Keeping cats indoors protects wildlife but requires deliberate enrichment to meet their behavioral needs.
Indoor confinement protects cats from cars, predators, disease, and extreme weather, but eliminates behavioral opportunities that are central to feline welfare. Cats who cannot hunt, patrol territory, scratch on appropriate surfaces, or climb develop behavioral problems reflecting frustration and boredom. Obesity is epidemic in indoor cats fed ad libitum without activity requirements. Simple enrichment including puzzle feeders, window perches, cat trees, interactive play, and rotating novel objects significantly improves indoor cat welfare. Social enrichment — including appropriate cat companionship — can double the behavioral richness of a single cat household.