like others are saying, I think it depends on the area. I live in a safe area. I only have to worry about fog and storms once in a while, and thats when I keep them in. Other then that, they are free to come in when they want or go out when they want. They really like being outside, so I let them go out when they want. Now if it were in other areas, I would have to rethink it. The country I would not let my cats out because there are too many wild animals there. But here there are none, and Misty the dog scares off and protects my cats from any other dangers.