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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Umbran" data-source="post: 3004792" data-attributes="member: 177">You should perhaps remember that your cat is not a human being, and probably doesn't think about what's beyond the fence in the same way you do.  Please consider that you may be projecting your desires onto your animal, and reading his behaviors as they might be for you, rather than for him.What's beyond the fence?  Feline leukemia, Feline Immunodeficiency Virus, fast cars, rabies, dogs, ter cats, coyotes, raccoons and other dangerous wildlife, vicious and heartless humans, antifreeze, tapeworms, roundworms, ringworms, fleas, ticks, various infectious diseases, and so on.Indoor cats are, admittedly, slightly more prone to obesity then their outdoor counterparts.I don't have a citation, but the last study my wife (a veterinarian) can recall (which is admittedly several years old at this point), indoor cats didn't live twice as long as outdoor cats.  An indoor cat had an average life expectency of 15 or so years.  Outdoor cats had an "ownership span" of about three years.  Meaning that on average, the average owner of an outdoor can would expect the cat to be permanently gone (for whatever reason - dead or lost) within three years.  This is, of course, an average, and doesn't tell you everything.  I myself have had outdoor cats that lived decently long lives. With a little forethought, the indoor environment can remain an interesting place for a cat to explore without the risks.  Enrichment isn't that much a chore - and it gives you new ways to play, interact with and care for your animal that you didn't have before.  None of this is to berate you.  It is merely to give you information and perspective.  The people who know feline behavior best say that the indoors can be just as fulfilling as the outdoors.  If that's true, why take the risks?</blockquote>

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