Millions of cats have outdoor access but face significant risks from road traffic, requiring evidence-based approaches to balancing welfare needs against safety risks.
The outdoor access debate for cats involves genuine welfare trade-offs: outdoor access enriches behavioural expression, provides exercise, and satisfies territorial and predatory drives. Road risk is real and location-dependent. A cat in a rural area with low traffic has very different risk-benefit balance from a cat beside a dual carriageway. Individual risk assessment based on traffic density, cat behaviour, and neighbourhood conditions is more welfare-appropriate than blanket indoor or outdoor policies.