# do cats have road sense?



## Paws850 (Mar 3, 2015)

I am wondering do cats have road sense NOT to cross a main road because i know dogs dont as i seen a dog just run infront of a speeding car.
what do you guys think?


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

No.


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## 10cats2dogs (Jun 16, 2013)

Absolutely not! I see way to many cats, that haven't made it...:'(


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

I imagine some outdoor cats have more saavy than others... they have to or they get killed.

I know that my MowMow when out with me on his leash will not hesitate to walk right out into the road with cars coming. Only me holding him back with his leash/harness stop him from getting hit. He would *NEVER* be allowed out without me to keep him safe.


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## Jenny bf (Jul 13, 2013)

No, not at all. If they see something the opposite side of the road they will just go for it.


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## TabbCatt (Mar 26, 2014)

When I was a young child, my next door neighbor had tons of stray cats coming and going on their property, including ours. Several were accidentally run over on our driveway by my dad. He never liked cats, sadly, but it was never intentional. I mean, he hated the clean up, can you imagine? And then tell the neighbor about it? 

As much as there are cat lovers, you must know there are some folks that do not, or are aggravated by loose cats and or dogs, and some even mentally disturbed that take it out on our pets, especially ones that we let roam freely. It may be different to you in your country, though. Here, folks can simply just be mean, and not the cat's fault for being less than smart or quick about it.


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## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

Some do, some don't...but even the ones that seem to often make a mistake, a fatal mistake.


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## cat owner again (Dec 14, 2012)

I don't think a cat has road sense unless they are close to hear the noise of the car or it coming at them. If I go over to talk to a neighbor my cat will cross the road. Luckily I live toward the end of a cul de sac (dead end).


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## Mandy and Ellie (Oct 22, 2013)

I think some do... but I've also seen cats that have good "road sense" get killed by a car after years and years of looking out for them... so it's never 100%. I think it's especially bad now that new hybrid/electric cars can be SO quiet that they may not hear or sense the car.

My past family cat, Sheba, was indoor/outdoor her entire life after we got her as a kitten from my aunt's farm. She ALWAYS looked both ways before crossing and wouldn't go if she sensed a car... which as a child I thought was fascinating. She lived to be 17, and even in her old age she would wait for cars. Although in her older age she didn't venture as far so road occurrences were low.

However, sometimes it doesn't matter how careful or how good of "road sense" cats have. I've seen some drivers purposely AIM for the cats, even if they're on the side of the road waiting or even on a curb/sidewalk. It's disgusting. I think that's how a lot of cats who were otherwise road savvy get hit...


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## Marcia (Dec 26, 2010)

No they do not have road sense. Some that have lived outdoors all their lives MAY have a tad of sense to keep away from the street, but 90% of cats will meet a very, very unpleasant death when they decide to cross a road.


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## katdad (Jun 13, 2013)

No, absolutely not -- cats and dogs just cannot appreciate the speed at which a car is approaching, or recognize the danger from it, except that of course it's a "large beast" and to hide or run.

But there's no "learning curve" by which a cat can appreciate the danger. Their instincts provide them a fight or flee reaction to an oncoming animal but a car approaches at least 10-20 times faster and there's no way most cats can dodge in time -- they simply don't have the instinctive knowledge for something that fast.

Heck, even humans have to learn to dodge cars but that's a learned response, not instinct.

Problem with cars, the learning "curve" is too steep. All it takes is one hit and you're a dead cat. It's not like they can get barked at or nipped at, as if by a dog. But cars are way too fast for the instinctual behavior to protect the cat.

Sad but true. Which is why indoor/outdoor cats live shorter lives. Best for the cat to be slightly bored but safe indoors.


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## Jetlaya67 (Sep 26, 2012)

I have seen too many cats dead by the side of the road. And like Mandy says, there are mean people in the world that will go it of their way to hurt an animal.


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## Arianwen (Jun 3, 2012)

Some are good - BUT if an animal panics they lose all sense of unnatural dangers.


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## dt8thd (Jan 7, 2013)

"Road sense" isn't really a thing when it comes to most animals. Some cats are naturally more cautious than others around roads, certainly, but they don't have a specific understanding of _roads_ being a potential danger _because_ of cars. Even little kids have to be taught not to run out into the street--they have no natural concept of the consequences associated with not paying careful enough attention to the seemingly random transitions between one type of paved surface, like a sidewalk, and another (the road). Cats (and various other animals) cross roads all the time without any negative consequences, so it's not logical for them to infer that roads are any different from any other surface. It only makes sense: Cars have been around for a fraction of a second on the evolutionary timeline. There's simply nothing in nature that cats are evolved to recognize as a danger that can travel as fast as a vehicle. A car way the heck down the street doesn't seem like an imminent danger until it's already too late. And, that's if they see the car at all: Cats eyes are great at detecting motion in low light conditions, and they have better peripheral vision than humans, but they don't have great distance vision, and being able to see blurry movement "way off in the distance" out of your peripheral vision really isn't going to deter most cats from crossing the road.


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

My cats barely have "don't run into the coffee table" sense.


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