According to Animal Control Officer Mark Johnson, Princeton Borough has a cat problem.
Following repeated reports of songbird slayings on both Wilton Street and Cedar Lane, Mr. Johnson brought his cages to the neighborhood about two months ago and took 56 feral cats into custody.
The cats seemed to have been coming in and out of one Wilton Street residence in particular, Mr. Johnson said. Apparently, the woman who lives in the residence had tried to take care of the felines.
According to Mr. Johnson, the woman said she called Animal Control last year asking that someone pick up about six cats her daughter had brought from New York. Mr. Johnson had denied the request, saying he could only pick up strays. Since then, Mr. Johnson said the cats have had kittens and those kittens have had kittens and “it definitely got ugly from there.”
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Friday, August 7, 2009
Kitty on a plate (Down under)
Take environmental author and artist Kaye Kessing, she reckons you should never boil a cat because they are far better roasted. I’d never considered that. But it did make me pause to think. Mind you, she does have a cracking recipe for feral moggy that she cooks with quandong and native lemongrass that she calls a “catterole”.
This is an environmentalist who is really sinking her teeth into the issue of feral animals. She’s been putting pussy – feral pussy – in the pot for around 17 years on her 40 hectare property in the Northern Territory. Inspired by stories of the local Aboriginals feasting on feral cat, she traps them, skins them, pan fries them and then braises them in the crockpot.
While it’s not likely to ever be a mystery ingredient in a Master Chef challenge, it does show a certain commitment to her green passion. A sort of a twist on the: use it or lose it doctrine – more a: use it and lose it mindset.
This is an environmentalist who is really sinking her teeth into the issue of feral animals. She’s been putting pussy – feral pussy – in the pot for around 17 years on her 40 hectare property in the Northern Territory. Inspired by stories of the local Aboriginals feasting on feral cat, she traps them, skins them, pan fries them and then braises them in the crockpot.
While it’s not likely to ever be a mystery ingredient in a Master Chef challenge, it does show a certain commitment to her green passion. A sort of a twist on the: use it or lose it doctrine – more a: use it and lose it mindset.
Holyrood battles cats
"While it was agreed the cats probably help with containing vermin,"
Scientific studies have shown:
“Cats at artificially high densities, sustained by supplemental feeding, reduce abundance of native rodent and bird populations, change the rodent species composition, and may facilitate the expansion of the house mouse into new areas.” (Hawkins, C.C., W.E. Grant,and M.T.Longnecker.1999.Effect of subsidized house cats on California birds and rodents. Transactions of the Western Section of The Wildlife Society 35:29-33)
Taking pity on the unwanted pets enables them to prey on our native fauna! There is nothing compassionate, non-lethal, nor humane about them killing hundreds of millions of our birds, reptiles, mammals, and amphibians each year! Those cats create an environmental emergency, not an animal welfare one!
Scientific studies have shown:
“Cats at artificially high densities, sustained by supplemental feeding, reduce abundance of native rodent and bird populations, change the rodent species composition, and may facilitate the expansion of the house mouse into new areas.” (Hawkins, C.C., W.E. Grant,and M.T.Longnecker.1999.Effect of subsidized house cats on California birds and rodents. Transactions of the Western Section of The Wildlife Society 35:29-33)
Taking pity on the unwanted pets enables them to prey on our native fauna! There is nothing compassionate, non-lethal, nor humane about them killing hundreds of millions of our birds, reptiles, mammals, and amphibians each year! Those cats create an environmental emergency, not an animal welfare one!
Thursday, August 6, 2009
How can I help homeless cats in the Tampa Bay South Shore area?
My post:
You may have heard of Dr. Christine Storts, the vet who appealed to the Florida Wildlife Commission several years ago to end the killing of our native fauna by pets. She is dead set against maintaining such colonies. She is also dead set against letting house cats roam free.
Dr. Storts wants to see all cats indoors or on leashes all the time, and no feral cat colonies, even if that means trapping and removing strays, many of which will inevitably be killed in shelters. The environmental damage the cats cause and the diseases they can spread are too important to ignore, she said.
You may have heard of Dr. Christine Storts, the vet who appealed to the Florida Wildlife Commission several years ago to end the killing of our native fauna by pets. She is dead set against maintaining such colonies. She is also dead set against letting house cats roam free.
Dr. Storts wants to see all cats indoors or on leashes all the time, and no feral cat colonies, even if that means trapping and removing strays, many of which will inevitably be killed in shelters. The environmental damage the cats cause and the diseases they can spread are too important to ignore, she said.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Arivaca gets help with feral cats
My post: Rodent control? Did you know house mice are more prevalent in areas WITH cats? Don't believe me?
East Bay Regional Park District, CA: A two-year study
was conducted in two parks with grassland habitat. One park
had no cats, but more than 25 cats were being fed daily in the
other park. There were almost twice as many birds seen in the
park with no cats as in the park with cats. California Thrasher
and California Quail, both ground-nesting birds, were seen
during surveys in the no-cat area,whereas they were never seen
in the cat area. In addition, more than 85% of the native deer
mice and harvest mice trapped were in the no-cat area,whereas
79% of the house mice,an exotic pest species,were trapped in the cat area. The researchers concluded, “Cats at artificially high densities, sustained by supplemental feeding, reduce abundance of native rodent and bird populations, change the rodent species composition, and may facilitate the expansion of the house mouse into new areas.” (Hawkins, C.C., W.E. Grant,and M.T.Longnecker.1999.Effect of subsidized house cats on California birds and rodents. Transactions of the Western
Section of The Wildlife Society 35:29-33)
East Bay Regional Park District, CA: A two-year study
was conducted in two parks with grassland habitat. One park
had no cats, but more than 25 cats were being fed daily in the
other park. There were almost twice as many birds seen in the
park with no cats as in the park with cats. California Thrasher
and California Quail, both ground-nesting birds, were seen
during surveys in the no-cat area,whereas they were never seen
in the cat area. In addition, more than 85% of the native deer
mice and harvest mice trapped were in the no-cat area,whereas
79% of the house mice,an exotic pest species,were trapped in the cat area. The researchers concluded, “Cats at artificially high densities, sustained by supplemental feeding, reduce abundance of native rodent and bird populations, change the rodent species composition, and may facilitate the expansion of the house mouse into new areas.” (Hawkins, C.C., W.E. Grant,and M.T.Longnecker.1999.Effect of subsidized house cats on California birds and rodents. Transactions of the Western
Section of The Wildlife Society 35:29-33)
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