There seems to be a debate about keeping cats indoors vs. outdoors. I understand that the estabilished veternary opinion (as well as the opinion of the majority of the posters) seems to be that it's better to keep the cat indoors only. However, as a cat lover I can't resist to throw in a dissenting opinion, as well as share my own experience raising (exclusively) outdoor cats.
I have two cats which I found abandonned in a park as kittens. The thought of keeping cats would have never come to me had I not come across these strays. They were starving and ridden with disease, and I nursed them back to health, and they've been very happy ever since. My cats have never been let INdoors. I live with my parents at the moment, and my father's expensive Italian sofa does not permit the possibility of letting a pair of clawed cats roam in the house. Plus my parents think that as animals, cats don't belong in a house; that's where people live. My mother is especially disgusted by the idea of an animal curling up on her bed, shedding fur. Thus sometimes when the cats sneak in the house, we have to catch them and take them back out. It's the opposite of most cat-owners, I think.
However, raising my cats exclusively outdoors, they have a de facto infinite living area, and don't have to be de-clawed. They can claw anything they like outside to their heart's content. My cats know who feeds and loves them though, and I've never seen them wander further than one house over, and I have never observed them even going into the street. Whenever I call to them they appear within minutes no matter where they are, and they're very affectionate towards me. I purchased a nice ceder 'cathouse' for them to use as shelter when it gets too cold or when it rains.
I feel very good about the fact that my cats are my guests, in every sense of the word. I don't own them, they are not my slaves or chattel; they're 'freecats'. They're completely unfenced and have never known the feeling of having their freedom of movement restricted in any way (other than not being allowed in the house). They're free to leave at anytime, but they choose to stay. Once one of my cats went missing for 3 days, I thought it had either been killed, or finally decided to leave. However, it turned out that she was just trapped in the garage (one of us carelessly closed it after the cat went in to explore). Thus I don't think they're ever going to go anywhere too far.
Originally my cats were made to be outdoor cats out of necessity, but now I wouldn't dream of confining any future cats I own inside of a house. Cats are not humans, and forcing them to live like humans is simply...unnatural IMHO. I respect the opinions of people advocating keeping cats indoors. They raise valid points. True, an indoor-only cat is never going to be run over by a car. But it will never chase down butterflies (and eat them), nor will it ever feel the wind blowing in its face. Its world is measured in cubic feet. That's no way to live, like a caged bird (which incidentally I'm also against...just don't keep birds period). Just keep the cat neutered and vaccinated; if it gets hit by a car, then ashes to ashes. It could have just as easily died chewing on an electrical cable, or from being an overweight indoor cat. I think the improved quality of life is worth the extra risk.
Also, advantages for the cat-keeper include:
1.) no litter box to clean
2.) no smells to get out
3.) no furballs and shed hair to comb out of the furniture
4.) no cat toys to buy (which are really designed to substitute the natural stimulations a cat would receive by being outside)
5.) no declawing/scratching posts to worry about
6.) feeing the cat outside means easy clean-up, should there be spills.
Btw, when I leave for medical school, I'm leaving my cats with my parents; I think they'd be happier continuing to live somewhere they're used to living, and with a big yard.
