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However, there are ways to give your cat outdoor time while minimizing the associated risks. A screened in porch or an outdoor cat enclosure can allow your cat to feel like he is outside, without exposing him to the dangers listed above. Enclosures can be homemade or bought from specialized cat enclosure companies. If an enclosure isn’t your style, you can train your cat to walk with a harness. It takes a little time and effort, but it is quite possible. Talk to your veterinarian for tips on how to do this in a way that will be enjoyable for both you and your cat. 3. Cats are more likely to urinate in the house if they are not let outside. Most indoor cats have no trouble becoming litterbox trained. If they do start to urinate outside of the box, it doesn’t necessarily mean they need to go outside. Cats will often go outside the box when their box is dirty, as one example. There also may be a medical issue to cause this problem. Contact your veterinarian for further details. 4. Cats are more likely to scratch furniture if they are not let outside. Cats have a natural instinct to keep their claws sharp, and they do this by scratching. Keeping their nails trimmed can minimize the damage, but not eliminate this behavior. Provide your cat with a cat tree to scratch. Different cats prefer different materials to scratch on. If your cat doesn’t use your cat tree, carefully observe what surfaces he prefers to scratch, and get a cat tree covered in that material. You can also spray the cat tree with interesting scents such as catnip to attract your cat to the tree. Please see the handout on Inappropriate Scratching. 5. Cats are unhygienic in the home because of their habits of walking on high surfaces. Cats like to be on high surfaces. You can provide them with appropriate places to sit such as perches near windowsills or a tall cat tree. It is also possible to train them not to jump on surfaces such as your kitchen table or counters. Cats are very clean by nature; they spend a good portion of time every day bathing themselves. Outdoor cats are actually much more likely to track contaminants or parasites onto your surfaces than indoor cats. 6. Cats can infect pregnant women with Toxoplasmosis. Pregnant women can become infected with Toxoplasmosis from cat feces. However, they are more likely to contract this disease from undercooked meat. Pregnant women should make sure to wear gloves whenever handling cat feces, and scoop the litterbox daily so that the feces don’t have time to sit. The cat itself is not infectious and should pose no danger to the pregnant woman.i In Summary… After weighing the costs and benefits of having and indoor or outdoor cat, we recommend keeping your cat indoors for your pet’s health and safety. As discussed above, there are numerous hazards your cat may encounter while roaming unsupervised outside. If you think your cat is bored indoors, there are many ways to enrich his/her environment and give your cat a fulfilled life. For further information, contact your veterinarian. Handout created as part of a class exercise by veterinary students: Tyler Craft, Sheryl Greenspan, and Amanda Klein Written under the direction of Dr. Melissa Bain Clinical Animal Behavior Service 2019 AAHA Canine Life Stage Guidelines* Kate E. Creevy, DVM, MS, DACVIM (SAIM), Jesse Grady, DVM, MS, Susan E. Little, DVM, PhD, DACVM (Parasit.), George E. Moore, DVM, PhD, DACVPM, DACVIMy , Beth Groetzinger Strickler, MS, DVM, DACVB, CDBC, Steve Thompson, DVM, DABVP (C/F), Jinelle A. Webb, DVM, MSc, DVSc, DACVIM (SAIM)y ABSTRACT The guidelines are an update and extension of the AAHA Canine Life Stage Guidelines published in 2012. A noteworthy change from the earlier guidelines is the division of the dog’s lifespan into five stages (puppy, young adult, mature adult, senior, and end of life) instead of the previous six. This simplified grouping is consistent with how pet owners generally perceive their dog’s maturation and aging process and provides a readily understood basis for an evolving, lifelong healthcare strategy. The guidelines provide the following recommendations for managing 10 health-related factors at each of the first four canine life stages: lifestyle effect on the patient’s safety, zoonotic and human safety risk, behavior, nutrition, parasite control, vaccination, dental health, reproduction, breed-specific conditions, and a baseline diagnostic profile. (J Am Anim Hosp Assoc 2019; 55:267–290. DOI 10.5326/JAAHA-MS-6999) AFFILIATIONS From the Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, College Station, Texas (K.E.C.); Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, Mississippi (J.G.); Oklahoma State University, Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, Stillwater, Oklahoma (S.E.L.); Department of Veterinary Administration (G.E. M.), and Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences (S.T.), Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana; Veterinary Behavior Solutions, PLLC, Fall Branch, Tennessee (B.G.S.); and Mississauga-Oakville Veterinary Emergency Hospital, Ontario, Canada (J.A.W.). CONTRIBUTING REVIEWERS Lora Rickard Ballweber, DVM, MS, DACVM (Parasit.), (Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology Department, College of
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