Cats

[Claadehol]

I see yet more kittens advertised, free to good home. Why oh why, cant owners of these animals get them neutered?

 

There are far too many irresponsible cat owners in this country, these animals are causing devastation among nesting birds, globally as well as nationally. Ask Chris Packham.

 

If you must keep these carnivores, please do your bit to keep their numbers under control.

[hazel64]

Take it you don't like cats! It's not just cats that eat baby birds at this time of year.

[Claadehol]

Obviously I'm aware of that Hazel, but the others tend to be part of the natural order of things. Cats on the other hand are introduced into more and more areas as the human population increases. This level of predation is unsustainable.

 

A survey by the RSPB some years ago calculated that Britain's 9,000,000 cats kill approximately 270,000,000 small birds and mammals every year. That figure will be higher now.

 

And it's not a question of disliking cats, it's more a question of a common sense approach to their numbers for the sake of the wildlife.

 

It's usually women who keep large quantities of cats, perhaps it's the claws they have in common.  But hey! I certainly dont dislike women, they're just a bit misguided concerning certain things. I'm always available for good advice. 

[Frenchie]

I agree it is not just cats causing problems, pleanty of other culprits like crows and gulls, and lets not gloss over the major issues with most of these birds being more to do with humans than any other animal whether directly or indirectly. However all that being said, domestic cats are predators and do contribute strongly to the death rate of some species of bird and that shouldn't be glossed over either just because we happen to like cats more than crows.

 

Personally I am dismayed and worried about the general attitude in this country to breed our pets, whether it be some misguided attempt to earn cash as seems the fad with dogs or because of people's squeemishness with fixing their animals (that last one in particular really gets me!), either way it is irresponsible for ANY animal. I can only conclude these people that are guilty of the afore mentioned don't really care about their pets at all, or they would put more thought into what kind of homes the offspring would get or the countless other dogs and cats out there in need of a home - I for one would never buy a puppy, I have always and will always take one that needs a new start in life and Ive had some cracking animals over the years.

 

For the record I'm not saying that there aren't reasons for buying an animal/taking a free puppy or kitten or even for breeding them, and as someone that grew up with a litter of puppies in my house it is a magical thing to be involved with, I'm just agreeing with brochbuilder that unfortunately with most people it is not a well reasoned decision to do so but rather irresponsibility. 

Although having read that last comment about women and cats I'm not as enthused with siding with him any more...

[Claadehol]

Sorry Frenchie, that was just a bit of mischief.....keep smiling!

[as]

couldn't have said it better myself, completely agree.

Why breed your cat, when the local Cats Protection is crying out for homes for the cats in their care??? According to the RSPCA the UK cat population has reached crisis point. Sorry, can't copy the link here for some reason.

 

Animal shelters up and down the country are literally overflowing with unwanted pets, but people still keep breeding for a quick Buck, even here on Shetland.  It is also pretty straightforward to adopt a dog from outwith Shetland and bring it back here, so that shouldn't be seen as a hindrance. Many rescue orgas are happy to arrange for a homecheck on Shetland and potential adopters could always ask their vets for a reference.

 

Why oh why oh why is it so difficult for peeps to spay and neuter their pets??? I dispear, I really do.

[hazel64]

I have four cats, all neutered I might add also I am a very loving and responsible pet owner. I don't like that cats hunt birds etc., but they also keep vermin down by catching mice and rats.

Have you ever considered the amount of wildlife humans kill, sometime for no reason but because they can! Also was just watching a programme on telly were pigeons in cities are trapped and killed because they are treated by councils as pests. Don't see the same amount of pigeons in Lerwick in recent years.

I don't believe that people should be allowed to breed animals for profit and believe anyone wishing to breed cats, dogs or any other domestic pet should be licensed by a governing body.

And yes all my life I have had rescue pets and donate regularly to animal charities.

[as]

Yep, I am all for licensing! Not just to curb the hobby breeding, but also for owners. Mandatory microchipping is a step in the right direction.

[Frenchie]

No worries Brochbuilder, afterwards I did realise you'd likely meant the comment as a joke, it's just hard to judge tone sometimes in written comments.

 

And Hazel, I'm glad to hear you're such a responsible cat owner, I really wasn't trying to get at you with my comment, just weighing in an opinion - I'm totally with you on the licensing thing. I personally would go one step further and say we should have to have licences for owning animals too - not so much to prevent people getting a pet by jumping through a million hoops (though I suppose it would make sure they were really serious about it!) but to have the right to revoke it if they did something unforgivable, which my understanding of current animal cruelty laws is that we can't currently deny people from replacing pets even if their last ones were removed for cruelty reasons.

 

But anyway I'm a tad off topic - indeed, cats also have beneficial effects in vermin populations, and I don't think you can fault a cat for killing, its just following its nature after all, even if sometimes it makes you want to cry. My own cat - also a neutered rescue - is unfortunately very much a bird killer. As a vegetarian I hate it even with the likes of pigeons, but really what can you do? I just do my best to discourage birds from our garden and am grateful the chances of anything to significant coming around my way is unlikely!

 

As for the human/wildlife issue, I couldn't agree more. It's really criminal what we do and get away with, both around the rest of the world and even in this country. Its my personal opinion that the majority of all wild animal decline is a direct result of human involvement.

[CrunchieSquirrel]

Shouldn't this be in the agriculture forum?

[as]

As I am not a cat owner, I must ask:

Do the catcollars that have a little bell attached actually work?

[Frenchie]

Lol, honestly I have no idea what forum its in - I just saw the topic come up in the feed and joined in. 

 

And we've tried the bell collars - they work to some degree. Cats are mostly ambush predators though so it is limited and the bells in my experience aren't jingly enough - when my cat is walking in stalk mode then they stay silent, she's to smooth to make them tinkle. I'd still probably use them to give the wildlife some chance, but there really is no point with her. Because of safety cat collars all have snaps instead of buckles so that if caught they'll snap open rather than risk a cat strangling themselves, our collars never last more than 24 hours on her. I'm not sure if she's just always getting them caught or actively takes them off (she opens doors so its not to unlikely really...) either way I'd still recommend for others to try them but for us at least they are no use. 

[Hector's House]

The bells do work, but not always in the way intended. Cats actually learn to become MORE stealthy so the prey only hears the bell ringing as a death knell, not a warning.

When younger my cat would bring live birds and mice into the house, but she quickly learnt that I really didn't want any presents & now she catches & eats rabbits - which I have yet to hear anyone complain about.

[Claadehol]

Well Hector, you are a remarkable human being. You have managed to train a cat to hunt and kill only rabbits.

 

For the sake of the natural world, you must share this gift. Perhaps you could run a training school in Shetland for cat owners. Not only would you save the lives of countless small birds, you would also help rid the Shetland crofts of a major agricultural pest.

 

Your skills could go global.

[Hector's House]

Remarkable? So I keep telling myself