Balancing the welfare benefits of outdoor access for cats with risks from traffic, predators, and disease requires thoughtful management approaches.
The welfare debate around outdoor cat access involves real trade-offs. Outdoor cats express more natural behaviours and have lower rates of obesity-related conditions. But traffic mortality, cat bite abscesses, FIV transmission, and parasite exposure cause significant individual welfare harm. Indoor-only cats can suffer from boredom and obesity if insufficiently stimulated. The welfare-optimised approach provides outdoor access with risk management through catios, traffic-safe enclosures, or supervised access, rather than a binary indoor-outdoor choice.