Risks associated with free-roaming and collar use in cats—An online survey

Abstract

The limited literature discussing potential risks (and benefits) associated with collar use in free-roaming cats leads to inconclusive recommendations for cat owners. In this study we investigate the incidence of major issues associated with free-roaming and collar use. We collected data from over 5,000 Central European participants through an online questionnaire and set out to provide an overview of the incidence and type of problems caused by collar use and the incidence of major risks of free-roaming. We further aimed to identify factors predicting outcomes of collar problems, traffic accidents, animal-inflicted injuries, and missing cats. Among other results, we found the risk of cats dying from a collar-related incident to be considerably lower than other risks cats encounter while free-roaming; the most common risk of free-roaming was found in injuries resulting from animal conflicts. The deadliest risk of free-roaming was traffic accidents; 70.5% of cats involved in traffic accidents died. We further found that identification and registration in pet registry significantly increased the odds of cats being reunited with their owners. Our results provide a base from which further hypothesis driven studies can explore more specific questions regarding collar use in (free-roaming) cats.