Cats are the most popular pets in North America, with over 9 million cats estimated to live in Canadian homes (CFHS, 2017). Although they make for loveable companions, free-roaming cats—including pets, strays, and feral cats—are prolific wildlife hunters and carriers of zoonotic diseases. Additionally, cats face significant dangers when roaming outdoors, including harsh weather, toxins, vehicle collisions, parasites, and predators. Despite efforts by animal welfare organizations, rescuing cats from the streets is challenging due to overpopulation and limited funding.

What happens when cats are allowed to roam?

1) Reduced Lifespan: Cats that roam outdoors have an average lifespan of 2-5 years, depending on their environment, whereas indoor cats can live up to 20 years with proper care and love from their owners.

2) Environmental Impact: Domestic cats are not native to North America. Originating from Africa and the Middle East, they were first domesticated for their ability to control rodents. Despite their domestication, cats still retain their natural predatory instincts. When allowed outdoors, they predate on native species, reduce local biodiversity, threaten species at risk, and compete with native predators for food. Research shows that roaming cats are Canada's leading cause of wild bird mortality, contributing to the loss of 100-350 million birds annually (Calvert et al. and Blancher, 2013). In addition to birds, cats also hunt a wide range of wild animals, such as mice, bats, snakes, lizards, squirrels, rabbits, and insects. One study revealed that stray cats bring home only about 15% of their prey, often leading owners to underestimate their impact (Legge et al., 2020).

3) Disease Transmission: Outdoor cats can contract and spread parasites and diseases to other cats, wildlife, and humans. Examples include toxoplasmosis, rabies, cat scratch disease, and avian flu.

What can be done?

Preventing cats from roaming is key. At present, cat owners in most BC municipalities can choose whether to keep their cats indoors, provide outdoor supervision, or allow them to roam unattended. The latter, however, leaves their cats vulnerable to many risks, contributes to the cat overpopulation crisis and adds to the growth of feral cat colonies. While cat owners are responsible for providing protection, medical care, food, and appropriate housing, the outdated idea that cats need to roam complicates the issue. Therefore, it is necessary to implement bylaws and policies to regulate cat ownership practices and prevent cats from running at large. Bylaws help reduce neighbourhood conflicts caused by nuisance cats, protect cats from dangers, increase their lifespan and quality of life, and mitigate the overpopulation of feral cat colonies and their impact on wildlife.

In British Columbia, only a dozen municipalities have active no-roam policies for cats, which needs to be improved upon to address the issue. To effectively address the issues caused by free-roaming cats, bylaws should:
- Enforce mandatory identification for owned cats to prevent strays,
- Mandate spaying and neutering to prevent unwanted pregnancies,
- Restrict cats from roaming beyond their household or property, and
- Limit the number of cats per household to ensure cats receive appropriate care.

The Stewardship Centre for BC has developed resources for cat owners and local governments on existing bylaws that can be implemented in your community. Ask your local government about cat bylaws and policies, and advocate for best practices that protect cats, wildlife, and your community.