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Keep
Your Cat Safe at Home: HSUS's Safe Cats
Campaign
Cats are America's most popular pets,
but they are also the pets most likely to die
prematurely from diseases, poisons, attacks by other
animals, abuse by humans, or speeding vehicles. The
reason is simple: Owners often don't realize that
allowing their cat to roam outdoors can be a one-way
ticket to trouble.
Millions of cats suffer and die because their owners
give them free reign to roam the neighborhood. The vast
majority of these owners aren't cruel or thoughtless;
many love their animals as much as the rest of us. They
just believe that cats are happiest outdoors. In fact,
many cat caregivers acquired their felines by "taking
in" or caring for someone's cat who was allowed to
stray.
A Dangerous Tradeoff
When cats are left outside unsupervised, their
freedom to roam comes at a cost because they have a
vastly increased chance of being injured, becoming ill,
or even dying. The estimated average life span of a
free-roaming cat is less than three years—compared to
15–18 years for the average indoor-only cat. Even the
cat who only occasionally ventures outdoors unsupervised
can fall victim to automobiles, predators, disease, and
other hazards. In fact, two out of three veterinarians
recommend keeping cats indoors, most often citing
dangers from vehicles and disease.*
Even cats in "safe" suburban neighborhoods can meet
untimely fates and never return home. Fewer than 5% of
"found" cats taken in by animal shelters are reunited
with their families. That's why many shelters now
require potential adopters to commit to keeping their
cats safely confined and strongly recommend that cats
wear collars and ID tags, and even be implanted with an
identifying microchip. Some communities are adopting
ordinances aimed at encouraging owners to confine their
cats—just as they do their dogs.
Home Is the Best
Habitat
So what is best for your cat? The HSUS's Safe Cats
campaign was created to help you keep your cat safe and
happy by making the great indoors both interesting and
comfortable. The campaign can teach you how to "bring
the outdoors in" and enrich the life of your cat. There
are lots of things that you and your cat can do together
for fun—and you will have longer to enjoy one another if
you keep your cat safely confined in his natural
habitat: the home you share.
*HSUS veterinarian study
conducted in June 2001 by Jacobs, Jenner & Kent.
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