Indoor VS Outdoor Cats

For over a year, there has been a cat roaming around outside of my house. At first, we thought he was a stray. After a few weeks of watching him, we were convinced there was no way a human loved this cat. He was starved for attention more than food and he was trying to get into our house every time someone would go inside or outside.

I contacted the local rescue because they have a TNR program. They were happy to come and scoop up the boy and bring him to get fixed. When they did, his owner showed up and made a scene. Her cat wasn't fixed, but was outside when that's not legal in our bylaw. Somehow, after they discovered this cat wasn't being cared for, the cat was returned to its' owner. It was back outside the same day. Even though his ear had been tipped because he was done as part of the program. His nose, raw from rubbing on the cage, wasn't healed either. It was still bloody. She let him back outside. 

As the weather got colder, we started letting him hide out in the garage at night. We couldn't let him into the house because of our cats. But it felt like we could be doing something for him. It wasn't food he was coming around for. His owner would call him "food motivated". He is not food motivated. He is motivated by affection and attention.

The reason he started coming around our house was that I had been caring for a real stray. A pregnant mother. I gave her a safe place to give birth before turning her over. She was comfortable. She was happy. She was feral and eventually went back to stray life. That wasn't for a lack of attempt to domesticate though. I definitely tried. I went outside and read to her every day. 

The outside cat that isn't a stray was witness to how often we were caring for that other cat. I assume they spoke in cat language and she told him that we were nice enough. So he made it a habit to come around every day at the same time we were going out to spend time with the other one. 

At this point, I was convinced this way a stray still. I didn't find out he had a human until July of 2025. That was after knowing him for at least 6 months. I have pictures on my phone that date back to January 2025. I should also mention; I have a folder of pictures on my computer of this cat. We called him Boots because he was gray and white and the white only went up to his ankles, like boots. 

This may be controversial, but I think if you love your cat, you shouldn't let it outside. There are too many variables in the outside world. I understand the people who think cats need their natural environment. To those people I say: BRING THE OUTDOORS INSIDE. Install a tree in your house. Provide cat grass in every room. Have a fountain they can drink from and play in. Cats are very simple. You can safely recreate their natural environment and they will adjust. They are also the only animal to ever domesticate themselves. That doesn't mean they know what is in their best interest.

How many of us know we shouldn't be doing the thing we're doing?

It's no different for cats. Cats will run outside because their instinct tells them to. Their instinct tells them they are the apex predator and nothing will get them outside. Their instinct knows nothing about cars or any of the other modern advances in society. They aren't equipped to deal with the traffic and the city lights. If you live on a farm, then by all means, let your cat roam freely. If you live inside the city; keep your cat indoors.