat's quality of life without compromising his safety or the safety of wildlife.

*Note: This post is about pet cats - not outdoor, feral colonies.