I would love my babes to get outside, but I live in a 3rd floor flat with no garden, in the city centre, so it just isn't safe. We are planning on selling up and moving out of town to someplace bigger, with a garden, so they can get outside.
Riley came to us from a rescue, and we got him partly because we fell in love with him, but also because it stated on his care plan / adoption contract that he is to be an indoor cat. THis was due to a behavioural assessment and ongoing observation by his foster mum - he is a nervous, timid cat inclined to panic when outside, and rush blindly into traffic (he did this several times before he was caught, and was lucky not to be killed
).
However, we took him on holiday to S.Uist last summer, and the cottage we stayed in had a cat-proof garden, which we allowed him to have supervised access to, and he did seem to enjoy it, tho he was very cautious and unsure. He did still show a tendancy towards fearfulness, nerves and panicky behaviour, but the smaller, partially enclosed space seemed to reassure him and he gradually became a little more confident
Based on this we have decided to try to get a place with a garden so that he can have safe outoor access (either in a run, or a cat-proofed garden). My first cat was an outdoor cat, but I lived in the country then, 10 miles from any major road, surrounded by woodland and fields. Back then, it seemed unthinkable to have an indoor cat, but I would not alllow a cat unrestricted outdoor access unless I was in a similar living situation again (which I intend to be, one day!
), as it just isn't safe. A friend of mine had 3 cats, all outdoor kitties, who lived in the countryside for about 5 years. She then moved into a quiet residential area on the edge of a small town. Within a year all three cats had died - two were killed in the road, and one was shot with a pellet gun.
I think that you have to decide based on your personal situation, where you live, and the personality of the cat. They are, after all, as varied and individual as we are. Riley, for some reason, is not very suited to being an outdoor cat - yet he is a fit, active, happy boy as an indoor cat. My first boy would never have coped as an indoor cat - he LOVED the outside, so it would have been cruel to deprive him, especialy as there was no particular reason to - he was (relatively) safe to wander as far as he liked.
I would love to build my guys a run, and hope to do so when we move - I think sunshine and fresh air works wonders for anyone - cat and human alike! However, I do take the time and effort to have shelves, hidey-holes, toys, puzzles, games, cat trees, etc for both my babes so that they have as stimulating a life indoors as possible. We even move the furniture around each week, so that the layout is always changing, and the hidey-holes, launchpads, lookouts etc are varied. This seems to stimulate a lot of activity - playing and investigating etc. We also get interesting smells - catnip, pinecones, catgrass, hamster bedding (from a friend) that we hide around the place for them to investigate. It's more work having an indoor cat, in terms of keeping them stimulated, but it's possible, and they needn't necessarily be deprived or unhappy.
