Luana da Silva Gonçalves

Domestic cats (Felis catus) currently occupy the 38th place in the Global Invasive Species Database. Free-roaming cats potentially have broad-ranging impacts on wildlife, occupying most terrestrial environments globally as house pets, strays, or feral animals. In Australia, for example, cats are responsible for the decline in many vertebrate populations and extinction of several native mammals. However, in Brazil, few studies have explored either direct impacts of predation on wildlife, or other indirect impacts, such as competition for resources, niche overlap, hybridization, and disease transmission. In this review, we summarize and discuss 34 original research reports, published between 2001 and 2020, on impacts of free-roaming cats in Brazil. We briefly contextualize the history of cat domestication and present that, in Brazil, more studies have focused on the potential of free-roaming cats to transmit disease than to exert impacts via predation or competition on wildlife. More studies were conducted in Brazilian mainland areas (n = 23)—notably in Atlantic Forest—than on islands (n = 11). The review highlights potential impacts of cats on wildlife. We also discuss how control management strategies can affect the welfare of domestic cats, identifying potential knowledge gaps as well as opportunities for future research. Finally, understanding risks of cat predation is necessary to inform future measures to mitigate impacts on wildlife, without neglecting cat welfare.

Environmental enrichment designed in accordance with the cats' individuality and household characteristics is one of the most effective and widely used tools to enhance feline welfare. This study aimed to evaluate the types of environmental enrichments provided by cat guardians and their associations with housing features and cat personality. An online questionnaire was developed including questions about types of enrichment provided, housing features (indoor vs. outdoor, house vs. apartment), and a scale with 18 personality traits. A total of 3,083 responses were collected. Most of the guardians declared to provide environmental enrichment items for their cats. The items most offered were play interaction (77.4%), access to a balcony and/or window with a protective net (72.7%), places to hide (54.5%), and toys (46.0%). The items with lower frequencies were water fountains (34.5%), self-groomers (11.3%), outdoor walks on a leash (6.5%), and food puzzles (3.5%). The choice of enrichment items was more related to housing features than to the cat's personality. Enrichment provision was more associated with indoor housing and cats living in apartments than with cats living outdoors and in houses.