Catios booming as support rises for a cat containment law

Saturday, 6 June 2026

Support for a law requiring pet cats to be contained in their owners’ properties is growing, says a leading conservation group.

Predator Free NZ polls a representative sample of hundreds of Kiwis every two years for their thoughts on Aotearoa’s predator-free movement.

Its latest survey, released this week, shows nearly eight in 10 supported the ambitious goal of completely eradicating introduced predators though only about one in four (26%) had confidence it could be done by 2050.

The data also found more than one in three (35%) supported national legislation requiring owners to keep cats on their own property - though the proportion was lower in Canterbury at 31%. In 2024, just 25% of respondents both nationally and in Canterbury supported a law change.

While 67% of Kiwis as a whole agreed feral cat populations on conservation land should be actively reduced, only 61% of Canterbury residents agreed. But at the same time, they were slightly more in favour of mandatory micro-chipping and de-sexing than the country as a whole.

Predator Free NZ Trust chief executive Jessi Morgan said support for a pet cat containment law was trending upwards nationwide.

“We are seeing that behaviour change in Canterbury quite a lot too. As native species return to your red zones and birds come over from Banks Peninsula, people are increasingly aware of the native species that are living around them and the impact that cats can have.”

Kiwis historically had a culture of letting cats roam but as awareness of their impact grew, this was changing. “People aren't as tolerant of cats walking into their garden and pooping in their veggie patch and eating the lizards that are in the garden.

“I think we're suddenly thinking, why do cats just get free rein to walk across my property whether I want them to or not?”

Justin Wallace only built his first “catio”, an enclosed outdoor space for cats two years ago in Sumner. He’s now building his 46th, and seeing so much demand that his specialist catio business SafeCats NZ has become a full-time job.

Wallace is now making plans to roll out to other regions.

Shelves, ramps, climbing poles, and “cat condos” were all regular features, but he had been asked to include everything from space for a picnic table, to a 5.5-metre elevated bridge between one Rangiora home and its catio.

Prices range from $2000 to $17,000, depending on the size and complexity.

“Probably the best part of my job is when they bring the cats out,” said Wallace. While they were often apprehensive to start with, they were soon ”zooming around“.

The feedback Wallace got most often from clients was relief. “A lot of people have had very traumatic experiences. “They've had a cat run over, they've had a cat mauled by a dog, they've had a cat go missing.”

He had one client nearly in tears, after she was able to safely open the door to her deck for the first time.

Rolleston resident Sarah Coote said her catio was “paying for itself”, especially when it came to vet bills.

Her main concern was for the safety of her two rescue cats, Radar and Trent. “I don't know what I'd do if I lost them to an accident outside. It would just be devastating.”

She had seen much of her neighbourhood spring up around her, and the roads get much busier.

“I don't want to be then put in the position where I've got to make the hard call with a vet after my cat's been hit by a car, whether I can afford a $2000 vet bill or not.”

As an animal lover, Coote also hated to think of her cats catching wildlife. New Zealand had a lot of feral and wandering cats, and she said it was a “big problem” for native birds.

“Unless you build a catio, you cannot contain a cat. They just go for miles and miles and miles.”