Domestic cats are cherished companions, yet their free-roaming behaviour continues to pose significant risks to biodiversity, community wellbeing, and feline welfare. Recognising the urgency of this issue, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals New South Wales (RSPCA NSW) Australia, spearheaded the Keeping Cats Safe at Home (KCSAH) project, a four-year initiative (2021–2024) funded at AUD 2.5 million. The project trialled human behaviour change strategies to reduce the impacts of roaming cats across 11 local government areas in New South Wales.
Unlike traditional enforcement-led strategies, KCSAH was grounded in social science research, focusing on shifting owner practices through education and engagement. The project deployed a suite of interventions:
- Social marketing campaigns to raise awareness of containment benefits.
- Educational resources and school programmes to embed responsible pet ownership early.
- Community events that fostered dialogue and normalised containment.
- Subsidised desexing and microchipping to reduce unwanted litters and improve traceability.
This multifaceted approach reflects a growing recognition that veterinary professionals must work alongside behavioural scientists, educators, and local councils to achieve sustainable outcomes.
The project achieved remarkable reach: more than 3.5 million people engaged via social media, 42,000 through blogs, 87,000 via the website, and 36,000 through community events. On the clinical front, over 2,700 cats were desexed and 1,700 microchipped, directly reducing the potential for uncontrolled breeding and abandonment.
Ecological monitoring provided encouraging signs, with reductions in free-roaming cat densities recorded in three council areas. Several councils also reported declines in nuisance complaints and impoundments, suggesting containment practices were beginning to take hold. Importantly, caregivers exposed to campaign messaging reported greater capability, opportunity, and motivation to contain cats—key behavioural drivers identified in social science frameworks.
Despite these successes, methodological constraints limited the ability to measure actual behaviour change at scale. This highlights a critical challenge for veterinary professionals: while campaigns can shift attitudes, translating these into consistent containment practices requires long-term monitoring and reinforcement.
KCSAH demonstrates that large-scale cat management is achievable when veterinary expertise is integrated with behavioural science and community engagement. For practitioners, the project offers both inspiration and a reminder: effective cat containment is not solely a matter of clinical care, but of sustained collaboration across disciplines.
As Australia continues to grapple with the ecological and welfare impacts of roaming cats, veterinary professionals are uniquely positioned to champion evidence-based, community-driven solutions—ensuring that cats remain safe at home, while protecting the environments they share.
