A newly published study initiated by Companion Animals NZ explores how New Zealanders view outdoor access for cats and the factors that shape those attitudes. With over 1.26 million domestic cats living in 40% of Kiwi households, this is an issue that touches a huge number of families, communities, and of course, cats themselves.

The research surveyed nearly 1,850 people – both cat owners and non-owners – and found some striking differences. The findings show that around 90% of the cats owned by the respondents have some outdoor access, though many are kept indoors at night (77.6%).

Cat owners were 9 times more likely than non-owners to support free-roaming, while younger or urban residents were more inclined to keep cats indoors. Interestingly, a small subset of people had reported transitioning their cats to indoor-only management. They cited outdoor dangers, environmental impact concerns, advancing age of their cat and health issues as motivators for making this change.

Dr Gosia Zobel, who supervised the study, says the results highlight the balance between welfare and wider impacts:

“Cats are cherished companions in so many New Zealand homes. This research shows that owners’ decisions about outdoor access are deeply connected to both how they care for their pets and how they perceive the risks and benefits of the outdoors. There are pros and cons to having cats outside, and it's a subject people are quite passionate about. While we maintain neutrality on it, we believe that understanding these perspectives is vital if we want to create solutions that work for cats, people, and wildlife alike.”

In NZ, cat welfare is regulated under the Animal Welfare Act 1999, with further guidance provided in the Code of Welfare: Companion Cats. Local councils also manage cat ownership through bylaw regulations such as microchipping, desexing, registration, and household limits. While outdoor access for cats is common, there is currently no national legislation controlling cat management, although some organisations advocate for restricting free-roaming cats to protect both welfare and biodiversity.

Outdoor access offers cats behavioural enrichment, opportunities for hunting, and the ability to express natural behaviours, which can reduce obesity and behavioural issues associated with confinement. However, it also carries risks such as exposure to diseases, parasites, traffic accidents, aggressive encounters, or toxins.

In NZ, free-roaming cats primarily prey on small mammals and birds, creating ecological concerns, although cats may also control introduced pest species. The impact of cats on the environment, along with community nuisance and potential zoonotic risks, have prompted calls for national cat management policies. Public support exists for such policies, though translating this into behavioural change remains challenging.

Study facts:

This study surveyed 1,847 New Zealand adults, including 1,467 cat owners, to investigate cat management practices, outdoor access, hunting behaviour, and owner attitudes.

Around 90 % of cats owned by respondents had some form of outdoor access, typically restricted at night (77.6% of those with cats that had some outdoor access).

Cat management practices varied, with most owners providing scratching areas (83.6%), vertical furniture (61.4%), and routine healthcare (>70%), though fewer performed regular nail trims (38.2%) or dental cleaning (46.4%).

The 86 owners who transitioned their cats to indoor-only management cited outdoor dangers and environmental impact concerns as primary motivations.

Attitudes toward free-roaming differed between cat owners and non-owners, with owners nine times more likely to support outdoor access.

Cat owners were eight times more likely to believe free-roaming is necessary for cats to have a good life compared to non-cat owner respondents.

Younger or urban respondents were more supportive of indoor management, suggesting generational and geographic shifts in attitudes.

Cat owners residing in rural areas were 1.7 times more likely to indicate that their cats hunt compared to owners in urban or suburban areas.

Most cat-owning respondents (81.3%) who had observed their cat hunt, reported never observing their cat hunt native New Zealand species. (However other research acknowledges that cats vary in how much prey they actually bring home).

“Environmental enrichment and owner engagement emerged as key factors influencing attitudes toward outdoor access,” adds Dr Zobel. “Owners providing vertical space, litter boxes, and regular play were less likely to believe outdoor access is essential, whereas those lacking basic resources were more likely to support free-roaming, likely out of necessity.

“Hunting behaviour was more commonly reported among rural and younger cats, though most owners had not observed predation of native species. These findings indicate a spectrum of owner engagement and differing perceptions of welfare, highlighting the need for tailored educational and policy approaches.”

The work highlights that free-roaming is still the most common way cats are managed in New Zealand. Positively, a majority of respondents reported keeping cats indoors at night. To move forward, policies need to balance owner attitudes, cat welfare, and day-to-day practicality. With the right education and evidence-based tools, New Zealand can encourage care that keeps cats safe while protecting wildlife. Importantly, while some research exists, it has focused on small numbers of cats. Ideally, follow-up research would follow a large number of cats to assess the welfare benefits for the cats and wildlife of different management approaches.

Read the report here:

“New Zealanders’ attitudes to outdoor access for owned domestic cats” - now published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science vol 292. You can check out the report here free for a month:

New Zealanders’ attitudes to outdoor access for owned domestic cats - ScienceDirect

This research was primarily led by Dr Gosia Zobel while at CANZ, with significant contributions from Prof Natalie Waran and Dr Renee Railton, also in their roles at CANZ, alongside independent contractor Dr Laureline Guinnefollau, and Dr Carly Moody and Hee Jin Chung from UCDavis.

This work was supported by funding from Healthy Pets New Zealand, who Companion Animals NZ would like to thank.