Matt Black of Parramatta, pictured here with Isis, keeps his cats in a purpose built cat enclosure in his backyard. Credit:Wolter Peeters Matthew Black, a 35-year-old musician, built the enclosure to honour his late mother Julie's cats. "She wasn't a cat lady to begin with, but the cats made her one. Even when my mum was passing away, one of the cats came to the hospital and looked after her." His mother kept the cats mostly outdoors, but Mr Black decided to build the cats a fancy shed and netted area to keep Isis and others healthy for as long as possible. "They used to wander on the road, and at 3am, I would have to chase them back. There were definitely safety issues. They never got into catching prey but this is a happier and more stable place to look after them."

Researchers say cats go much farther their owners realise, especially at night. Credit:DiscoveryCircle.org.au The cats are quiet by day. At night the enclosure is like the 1978 frat party movie Animal House, he said. His cats aren't the only ones to live large when the lights go down. The Cat Tracker project monitored the movements of more than 428 cats over a week. Credit:DiscoveryCircle.org.au A study released last week that tracked more than 400 cats found nearly all roamed farther than most owners realised. This put the cats at risk of cars, hissy cat spats, annoyed neighbours and poisons, all while endangering native animals and birds.

University of South Australia researchers attached GPS devices to the collars of 428 cats for a week. It found the median range the cats travelled from their home was about the size of a football field, while some free-ranged across towns and city suburbs. An example of the cat bibs being introduced by Eurobodalla Council. Nearly 90 per cent travelled significantly longer distances at night than during the day, said Dr Philip Roetman who led the research by Discovery Circle. About 40 per cent of cats thought by their owners to be inside at night had out with night time home ranges of more than one hectare. Credit:DiscoveryCircle.org.au

About 40 per cent of cats thought by their owners to be inside at night had in fact been out and about with night time home ranges of more than one hectare, he said. Nearly all owners were shocked by the secret lives of their cats, said Dr Roetman. Wandering cats got into more fights than others, were at more risk of being run over, and were less loved than sedentary cats, he said. "It you want to reduce risks to the cat, do keep them inside," he said. About 70 per cent of cat-owners and non-owners supported keeping cats indoors or in enclosures at night.

Pressure is also building from people concerned about the impact of cats on native animal populations. A study found owners only see about 23 per cent of prey that cats catch. Across Australia, councils and state governments are cracking down on roaming cats. Victoria's Yarra Range Council, for example, has a 24-hour cat curfew, requiring residents to keep cats within their property at all times. South-west of Sydney, Wollondilly Council is now considering a night time curfew. Councillor Simon Landow has received overwhelming support for a dusk to dawn curfew to reduce the number of native animals killed by cats. But he said these rules had no teeth until the state government enacted similar legislation. WA has strict laws making microchipping and desexing compulsory, and placing limits on cat ownership, and South Australia is implementing similar laws. In NSW, Eurobodalla Council is trying a different approach. In the first trial of its kind, it will provide 500 cat owners with a cat bib that resembles a baby's. The large blue neoprene flap attached to the cat's collar distracts the cat from the prey. It was found by Murdoch University researchers to stop 81 per cent of cats from catching birds, 45 per cent of cats from catching mammals, and 33 per cent of cats from catching lizards and amphibians.

Courtney Fink-Downes, the council's natural resource officer, said the council will be providing a free bib to cat owners who lived near bushland with native animals, lizards and birds at risk. Chantel Benbow's cat Mia has worn a cat bib for several years because it reduces her cat's hunting. Ms Benbow, 26 of Waterloo, is an ecologist who knew her cat was hunting the "odd thing". She feels a little hypocritical owning an outdoor cat but she can't keep one indoors. "If you want to have a pet cat, keep it indoors because they are hunters. They are beautiful, they are cute and fluffy but they will kill something," she said. After getting the results of the cat tracking data from the GPS devices, Dr Roetman said many owners had decided to build cat enclosures or net part of their yards to contain their cats.

Peter Eccles, the owner of Sydney Cat Enclosures said business had boomed as councils and owners became more concerned about keeping cats safe. Mr Black's cat enclosure was the most expensive that Mr Eccles had built so far. Many included cat walks, from an upstairs bedroom into a netted garden area, netted porches or decks with lush playing areas. Loading Mr Black has no regrets about the cost of his cat enclosure, which a climbing tree a storage area and electric lights. Keeping them enclosed doesn't worry him: "Cats have that almost ageless aloofness. Just when you think that they are under human control, they have a mind of their own. They still have that wanderlust about them."