Speaker 1: This is pet Life Radio. Let's talk pets.
Speaker 2: Hello Bee Line friends, Welcome to Gratitude. I'm your show host,
Michelle burn. So one of the topics that's near and
dear to me is keeping your cats indoors. I know
that there's you know, schools of thoughts. Some people think
their cats are fine outdoors. Some people think no. Some
people think because they live in you know, a little
bit of a rural setting, you know, the country, it's fine.
But it's really not. And we're going to talk to
a special guest today that's going to share why.
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Speaker 4: Let's talk pets on petlifradio dot com.
Speaker 2: Welcome back everyone. I'd like to welcome Sarah McFarlane. She
is a spokesperson for PETA and we're talking today about
why all cats she'd be indoors. Welcome Sarah. Can you
give some background on yourself and I don't know who
might not know about this, but a little bit about PETA.
Speaker 5: Absolutely, good morning. Yes, so, Pina. We are the world's
largest animal rights organization with over ten million members and
supporters globally, and our goal is to end exploitation and
killing of animals for any animal, for any reason.
Speaker 2: Okay, thank you so much. So we're talking today about
why all cats should be indoor cats? And there's two
schools that thought. You know, some people think that cats
should you know, be out in the wild, and which
means out in our cities and urban areas. It's not
that wild. And some people are strictly, you know, indoor.
I'm of the latter. But why should cats be kept inside?
Speaker 5: Well? Are cats? They depend on us to keep them safe,
and every moment a cat is allowed to roam outside unattended,
they face potentially deadly risks. So speeding cars, and diseases
and parasites, and sadly even attacks from cruel people and
letting cats outside when they're unattended. This is like playing
Russian roulette with their lives. And that's why the safest
place for cats is always indoors.
Speaker 2: I absolutely agree. There's also a stat that says that
cats left outdoors. I don't know if this is feral
community or just you know, cats that are left outdoors
on a regular basis don't even make it to their
fifth birthday.
Speaker 5: Yeah, the average lifespan for cats, and this is feral
or not, the average lifespan for a cat who's allowed
to go outdoors is three to five years. And when
our cats are kept inside and given the proper care,
they can live twenty plus years. I had a cat
who lived in twenty years who's inside. We never let
her out, So letting them outside, I mean that is
a significant drop in their life expectancy. And like you said,
feral or a cat with a family.
Speaker 2: So what are the types of things that p TOC's
regarding cats left to roam outside besides the obvious, you know,
like they can get hit by a car or picking
up diseases or attacked by animals. I mean, I live
in Fort Lauderdale and there are so many raccoons around
here in possums. You would not think right Fort Lauderdale,
you know, big city, but they're there right exactly.
Speaker 5: Yeah, that's the thing. There are so many threats to
cats outside, like you said, other wildlife illnesses, injury, but frighteningly,
every single day, Peta hears horrendous reports of people attacking cats.
And we see stories all the time of people setting
cats on fire, beating them to death, stabbing them, poisoning them,
even shooting them with guns or bows and arrows. And
we see this horrific abuse all across the country in
all settings. And what's so heartbreaking is that preventing these deaths,
it's as simple as just keeping our cats inside where
it's safe and where they belong. We can prevent this.
Speaker 2: Thank you, you know were I'm catitude. You know a
lot of people have cats, some don't, Some are thinking
about adopting cats. What about for those that don't have cats,
Why should they care about this issue?
Speaker 5: Well, no kind person wants to see a cat suffer.
You know, cats who are allowed to roam outside as well,
they decimate local populations of birds and other wildlife. So
it's in all animals' best interests for cats to be
kept inside. And some of the people actually who care
most about cats being lapped outdoors are those who don't
even have them, but they don't want cats roaming in
their yards or killing birds at their feeders. So this
is an issue that does affect us.
Speaker 1: All.
Speaker 2: Okay, thank you. So you know, some people are, yeah,
I'm going to keep my cat indoors, are like, well
this and not. And then I've talked to some that's say, well,
you know, cats are they're domesticated, but they're used to hunting.
They like to be outside. I just don't see why
I should restrict my cat from being, you know, outdoors.
My cat, you know, in their mind, doesn't go in
the street.
Speaker 5: They're safe. You know, it's okay.
Speaker 2: What do you say to those people that are just
really think their cats need to be outdoors?
Speaker 5: Right? Well, you know, that is an important question, and
it's important for us to remember our cats. They're not
tigers or bobcats or cougars. Over thousands of years, cats
have been domesticated. They've been manipulated to be dependent on
humans for their care, so they're not anywhere near as
self sustaining as cat and your big cats in the
wild like tigers and lions, and these definitely our cats.
So we're talking about these are like dependents. They're completely
dependent on us, and we have to make the best
decision for their safety. And like we said earlier, considering
when calves are leapt outside or allowed to go outside,
their lifespan is only three to five years. Letting them
outside is not what's best for them. We've got to
keep them indoors.
Speaker 2: That's what I think too. I mean unfortunate up where
it's warm all year long, but my cats are indoors.
I have a cadio, which means it's my patio, but
it's theirs, so they rule. It has more cat furniture
than people furniture, and I think at least three water
fountains in a couple of fountains.
Speaker 5: I love that. We love cadios of peto. We think
they're great. That's like the perfect environment for an indoor cat.
We love it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and it's funny. I could see my cats, you know,
watching the iguanas big guana is large ones well, talking
to the dog next door. The neighbor dog when the
dog comes out to do their business.
Speaker 5: Oh yeah.
Speaker 2: I also don't think people realize sometimes the elements when
their cats are outdoors. I mean, I'm in a warm climate,
but it gets hot here, and I don't think cats
do especially well in constant heat, especially when they're you know,
domesticated and used to you know, the cush life being
inside and air condition and everything, and what about cold.
Don't the elements have an effect as well?
Speaker 5: Oh gosh. Absolutely. There's definitely a misconception that because animals
or cats have fur, that they have fur colts on
or something that is absolutely not true. We if you do.
We always say, if you're cold, your cat is cold.
They pretty much feel what we feel. And cats you
left out in the winter, that is just one of
the most treacherous environments for cats as cold weather. And
we hear this all the time in our Community Animal Project.
We see cats, homeless cats or cats who are left outside.
I mean, they so easily can freeze to death, or
they get these terrible upper respiratory infections and they don't
have veterinary care, so a lot of times they're just
left to die slowly. They die these horrible deaths. And yeah,
wintertime is it's the worst time of the year probably
for cats who are left outside. Yeah, summer too is terrible. Yeah,
I agree.
Speaker 2: And let's also take a moment to say, watch out
for hidden spaces or hidden locations for cats. Check your tires,
check underneath your car, and bang the hood of your car.
Cats hide in these areas, even if it's not cold weather.
You know place, if it's their trential rains, your cat
could go up inside the motor block.
Speaker 5: So just be aware. Yes, that's a great idea. Yeah,
and also if you know of anyone in your area
or one of your friends who lets their cat out,
please share this information with them and let them know
it's never obviously safe or healthy to let their cats outside,
but definitely with the colder weather coming up, be sure
to let them know how dangerous winters are for cats.
Speaker 2: Okay, thank you. What about if somebody witnesses some of
the cruelty we just talked about to animals, you know, cats,
but just animals in general, what should they do?
Speaker 5: Yeah, well, you know, a quick call to the authorities
that literally can mean the difference between life and death
for an animal in danger. And we urge people to
never ignore an animal in distress or any suspicious activity
you might see or hear. So of course, if you
hear gunshots or you suspect maybe there's somebody leaving tainted
cat food out in your area, or reports of cats
going missing, everybody to alert police or animal control immediately
and definitely make helping that cat the priority. And if
you're able to document the cruel sky do that as well.
So if you're able to safely, don't trustpaths, of course,
but if you're able to safely photograph or tape what's
going on, be sure to do that and send the
footage to animal control or the police. And you know,
of course, we can also prevent this abuse by urging
our friends and our family members and our neighbors always
keep your cats indoors.
Speaker 2: Okay, thanks so much. Let's talk about trap and neuter
and release programs otherwise you known as TNR.
Speaker 5: Yeah, so TIN or trap, neuter release. It's exactly what
it sounds like. It's when homeless cats are rounded up,
they're trapped, they're either spade or they're neutered, and they're
released back outside. And the thing about that is whether
a cat is homeless or part of a family. They're domesticated,
you know, they depend on humans for the necessities of life,
for their food, their water, their shelter, their veterinary care.
So T and R this really means trap, neuter and
re abandoned for cats. And when they're turned outside, they're
guaranteed to have a short and miserable life. And when
cats are released dot doors, like we said, they suffer
immensely from dehydration and starvation, parasites, upper respiratory infections, and
of course cruel humans. And you know, when a cat
isn't a victim, a cat is a predator. We have
to remember that on average, a cat outdoors will kill
two hundred and fifty birds and other animals every single year.
So that's why PETA does not support TA in our programs.
It's not a solution for homeless cats.
Speaker 2: So what is a good solution.
Speaker 5: We know the only way to address the situation, to
stop homeless animals is to support spay and neuter legislation,
which PETA has always supported. That is the only way
that we're going to combat the homeless crisis. There are
an estimated seventy to eighty million homeless dogs and cats
in the United States alone, and that's because they're not
being spade and neutered.
Speaker 2: That's crazy. It's a challenge definitely. If there's a you know,
feral community in your neighborhood and you you know, trap them,
get them fixed, but you can't adopt, so you are
possibly at capacity at your home. There are no kill shelters,
but they do get to capacity as well. So yeah,
legislation is the way to go. What else can people
do to help? Well, you know, of course, the most
important thing you can do, whether you have a cat
or not. Just want to reiterate it. Make sure every
cat you know is spade or neutered. If there's a
cat you know who isn't, talk to their guardian, let
them know about the homeless animal crisis. Let them know
how important this is. And of course, if you have
a cat, again, make sure you're keeping them indoors.
Speaker 5: We talked about the cadio. We love cadios. If you're
not able to create a cadio, you can make a
wonderful and fulfilled indoor environment for your cat. Just give
them a room with the view and toys, some scratching posts,
other enrichment, and we have so many great ideas on
peta dot org. So for anybody who's interested, just going
over to our website. We've got all the information you need.
Speaker 2: Okay, thank you so much for coming on Catatude, Sarah
and sharing all this wonderful information with our listening audience.
Speaker 5: Oh, thank you so much.
Speaker 2: Hey everyone, I hope you enjoyed this show. I want
to thank Sarah McFarlane from Peta for coming on Catitude
and sharing such wonderful insight as why all cats should
be indoor cats. You can find out more just go
to pita dot org. Thank you to my cat crew Dennis,
Charlotte and Molly. They live the good life indoors. They've
always been indoors. Thanks again for everyone listening to Catitude.
I appreciate your listenership, and of course a ghuge thank
you to my producer for doing all he does to
make my show and all shows on how Life Radio
sound amazing. And remember listen to Attitude, have Caatitude
Speaker 4: Let's Talk pets every week on demand only on petlifradio
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