And outdoor cats don't live as long - cars, predators, poison, the list goes on.

https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms2380

Indicate that a major part of their diet is cats. And that's not counting those who are hit by cars.

The bells are to keep the cats from killing so many birds. Cats kill about 41% fewer birds with bells on. The down side is yes, the bell keeps them from hunting as effectively and escaping danger.

Poor thing, can you take it to a no kill shelter?

the critters don't really know the bell means danger. It isn't a sound they nature/nurture associate associate with a predator. My opinion. I had a cat years ago who was one of the best hunters I ever met. She brought at least one chipmunk a day back, and I felt bad for the chipmunks. I put a collar and bell on her, but it didn't slow down her murderous effort one bit. The collar caused her a big problem, and to avoid it harming her ever again, I took the collar off and have never used a collar on a cat since then.

We had a dog who got hung up by his collar in the woods. We hunted for him, but he lost his voice barking, and we couldn't find him. He managed to slip the collar and got home a couple days later. Pretty rough, but he recovered. I didn't put a collar on him any more either.

Your points are well-taken. I don't think any pet running loose should have a collar, unless it is loose enough for them them to slip it if they get hung up.

Turns out they freeze when they hear the bell. Makes them even easier to hunt.

I have a necklace of small bells around Yogi's neck in a effort to stop his serial killing spree.

All it did was teach him to move more slowly. I hope birds get away more often than not, but I'm not sure.

Bird feeders surrounded by fencing and other measures have reduced the carnage. But I find more presents than I care for, so I question the effectiveness of bells. The fencing does have a impact.


Will be building a enclosed cattery for future cats, now that I will have more time after I retire soon.

A collar on a cat is dangerous, unless it is the kind that they can slip out of. Cats climb, crawl through brush, and generally get exposed to situations where a collar could trap them and prevent them from getting free to get to food, leave them vulnerable to a predator, or hang them.

I never use a collar on even an indoor cat unless it is elastic enough for the cat to slip out if in an emergency.

For walking on a leash, a harness is better than a collar.

Maltese's collar.

He was so small and quiet - we needed it to make sure we wouldn't injure him when he was a baby.

I tried taking the bell off when he reached full height and weight and he wanted it back after a day. Was actually looking at it on a table.

So a bell it is.

In our case - it saves the life of squirrels, chipmunks, and . . . neighborhood cats.

He wears a collar and the star tag jingles on his anti whisker standing bowl and his water fountain . He is slow to approach and eat and he drinks in the stealthy way so the jingling tag lets me know he is eating and drinking . Sometimes we eat together at the same time,sometimes not. Good thing about the tag is I can hear it from any room in my apartment and I know.