News release

Keeping Your Cats Indoors

Natural Resources (to July 2018)

The Department of Natural Resources recommends keeping your family cat indoors, year-round.

The department has received a number of calls this year about missing cats. Due to this winter’s difficult conditions various wildlife, such as coyotes, foxes and bobcats, are taking advantage of a different food supply. This often results in the disappearance of household cats.

In addition to attacks from wildlife, cats that roam freely outdoors face many other dangers including being struck by vehicles; attacks from other cats and dogs; inhumane acts; disease; parasites; and encounters with poisons and traps.

An indoor cat can survive for 17 or more years, while an outdoor cat’s life expectancy decreases to between two and five years.

Free-roaming cats also pose a danger to other wildlife, particularly birds and other small mammals. Keeping household pets inside not only protects the pet, but also helps to protect Nova Scotia’s wildlife.

There are a number of options for cat owners who are used to letting their cats outdoors. Those options include setting up a safe enclosure outside for your cat to roam around in, providing a window space in your home so your cat can see outside, and using litter boxes--taking care to clean them regularly.

For more information on how to protect your indoor cat, visit the following Web site at www.abcbirds.org/cats/catsindoors .