Living outdoors, why are Cats better at this than Dogs?

Question

I see stray cats all the time, rarey do I see stray dogs, and when I do see a dog, it's always hungry and in very poor health. Almost every stray cat, I've run across looks healthy.

So are cats better at living outdoors because they are smaller and eat mice/rats...which are easy to find?

Answer 1

I considered this for a while.
1. Though dogs are pack animals, they are also successful hunters on their own- if given the opportunity. I think many of the strays were once owned by people, and therefore stray dogs rely on people as their pack and are thusly not well fed when they're ignored on the streets. Cats tend not to rely on people, though they will come and return if a particular person feeds them on a regular basis.

2. Most dogs are larger and require more food than cats, so as per food cats are more successful.

3. Both dogs and cats can look much heavier or even much skinnier than they really are. It is possible the cats are just as unhealthy as the dogs, but their fur is covering this. (Helpful for this is the fact that, in my experience, cats clean themselves more than dogs)

4. I think more people are more apt to feed cats than dogs because they more often view dogs as vicious- especially street dogs, and when the mutts look less healthy, people are even less likely to give them food.

Answer 2

Firstly, you may be assuming the cats you see are strays and healthy but a lot of them actually have owners but they wander about. Cats know to return to their homes most of the time. the times when they do get lost is when they become scared and run off and then lose their way back. ut my grandfather took some kittens a few km's away and they came back after a week. Some cats are really good at it. Dogs on the other hand need to be fenced in which is why you don't see many stray dogs. Also usually stray cat are thin and have scratches becayse they have been in fights. i have had a white cat stay here for months but when she first started coming her sge had a large sore on the side of her face and she was thin. They do hunt mice but sometimes that is not enough. this poor cat had a bell so she couldn't hunt for anything. So most cats you see do have homes. My cat loves to go in my neighbours gardens. I also know another neighbour of mine has a black and white cat that sometimes i see walking around the street. there are two cats that sometimes come to my backyard for food at night and they look pretty well fed but some cats love to eat and so they will eat any extra food they find.

Answer 3

Cats don't do so well out there on their own either, the average life span for a street cat is 3 years, housecats live way longer.

Dogs don't do well at all on their own in our society, they are bred to be companion animals and want to be with their human families. There's also no wild food for them in our societies plus they need to hunt in packs - cats are solitary hunters.

Answer 4

I reject your premise.

The average indoor cat lives until 16 or 17. The average outdoor cat dies by the time he is two. This includes outdoor cats that are part of a family -- not just strays.

Answer 5

Cats are able to jump on walls get into back yards and search for food while dogs cant do that. rarely if theres a gate open they can. But basically they have to live on the streets and hopefully find food.

Answer 6

Dogs and most other canines (save for foxes) are naturally pack animals, and are used to hunting in groups, while cats are solitary (save for lions) and are used to hunting and surviving on their own.

Just a guess, though, I'm not sure =].

Answer 7

Cats hunt mice and rats. Dogs scrounge out of dumpsters or steal food.

Answer 8

Cats can hunt for food.

Answer 9

you see more cats because they don't have to be licensed. dogs get caught by dog warrens or dog catchers.