See, I *was the opposite. I grew up with LOTS of outdoor only cats. I grew up on a large horse ranch, so naturally we had lots of barn cats. I think I counted 18 once (which included 2 recent litters of kittens). Some were friendly, others mostly feral, They would come and go, stick around, disappear, get hit by trucks, etc. It was always sad, but was accepted as part of living on a ranch. My parents STILL have maybe 10 or so right now. The oldest (a HUGE black male named 'Bob') is 12 or so. They just lost my favorite kitty girl, a siamese looking girl named Cho, who I got as a kitten for my mom in Oct 2011. No idea how or why she passed....she just....did.
With Suri, I cannot IMAGINE sending her outside to fend for herself....EVER. Ive heard its 'cruel' to keep a cat strictly inside, but I disagree. Inside, she cant get stolen. She cant hit by a car. She cant get picked off by a mean kid, evil adult, dog, coyote, poion, etc. I KNOW shes safe inside. And frankly, she seems very content to be a house kitty.
I think its a bit ridiculous for a shelter to force families to allow their cat outside. Shouldnt that decision fall to the new family? They must lose lots of potential adopters..... Such a shame.
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