If you live in an apartment, just don't get one

Reasoning edit: pets, especially cats, will leave a smell all over furniture. Cleaning becomes an even worse chore due to the fur. They also require "house training" in order to not chew/claw/destroy most stuff that's lying around the house.

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[–] 72 points 10 months ago (7 children)

Cats are healthier and live longer when kept indoors.

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  • [–] 64 points 10 months ago (6 children)

    Local wildlife are healthier and live longer when cats are kept indoors, too.

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  • [+] -6 points 10 months ago (5 children)

    There's no evidence that domestic cats put pressure on local wildlife. Most domesticated cats live near urban and suburban humans and can keep household rodent populations down. They also have no impact on urban birds like pigeons, sparrows or crows.

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  • [–] 15 points 10 months ago (2 children)

    If by domestic, you mean cats that live indoors, agreed. Otherwise there's an extensive amount of evidence:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_predation_on_wildlife

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  • [–] -4 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    That Wikipedia article contains incorrect info if it applies to habitats outside of Australia or isolated islands. The math doesn't add up for the vast majority of domesticated cat habitats. Once away from humans, cats have plenty of predators in the wild that would check their population against bird destruction. Also note that some birds prey on cats in the wild.

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  • [–] 2 points 10 months ago*

    Well you're very wrong.

    https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/faq-outdoor-cats-and-their-effects-on-birds/

    "In the United States alone, there are 60 million to 100 million free-ranging, unowned cats. These are non-native predators that, even using conservative estimates, kill 1.3–4 billion birds and 6.3–22.3 billion mammals each year in the U.S. alone (Loss et al. 2013, Nature Communications). As a conservation organization, the Cornell Lab recognizes that this is an unnatural situation that is taking a tremendous toll on the native wildlife of our continent. "

    "We also suggest that at its core, keeping cats indoors is a pro-cat stance, because it avoids the well-documented problems of predation, violence, car collisions, and disease that afflict all outdoor cats and shorten their lives."

    https://abcbirds.org/solutions/keep-cats-indoors/

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  • [–] 69 points 10 months ago (6 children)

    Upvoted for the opinion being unpopular.

    Cats don't belong outside. They will kill local wildlife and have contributed to the extinction of dozens of species.

    I don't think fish care either way as long as they get the space and care they need. That is, a tiny pond outside isn't any better than a tank of the same volume indoors, all other things being equal.

    Rodents definitely belong inside, if having a rodent as a pet is allowed at all in this scenario. I feel like this doesn't require further explanation.

    I could see rabbits liking being outside, as long as they're adequately protected from predators. They do well inside, too. I'd call this one 50:50.

    If reptiles and amphibians should be kept as pets at all, indoors is way better.

    I imagine almost all invertebrate pets would have to be indoors.

    Pets that are livestock species go outside, yeah. No argument here.

    Some animals shouldn't be pets at all. Some belong inside. Some belong outside. Some go in and out. It's a mixed bag.

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  • [–] 19 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    Upvoted and upvoted. It's weird that in c/UO, a truly extremely unpopular opinion gets downvoted!
    It should be in the top few of all time!

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  • [–] 10 points 10 months ago (2 children)

    Pets that are livestock species go outside, yeah. No argument here.

    Well, they should have a cozy barn if they’re pets. If they’re really pets, with HVAC and all.

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  • [–] 2 points 10 months ago

    I could see rabbits liking being outside, as long as they’re adequately protected from predators.

    Depends on the type of rabbit. Someone had the same thought as you and abandoned their pet rabbit outside where it starved to death. It was really cute, floppy and big.

    Other times it is successful, eats all of the vegetation and create burrows in so many places it threatens the structural integrity of all the buildings in the area.

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  • [–] 45 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    Wow that is an unpopular opinion

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  • [–] 34 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    Per rule #6, please defend your UO position with reasoning.

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  • [–] 25 points 10 months ago (4 children)

    At some point in your life, you also required training to make sure you didn't destroy the furniture or shit on the floor

    Cleaning is part of the care. I guess that's just what the deal is though

    Some people think animals shouldn't live indoors. It's worth reminding those people that humans are animals

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  • [–] [S] 7 points 10 months ago (3 children)

    We should spend a lot more time outside, too

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  • [–] 22 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (2 children)

    Upvoted, because you’re totally incorrect.

    Are you advocating for the somewhat extreme position that pets shouldn’t exist?

    Your reasoning suggests that basic duties of pet ownership such as basic training and grooming are too onerous. Canids do not soil their den in the wild and so easily are trained not to soil indoors, and cats don’t need training to use a litter box.

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  • [+] [S] -13 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    Are you advocating for the somewhat extreme position that pets shouldn’t exist?

    Reductio ad absurdum is the technique of reducing an argument or hypothesis to absurdity, by pushing the argument's premises or conclusions to their logical limits and showing how ridiculous the consequences would be, thus disproving or discrediting the argument.

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  • [–] 14 points 10 months ago

    If we don't keep pets in the house where do we keep them? Constantly outside? Do we build a separate shed for them? What about fish? Can people keep fish inside? Or lizards? Or Guinea pigs? Or Hamsters? Or gerbils? Or any of the myriad of other small animals that people keep in terrariums/aquariums and can't be kept outside?

    The problem with citing that fallacy is that your position is already absurd without reduction.

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  • [–] 22 points 10 months ago

    Cats ESPECIALLY belong inside because they decimate the local wildlife.

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  • [–] 14 points 10 months ago

    Your reasoning simply seems to reflect the need for additional training and effort on the part of the pet owner. That’s not “reasoning” so much as bitching. Pets do perfectly well in human dwellings, so long as care and effort are taken to make it so. It kind of sounds like you shouldn’t own an indoor pet. That’s fine for you. Stop telling other people what to do when they may well be more caring and/or less lazy than you.

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  • [–] 10 points 10 months ago

    That exact same reasoning applies to humans as well, but we still let them into the house. However, though from a very weird direction, you have certainly landed on an unpopular opinion.

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  • [–] 27 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    Upvoted because unpopular but I personally think youre a boring person. Sure, animals smell but thats why you clean them and your house. Id rather clean my house 5 times a week than not have my dogs.

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  • [–] 6 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

    I'd rather visit someone who's given a loving home to a cat/dog/whatever than someone who lives in a boring, sterile, oderless, pristine home. Children are smelly and messy and destructive too, but people have always managed with them! Clean after your pet regularly, and live life rather than perfection. They're worth it...

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  • [–] 9 points 10 months ago*

    Why tho?

    I mean many pets shouldn't live in a small apartment. Few pets are ok with it. Some pets are okay with living in bigger apartments but then it's more about giving enough enrichment and outdoor or balcony time it it fits the pet

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  • [–] 25 points 10 months ago

    Terribly unpopular and stupid opinion. Have an upvote

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  • [–] 8 points 10 months ago

    Dumps fish tank outside

    Sorry, but pets do not belong inside homes.

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  • [–] 6 points 10 months ago

    Don't come over.

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  • [–] 6 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    What if it's a really sexy one?

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  • [–] 6 points 10 months ago

    Kids, especially toddlers, will leave a smell all over furniture. Cleaning becomes an even worse chore due to feeding time messes and crayons on the wall. They also require potty training in order to not shit themselves and then rub it onto everything lying around the house.

    Seiously, toddlers belong outside...

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  • [–] 5 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    How dare you. My cat is an angel and I'm lucky to get to clean her fur.

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  • If by that you meant "I don't like the effect pets have on my living spaces", sure, of course, and you don't have to get one/let them inside if the weather's okay!

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  • [–] 9 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

    This is an ignorant take in that it doesn't in any way address the emotional benefits of having animals in your living space, or offer any justification for why the costs that are asserted could be worth accepting, or the fact that plenty of animals adapt well to smaller spaces. Don't like cleaning fur? Get short haired animals. Kids need training too, and plenty of human adults have no idea how to properly clean up after themselves. If you don't like animals that's fine, but don't try to perscribe your needs onto others based solely on these grounds, you can just say I don't like pets and that's acceptable.

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  • [–] 7 points 10 months ago (4 children)

    Upvoted because I do disagree, where else they gonna go?

    cats outside are a menace, for example. Responsible thing to do is keep them inside.

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  • [–] [S] 0 points 10 months ago (3 children)

    From the amount of "cats are dangerous if outside", it's starting to sound like we are the only thing keeping them from destroying environments, after introducing them

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  • [–] 4 points 10 months ago

    Absolutely. Plenty of evidence for that.

    Though I'm not a fan of the collective responsibility for choices which happened outside of the time and space you and I exist in.

    I'll take responsibility for my cat.

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  • [–] 6 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    Soooooo. You’re gatekeeping other people’s apartments?

    Here’s your upvote.

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  • [–] 2 points 10 months ago

    My cat does leave a strong smell. It has become my favorite smell.

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  • [–] 2 points 10 months ago

    You seem to have a very limited view on what constitutes a "pet".

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  • [–] 3 points 10 months ago* (2 children)

    I don't think I've ever been to a cat owners house who's furniture smells like cat, I would love to know what a cat even smells like.

    Maybe if those owners don't clean their cats litter properly or often enough, that causes a smell, and yeah, lots of shitty cat parents who don't clean after them well enough.

    Or maybe this is about un neutered cats that piss on stuff? That's unfortunately somehow also a thing.

    Cats also don't require any training to do any of those things? Just pay attention to your cat, ensure you play with it and give it enough toys and attention and it won't do shit to your stuff.

    Your statements have me more confused than anything else.

    Dogs smell, they have a weird metallic smell to them and they leave that smell on surfaces, maybe you got confused?

    Is this unpopular opinion or just objectively wrong opinion?

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    [+] 3 points 10 months ago (3 children)
  • [–] 1 point 10 months ago

    Of course a dog should be activated physically and have attention, but it'd also be cruelty to keep it awake and active all day long.

    Dogs sleep a lot. They need 12-14 hours every day, and even up to 20 hours for puppies or old dogs.

    This fits very well with being left unattended while the kids are at school for instance.

    It's better to leave it unattended for one long stretch than several shorter ones daily, because dogs do keep track of time based on routines. Coming in and out several times, or taking the dog along randomly is more stressful for it, because it breaks the routine.

    They're very adaptable and teachable, so many things are possible, but it should definitely be taught to chill out by itself, so it's capable of this when you actually need it to be alone for some reason.

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  • [–] 1 point 10 months ago

    That exact same reasoning applies to humans as well, but we still let them into the house. However, though from a very weird direction, you have landed on an unpopular opinion.

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