Home / Question

Should my cat be indoor-only or have outdoor access?

A real question cat owners ask. Here’s a tool that answers it for your cat — with the sources shown. (ACS-187)

Routine decision

You can act on this at your own pace.

This depends on your country

Fact

There is no single global answer: the US leans indoor-only, the UK accepts outdoor access, and parts of Australia legally require containment. Tell us your region for the right default.

The shared safe option

Fact

Supervised/contained outdoor time — a catio, a secure garden, or leash/harness training — gives enrichment without the road/wildlife/disease risks, everywhere.

How this was decided — 1 source

abcbirds.org/solutions/keep-cats-indoors/ ; AU: ACT cat-cont — T4 welfare/advocacy. RSPCA (UK, animal-welfare authority); American Bird Conservancy (US, CONSERVATION-ADVOCACY bias — pro-indoor for bird protection); ACT Government legislation (AU, statutory) · Tier 3 · verified 2026-07-17
⚠ Sources differ: Resolved as JURISDICTION_SPLIT (per registry conflict_flag). Product MUST gate this decision by user region and present the local norm; NEVER pick one global stance. US default = indoor-recommended; UK default = outdoor-access-accepted/individualized; AU = follow local containment law (may be legall
⚠ Commercial bias: Attribute each stance to its named org/jurisdiction (RSPCA UK; American Bird Conservancy US; ACT Government / RSPCA Aust

Rules fired: indoor/outdoor stance is jurisdiction-specific (EV-022)