Leash Laws: Do Cats Need To Follow Them?

Leash laws for cats are a controversial topic. While there is no countrywide law on letting cats roam freely, some local laws require cats to be kept indoors or on a leash, or they will be treated as strays and taken to a pound. These laws are strict and can result in cats being impounded or put down. Cats have lived near humans for over 10,000 years, and critics argue that restricting their freedom with leash laws goes against their instinctual nature. In addition, leash laws can increase the number of cats killed in animal shelters. However, proponents of such laws argue that they are necessary to control the feral cat population and protect native wildlife.

Leash laws for cats can result in more cats being killed

Leash laws are especially lethal for community cats, who do not have owners to leash them and whose home is outdoors. Although these animals have been living outdoors in close proximity to humans for over 10,000 years, leash laws allow animal control to pick them up and bring them to pounds and shelters where virtually 100% of them will be killed.

In the US, there is no clear-cut countrywide law on letting your cat roam freely. There aren't usually statewide laws, either. While the US does have countrywide and statewide laws on things like animal cruelty, your city or county sets laws regarding free-roaming cats. Only three states have standardized laws for cats, or "cat codes": California, Maine, and Rhode Island.

Many laws on free-roaming cats are strict and could result in your cat being impounded or put down by a local shelter. One common law is a "leash law", which requires cats to stay indoors or on a leash, or they'll be treated like a stray and taken to a pound, similar to dogs.

Another common law that sounds good on paper is cat licensing. These laws require cats to wear some form of identity tag and collar. Otherwise, they'll be picked up by animal control. This means even if your indoor cat briefly gets outside without their collar on, they may be picked up by animal control and taken to a shelter.

These laws also target feral and stray cats, and most local governments have a Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) policy to keep community cat populations in check. Regardless of these policies, the Humane Society of the United States says that, of a population of around 35 million community cats, only 2% are neutered, making TNR generally ineffective in controlling community cat populations.

Many pet parents with feline fur-babies might think these laws are short-sighted, considering cats have lived outside near humans for over 10,000 years. Considering around 70% of shelter cats are euthanized, restrictive laws on free-roaming cats are a serious problem for animal welfare.

Cats have lived outdoors without leashes for over 10,000 years

Cats have lived alongside humans for thousands of years, and their history as domesticated animals is a fascinating one. While there is some variation in estimates, it is believed that cats have been domesticated for around 10,000 years or more. During this time, they have shared our homes, our neighbourhoods, and our lives, becoming one of the most popular pets worldwide.

The history of the domestic cat begins in the Fertile Crescent, a region in the Middle East that was home to some of the earliest developments in human civilisation. As humans transitioned from a nomadic lifestyle to permanent settlements and agriculture, they began storing grain, which attracted rodents. Middle Eastern wildcats, or Felis silvestris lybica, took advantage of this new food source and began scavenging in human settlements, forming a mutually beneficial relationship with people. Over time, a new species of cat, Felis catus, evolved, and this is the species we know today as the domestic cat.

Cats have been valued companions and working animals throughout history. In ancient Egypt, cats were revered and worshipped, often mummified and dressed in golden jewellery. The ancient Greeks and Romans kept cats as pest control, and cats eventually made their way to Europe, becoming widespread by the 4th century AD. They were introduced to the Americas by travellers and settlers, including Christopher Columbus and the Mayflower pilgrims, and even served as official employees of the United States Postal Service in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

For much of their history, cats have lived outdoors, roaming freely and sharing the environment with birds and wildlife. It is only in the last century that the idea of keeping cats entirely indoors became common, thanks to innovations like refrigeration, kitty litter, and the prevalence of spaying and neutering. Biologically, cats are still adapted to an outdoor lifestyle, and even today, many cats live healthy lives outdoors, either as pets that are allowed to roam or as feral cats.

The relationship between cats and humans is a unique one, and it has evolved over thousands of years. While leash laws may be well-intentioned, they fail to take into account the natural history and behaviours of cats, which have lived alongside humans for over 10,000 years.

Cats are exempt from larceny laws

Cats were historically exempt from larceny laws, despite their relative importance to the household. This was due to their lack of commercial importance. The penalty for stealing another person's cattle under British common law was death; lawmakers felt such a penalty was not fitting for a creature of no economic importance.

In the past, larceny was punishable by death, and courts would mitigate the severity of the law by holding that certain animals were not the subject of larceny as they were not fit for food, or were base, or were kept only for pleasure, curiosity, or whim. Blackstone included "dogs, bears, cats, apes, parrots, and singing birds" in this category.

Similarly, Hawkins stated that certain animals, including dogs, cats, foxes, monkeys, and ferrets, should "never be so regarded by the laws, that for their sakes a man shall die."

Thus, cats were historically exempt from larceny laws due to their lack of commercial value and were instead considered property with a qualified ownership. This meant that stealing a cat was punishable by a fine rather than death.

Today, cats are regarded in law as property, and the theft of a cat is treated as an offence under the law.

Only 3 states have standardized laws for cats

While there is no countrywide law on letting your cat roam freely in the United States, only three states have standardized laws for cats, or "cat codes": California, Maine, and Rhode Island. These states have laws on everything from minimum weaning times for kittens to maximum holding times at shelters.

The law on letting your cat outside varies across the country and is usually set by your city or county. One common law is a "leash law," which requires cats to stay indoors or on a leash, or they'll be treated like a stray and taken to a pound, similar to dogs. These laws can result in cats being impounded or put down by a local shelter.

Another common law is cat licensing, which requires cats to wear some form of identity tag and collar. If a cat is found without these, it may be picked up by animal control. This means that even indoor cats that briefly escape without their collar on are at risk of being taken to a shelter.

Many laws on free-roaming cats are strict and pose a serious problem for animal welfare, as around 70% of shelter cats are euthanized. Cats have lived outside near humans for over 10,000 years, and some argue that restricting a cat to a collar or keeping it indoors goes against its basic instinctual nature.

Cats are not required to be licensed by state law in any state except Rhode Island

The lack of cat-specific legislation can be attributed to history and biology. Cats have historically been exempt from larceny laws due to their lack of commercial importance. Additionally, cats were not seen as a threat to civilized society because of their size and jaw strength, and they kept to themselves in agricultural settings.

However, as cats have become a permanent fixture in many American homes, concerns have shifted to include property damage, trespass, and the spread of disease. The popularity of cats has also led to a new issue: urban-dwelling, feral cats. This has largely become a local issue, with some states even proposing measures to classify free-roaming cats as "unprotected species."

Rhode Island's "Cat Identification" law aims to reduce the number of unidentified, free-roaming cats by requiring cat owners to maintain some form of identification on their cats, such as a tag, microchip, or tattoo. This law provides cats with protection under the law, equal to that of dogs, and establishes a minimum holding period for cats in municipal animal control facilities and private animal shelters.

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