My response:
I have a rude neighbor who feeds strays 24/7
I have a Havahart trap that is set 24/7, too. I have so much business I've been thinking of buying at least one more trap. All of the cats I catch make the trip to our local animal control, and as far as I know it is one way.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
How to trap a feral cat
My post:
The "benefits" to a feral cat of being re-abandoned are dubious at best. Their accumulative effect on our native wildlife is devastating! The practice should be outlawed... Hey, wait a minute, it is against the law to abandon pets in most if not all of the United States, and it is against Federal law to endanger migratory wildlife. So the practice of TNR is against the law, the laws aren't being enforced!
The "benefits" to a feral cat of being re-abandoned are dubious at best. Their accumulative effect on our native wildlife is devastating! The practice should be outlawed... Hey, wait a minute, it is against the law to abandon pets in most if not all of the United States, and it is against Federal law to endanger migratory wildlife. So the practice of TNR is against the law, the laws aren't being enforced!
Protestors Oppose Control of Raccoons to Save Federally Listed Piping Plovers
This is at The Wildlife Society Blog, a blog and organization I enthusiastically endorse. My input?
The raccoon problem is yet another wildlife crisis the TNR proponents have contributed to with their feeding stations. I recall an interview Mr. J.R. Yeager, a former TNR manager who has served on the San Francisco Commission of Animal Control and Welfare had with Linda Winter, the former director of the Cats Indoors Campaign.
Mr. Yeager stated in part:
“Late this summer I began observing an adult raccoon and four offspring traveling from one feral cat feeding station to another eating the cat food I put out, sometimes even before the cats had a chance at it. My first thought was: quit eating my cat food. But then one evening at a particular location where I had seen them most often there was just one of the offspring, all alone, and it dawned on me then that the way its mother had taught it to fend for itself was from an artificial food supply that I had created. And if I withdrew that food supply what would happen to that small animal? And then of course I wondered if the cat food I was putting down every night was possibly responsible for an unnatural reproduction rate of at least this raccoon family? I don’t know the answers to these questions, but I do know that my actions are most likely having a disruptive impact on the natural order of the wildlife in this area.”
The raccoon problem is yet another wildlife crisis the TNR proponents have contributed to with their feeding stations. I recall an interview Mr. J.R. Yeager, a former TNR manager who has served on the San Francisco Commission of Animal Control and Welfare had with Linda Winter, the former director of the Cats Indoors Campaign.
Mr. Yeager stated in part:
“Late this summer I began observing an adult raccoon and four offspring traveling from one feral cat feeding station to another eating the cat food I put out, sometimes even before the cats had a chance at it. My first thought was: quit eating my cat food. But then one evening at a particular location where I had seen them most often there was just one of the offspring, all alone, and it dawned on me then that the way its mother had taught it to fend for itself was from an artificial food supply that I had created. And if I withdrew that food supply what would happen to that small animal? And then of course I wondered if the cat food I was putting down every night was possibly responsible for an unnatural reproduction rate of at least this raccoon family? I don’t know the answers to these questions, but I do know that my actions are most likely having a disruptive impact on the natural order of the wildlife in this area.”
Monday, July 6, 2009
I am extremely upset right now.
Today I read an account a self-styled amateur naturalist wrote about finding the blood trail and feathers where a federally protected migratory game bird, a White Winged Dove, had been murdered in his own front yard, while his outdoor cat sat calmly and watched him investigate not thirty feet away from the scene on a cushion on a couch on his front porch!
I couldn't write fiction scenarios any worse than this, folks!
I couldn't write fiction scenarios any worse than this, folks!
Seen at "Terrierman's Daily Dose" Cats as Predators
(More at link above)
In their campaigns and protests, Animal Rights folks seem to overlook the domestic cat as a wildlife killing machine that does far more mayhem in the countryside than anyone hunting with dogs.
In their campaigns and protests, Animal Rights folks seem to overlook the domestic cat as a wildlife killing machine that does far more mayhem in the countryside than anyone hunting with dogs.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Keene rabies case prompts warning
One cat infected with rabies in a Keene neighborhood led to the death of 20 others, rabies shots for three people and sparked warnings from local authorities for pet owners to have their cats vaccinated.
After one neighborhood woman was scratched by a strange-acting cat, the animal was put down and tested positive for rabies.
But another woman who had been feeding the feral cat, along with a half dozen of its brothers and sisters, had to surrender her own cats because they may have been exposed to rabies and she couldn't prove vaccination.
After one neighborhood woman was scratched by a strange-acting cat, the animal was put down and tested positive for rabies.
But another woman who had been feeding the feral cat, along with a half dozen of its brothers and sisters, had to surrender her own cats because they may have been exposed to rabies and she couldn't prove vaccination.
Critical Assessment of Claims Regarding Management of Feral Cats by Trap–Neuter–Return
TRAVIS LONGCORE*‡§, CATHERINE RICH*, AND LAUREN M. SULLIVAN†
*The Urban Wildlands Group, P.O. Box 24020, Los Angeles, CA 90024-0020, U.S.A. ‡Department of Geography, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0255, U.S.A. †Department of Geography, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1524, U.S.A.
§Address correspondence to Travis Longcore, email longcore@urbanwildlands.org
Abstract: Many jurisdictions have adopted programs to manage feral cats by trap–neuter–return (TNR), in which cats are trapped and sterilized, then returned to the environment to be fed and cared for by volunteer caretakers. Most conservation biologists probably do not realize the extent and growth of this practice and that the goal of some leading TNR advocates is that cats ultimately be recognized and treated as "protected wildlife." We compared the arguments put forth in support of TNR by many feral cat advocates with the scientific literature. Advocates promoting TNR often claim that feral cats harm wildlife only on islands and not on continents; fill a natural or realized niche; do not contribute to the decline of native species; and are insignificant vectors or reservoirs of disease. Advocates also frequently make claims about the effectiveness of TNR, including claims that colonies of feral cats are eventually eliminated by TNR and that managed colonies resist invasion by other cats. The scientific literature contradicts each of these claims. TNR of feral cats is primarily viewed and regulated as an animal welfare issue, but it should be seen as an environmental issue, and decisions to implement it should receive formal environmental assessment. Conservation scientists have a role to play by conducting additional research on the effects of feral cats on wildlife and by communicating sound scientific information about this problem to policy makers.
*The Urban Wildlands Group, P.O. Box 24020, Los Angeles, CA 90024-0020, U.S.A. ‡Department of Geography, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0255, U.S.A. †Department of Geography, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1524, U.S.A.
§Address correspondence to Travis Longcore, email longcore@urbanwildlands.org
Abstract: Many jurisdictions have adopted programs to manage feral cats by trap–neuter–return (TNR), in which cats are trapped and sterilized, then returned to the environment to be fed and cared for by volunteer caretakers. Most conservation biologists probably do not realize the extent and growth of this practice and that the goal of some leading TNR advocates is that cats ultimately be recognized and treated as "protected wildlife." We compared the arguments put forth in support of TNR by many feral cat advocates with the scientific literature. Advocates promoting TNR often claim that feral cats harm wildlife only on islands and not on continents; fill a natural or realized niche; do not contribute to the decline of native species; and are insignificant vectors or reservoirs of disease. Advocates also frequently make claims about the effectiveness of TNR, including claims that colonies of feral cats are eventually eliminated by TNR and that managed colonies resist invasion by other cats. The scientific literature contradicts each of these claims. TNR of feral cats is primarily viewed and regulated as an animal welfare issue, but it should be seen as an environmental issue, and decisions to implement it should receive formal environmental assessment. Conservation scientists have a role to play by conducting additional research on the effects of feral cats on wildlife and by communicating sound scientific information about this problem to policy makers.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Fort Hood: Cat shooting unfortunate, but legal
(Keep your pets indoors, especially when living next to an Army Installation with trained snipers!)
A Fort Hood policy against feral animals justified the shooting of a 1-year-old tabby cat by an installation game warden April 28.
The cat, "Yellow 2," left his owner's Maxdale Road property and roamed several feet onto Fort Hood, where a game warden shot him.
Fort Hood's installation pest management plan allows game wardens to kill suspected feral animals to prevent the spread of diseases such as rabies and to protect endangered species, said Chuck Medley, acting director of emergency services.
A Fort Hood policy against feral animals justified the shooting of a 1-year-old tabby cat by an installation game warden April 28.
The cat, "Yellow 2," left his owner's Maxdale Road property and roamed several feet onto Fort Hood, where a game warden shot him.
Fort Hood's installation pest management plan allows game wardens to kill suspected feral animals to prevent the spread of diseases such as rabies and to protect endangered species, said Chuck Medley, acting director of emergency services.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Let Them Eat Cat =- Best use of free-roaming cats I've heard of yet:
My comment: This blog would be totally amusing to me except I can imagine what a nuisance the rapidly increasing population of yodel dogs will become as they expand more and more into the suburbs. They will be taking out back yard pooches, as well as kitty snacks.
I've been blogging against TNR for several years, you may have seen my posts around the internet. The added input is most heartening, I'll lift a toast in salute to your efforts. Thank you.
I've been blogging against TNR for several years, you may have seen my posts around the internet. The added input is most heartening, I'll lift a toast in salute to your efforts. Thank you.
Beverly Hills Says: Starve the Cats - Or Go to Jail
(If they have an ordinance against feeding cats, she broke it)
Beverly Hills to Jail 65-Year-Old for Feeding Stray Cats
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., June 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On Wednesday morning, July 1, 2009 at 8:30 a.m. in Beverly Hills Superior Court, 9355 Burton Way, Division 2, Katherine Varjian, age 65, could be sentenced to jail for feeding stray cats. Varjian has been doing this for 12 years at her own expense. Without her, the cats would starve, or be picked up by the shelter, or be euthanized.
Each morning and each evening, the little group of 20 or so cats come quietly padding into an alley in the lushly landscaped and star-studded City of Beverly Hills The cats are so hungry, but not starving thanks to Varjian who has reduced the stray/feral cat population and found homes for as many as 40 cats and kittens yearly, for the last 12 years.
Neighbors, blaming Varjian for the profound increase in coyotes have signed a petition to force her to stop feeding the cats. They claim that Varjian, feeding only a two block area, is responsible for the increase in predatory coyotes throughout the entire Beverly Hills. The reality is that park like conditions, access to water, mansion-ization in the hills and canyons and drought conditions have sent the numbers of coyotes on residential streets sky rocketing in search of food.
Beverly Hills to Jail 65-Year-Old for Feeding Stray Cats
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., June 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On Wednesday morning, July 1, 2009 at 8:30 a.m. in Beverly Hills Superior Court, 9355 Burton Way, Division 2, Katherine Varjian, age 65, could be sentenced to jail for feeding stray cats. Varjian has been doing this for 12 years at her own expense. Without her, the cats would starve, or be picked up by the shelter, or be euthanized.
Each morning and each evening, the little group of 20 or so cats come quietly padding into an alley in the lushly landscaped and star-studded City of Beverly Hills The cats are so hungry, but not starving thanks to Varjian who has reduced the stray/feral cat population and found homes for as many as 40 cats and kittens yearly, for the last 12 years.
Neighbors, blaming Varjian for the profound increase in coyotes have signed a petition to force her to stop feeding the cats. They claim that Varjian, feeding only a two block area, is responsible for the increase in predatory coyotes throughout the entire Beverly Hills. The reality is that park like conditions, access to water, mansion-ization in the hills and canyons and drought conditions have sent the numbers of coyotes on residential streets sky rocketing in search of food.
Woman: Eagle flew off with cat
(Keep your pets indoors, people! The birds are retaliating!)
Ellen M. Majka was inside her home on Prescott Hill when she saw a bald eagle swoop down into her neighbor's yard.
It was the first time she saw a bald eagle in the neighborhood.
But even more surprising was what she saw in its talons when it flew back up - a black cat.
Ellen M. Majka was inside her home on Prescott Hill when she saw a bald eagle swoop down into her neighbor's yard.
It was the first time she saw a bald eagle in the neighborhood.
But even more surprising was what she saw in its talons when it flew back up - a black cat.
Cuts hamper feral efforts
My post: Does it feel good for you to know those cats will be re-abandoned? If so, you must be a TNR supporter. Personally, I consider the practice inhumane. You should have seen the last feral cat my dogs caught, just as he was running up my fence. He ripped in half between them and they slung innards all over the yard. I almost lost my lunch cleaning up the mess.
Then there was the one that got under my truck hood to stay warm. I cranked my engine and heard a God awful sound. The poor things leg was horribly mangled and I had to cut the belt to get it out. I took it to the vet in my car, but there was nothing to be done.
If that sounds like a good life for the cats to you, you'll really like thinking about the hundreds of millions of our wildlife they kill.
Then there was the one that got under my truck hood to stay warm. I cranked my engine and heard a God awful sound. The poor things leg was horribly mangled and I had to cut the belt to get it out. I took it to the vet in my car, but there was nothing to be done.
If that sounds like a good life for the cats to you, you'll really like thinking about the hundreds of millions of our wildlife they kill.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Kids exposed to rabid kitten in Wellington
A stray kitten rescued Saturday, June 26th was confirmed to have rabies by the Florida State Laboratory in Lantana today. Three young children in the area of Greenview Shores and Paddock Dr. found the kitten and are being look at for possible exposure to rabies.
One of the children's parents noticed the kitten acting irrationally and called Animal Care and Control who sent it to the lab for possible rabies confirmation. At least three kids have been identified as exposed to rabies and will begin the series of rabies shots immediately.
All residents of Wellington should be alert to animals that may be acting abnormally and immediately contact Animal Care and Control.
One of the children's parents noticed the kitten acting irrationally and called Animal Care and Control who sent it to the lab for possible rabies confirmation. At least three kids have been identified as exposed to rabies and will begin the series of rabies shots immediately.
All residents of Wellington should be alert to animals that may be acting abnormally and immediately contact Animal Care and Control.
Stray cats problem for County
My post: Florida should realize the enormous portion of your tourist trade that could be seriously impacted by your huge population of feral cats. I am a birder, and simply avoid the state. When you get your priorities right and take care of our ecology first I may be back.
...and even more repartee.
Redbud, disprove the TNR crowd's fabricated rhetoric and all that's left is emotion.
I loved it when Dr. Christine Storts, the veterinarian in Florida wrote her letter urging the wildlife commission to do its job and stop the cats' slaughter of the state's fauna. Here's a quote from her: "I do know that having TNR handle 5,000 cats over the past five years, when there's ten times that many still roaming around, means it isn't working,"
I loved it when Dr. Christine Storts, the veterinarian in Florida wrote her letter urging the wildlife commission to do its job and stop the cats' slaughter of the state's fauna. Here's a quote from her: "I do know that having TNR handle 5,000 cats over the past five years, when there's ten times that many still roaming around, means it isn't working,"
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
More repartee with cat enablers...
Hello, Kristy. Welcome to the discussion. Would you mind telling me how you made the moral and ethical decision the lives of fifty million feral pets are worth more than the estimated billion of our native birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and fish they kill yearly? Why kill a billion animals who evolved here to save fifty million of a pet species?
Repartee with a cat enabler.
Alley Cat Allies forgets that he or she doesn't know me, or the opposition I (please forgive me for not adding "and others". I was thinking under pressure.) am rallying to do away with TNR. It will take the average American becoming disgusted with the sheer number of cats to provoke them to action, but that point is soon coming. The millions of cats abandoned recently because of the financial circumstances could become the catalyst. Sort of like the humidity reaching saturation point, before raining on your parade.
The tiny percentage of pets you sterilize is ineffectual, as everyone besides you knows, or will know as we educate them, and you enable their killing of our fauna.
Speaking of education, your rhetoric is showing when you resort to quoting the mythical vacuum effect, it is a fallacy. When one feral cat or a million is removed our natural fauna can move back into what is rightfully theirs.
The tiny percentage of pets you sterilize is ineffectual, as everyone besides you knows, or will know as we educate them, and you enable their killing of our fauna.
Speaking of education, your rhetoric is showing when you resort to quoting the mythical vacuum effect, it is a fallacy. When one feral cat or a million is removed our natural fauna can move back into what is rightfully theirs.
Death watch
My response? They are not killing the pets as fast as they breed. It will take a concerted effort to make any headway. Tens of millions more are out there still breeding and killing.
Hundreds of local animals die when owners don't spay, neuter
-------------------------------------------
The increasing population in feral cats causes problems in local eco-systems because cats are such good predators. The cats diminish the small bird population as well as feed on bats that have the potential for rabies.
"Three years ago, U.S. Fish and Wildlife had feral cats listed as public enemy number one," said Nix.
Hundreds of local animals die when owners don't spay, neuter
-------------------------------------------
The increasing population in feral cats causes problems in local eco-systems because cats are such good predators. The cats diminish the small bird population as well as feed on bats that have the potential for rabies.
"Three years ago, U.S. Fish and Wildlife had feral cats listed as public enemy number one," said Nix.
Monday, June 29, 2009
I found a cat outside... now what?
"according to Alley Cat Allies, the most humane method of population control for feral cats is Trap-Neuter-Release."
You agree with that? Re-abandoning a pet species into the wild? We used to call that irresponsible, inhumane, and just plain rude. That all changed when the cat orgs decided it suited their agenda.
There are those of us who don't see it as compassionate, non-lethal, or humane to the millions of our fauna those pets kill each year. What about them?
You agree with that? Re-abandoning a pet species into the wild? We used to call that irresponsible, inhumane, and just plain rude. That all changed when the cat orgs decided it suited their agenda.
There are those of us who don't see it as compassionate, non-lethal, or humane to the millions of our fauna those pets kill each year. What about them?
Ruffian Foundation shelters feral cats
My post.
"feral cat wooded habitats"? Excuse me? Cats are a pet species and as such when they are outdoors it becomes an environmental issue, not an animal welfare one! Cats are very destructive to our native fauna.
My second post:
If there are feral cat colonies all over the area, they should either be removed or enclosed. The commonly accepted figure among most ecologists and biologists is one billion of our native fauna killed each year by that pet species! The cat fanciers say that is an exaggerated figure, so for the sake of discussion let's cut the number in half. Are you willing to stand by while an abandoned pet species murders a half-billion of our birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and fish each year? I'm not!
"feral cat wooded habitats"? Excuse me? Cats are a pet species and as such when they are outdoors it becomes an environmental issue, not an animal welfare one! Cats are very destructive to our native fauna.
My second post:
If there are feral cat colonies all over the area, they should either be removed or enclosed. The commonly accepted figure among most ecologists and biologists is one billion of our native fauna killed each year by that pet species! The cat fanciers say that is an exaggerated figure, so for the sake of discussion let's cut the number in half. Are you willing to stand by while an abandoned pet species murders a half-billion of our birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and fish each year? I'm not!
"Bird Group Watching TNR Colonies Like a Hawk"
Go to the link above to add your comment, mine was: "My gut response is that unwanted pet species have no place outdoors in our ecology and our existing laws to protect our vanishing wildlife should be enforced!
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Beloved cat wanders off, leaving him guessing
Can you believe this guy is in charge of their pet section? My response:
If you loved your pet so much why did you expose it to the dangers of being outside? Oh, that cute little rabbit? If one of your cat's teeth or claws scratched it, it died painfully from the infection. Of course it would have starved to death in a day or so anyway, after being taken from its nest.
If you loved your pet so much why did you expose it to the dangers of being outside? Oh, that cute little rabbit? If one of your cat's teeth or claws scratched it, it died painfully from the infection. Of course it would have starved to death in a day or so anyway, after being taken from its nest.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Australians cook up wild cat stew
(Does your kitty really have to go outside?)
Australians have come up with a novel solution to the millions of feral cats roaming the outback - eat them.
The felines are the descendants of domestic pets and kill millions of small native animals each year.
A recent Alice Springs contest featured wild cat casserole. The meat is said to taste like a cross between rabbit and, perhaps inevitably, chicken.
Australians have come up with a novel solution to the millions of feral cats roaming the outback - eat them.
The felines are the descendants of domestic pets and kill millions of small native animals each year.
A recent Alice Springs contest featured wild cat casserole. The meat is said to taste like a cross between rabbit and, perhaps inevitably, chicken.
Cat was quickly put down
(It's so simple, keep your pets indoors or contained on your property!)
Pet appeared sick, like it needed to be euthanized, officials claim
Promontory resident Wyndy Carnell said she knew something was wrong when she returned home June 9 and her housecat, Romeo, was missing.
A neighbor took the roughly 14-year-old cat to Summit County Animal Control when it strayed from its home on West View Trail. The cat was euthanized within three hours of its delivery that afternoon to the animal shelter in Wanship.
"Park City is such an animal town," Carnell said in a telephone interview.
But the woman who contacted Animal Control said Romeo looked "very, very sick," Summit County Sheriff's Office Capt. Dean Carr said.
Pet appeared sick, like it needed to be euthanized, officials claim
Promontory resident Wyndy Carnell said she knew something was wrong when she returned home June 9 and her housecat, Romeo, was missing.
A neighbor took the roughly 14-year-old cat to Summit County Animal Control when it strayed from its home on West View Trail. The cat was euthanized within three hours of its delivery that afternoon to the animal shelter in Wanship.
"Park City is such an animal town," Carnell said in a telephone interview.
But the woman who contacted Animal Control said Romeo looked "very, very sick," Summit County Sheriff's Office Capt. Dean Carr said.
Shelter chief regrets gas chamber ban: Says gassing can be more humane than injections
(I have tried to handle feral cats humanely, and my arms and hands were shredded in the process. Who wants to bet "humane injections" are not humane for the technicians?)
One local shelter supervisor had mixed emotions after Gov. Joe Manchin signed a bill banning new gas chambers for euthanizing animals, "I wish they wouldn't have been completely outlawed," said Dana Johnson, supervisor at the Monongalia County Canine Adoption Center.
Johnson said she was happy Manchin grandfathered existing chambers -- with certain provisions -- but doesn't feel the practice should be banned.
Under the bill, no new gas chambers can be built. Existing chambers must have been built by a certified company, and only trained technicians can use them.
One local shelter supervisor had mixed emotions after Gov. Joe Manchin signed a bill banning new gas chambers for euthanizing animals, "I wish they wouldn't have been completely outlawed," said Dana Johnson, supervisor at the Monongalia County Canine Adoption Center.
Johnson said she was happy Manchin grandfathered existing chambers -- with certain provisions -- but doesn't feel the practice should be banned.
Under the bill, no new gas chambers can be built. Existing chambers must have been built by a certified company, and only trained technicians can use them.
Elderly Richmond man donates 100 cats to shelter
(At last, a cat hoarder who realized he needed help!)
A Richmond, B.C., animal shelter is in dire need of support after an elderly man donated an estimated 100 kittens and cats to their care.
The cats were staying in a barn in Richmond owned by an 85 to 90-year-old man who lives alone.
When it became clear that many of the kittens were getting sick and needed help, he realized it was time to give them up.
A Richmond, B.C., animal shelter is in dire need of support after an elderly man donated an estimated 100 kittens and cats to their care.
The cats were staying in a barn in Richmond owned by an 85 to 90-year-old man who lives alone.
When it became clear that many of the kittens were getting sick and needed help, he realized it was time to give them up.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Governor's Plan to Save Money By Killing Puppies and Kitties Shouldn't Lead to Spike In Euthanizations Here (For Now)
(The times, they are changing!)
You know you've sailed into truly surreal political waters when the governor of a modern state suggests -- seriously suggests -- we save money by slaughtering more puppies and kittens. Either that or Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, like an adolescent hypnotically toying with a painfully loose tooth, is trying to see how low his popularity numbers can go.
If you hadn't yet heard, the governor's big plan to save the state money is to repeal the 11-year-old "Hayden Bill," which would knock the minimum amount of time an animal shelter must hold onto a dog or cat before euthanizing it from six days down to three. While the Legislative Analyst's Office points out that $23 million is yearly spent for those extra three days feeding and housing animals that go on to be put down anyway -- let us, once again note that a serious politician (albeit one who thrice portrayed a robotic killing machine) is pushing for fiscal solvency via snuffing dogs and cats.
San Francisco Animal Care and Control director Rebecca Katz told SF Weekly that, even if the Haden Bill is terminated, it won't be open season on pets locally: "The quick and dirty answer is, locally, we don't intend to change our practices on how long we hold a stray animal," she says. "I don't know that will always be the case, but that is our intention."
You know you've sailed into truly surreal political waters when the governor of a modern state suggests -- seriously suggests -- we save money by slaughtering more puppies and kittens. Either that or Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, like an adolescent hypnotically toying with a painfully loose tooth, is trying to see how low his popularity numbers can go.
If you hadn't yet heard, the governor's big plan to save the state money is to repeal the 11-year-old "Hayden Bill," which would knock the minimum amount of time an animal shelter must hold onto a dog or cat before euthanizing it from six days down to three. While the Legislative Analyst's Office points out that $23 million is yearly spent for those extra three days feeding and housing animals that go on to be put down anyway -- let us, once again note that a serious politician (albeit one who thrice portrayed a robotic killing machine) is pushing for fiscal solvency via snuffing dogs and cats.
San Francisco Animal Care and Control director Rebecca Katz told SF Weekly that, even if the Haden Bill is terminated, it won't be open season on pets locally: "The quick and dirty answer is, locally, we don't intend to change our practices on how long we hold a stray animal," she says. "I don't know that will always be the case, but that is our intention."
Hill cat dumping ground
(The pressure is on everywhere.)
Napier's hill continues to be a hot spot zone for "dumping" unwanted cats.
A Hawke's Bay Today photographer spotted five, what he believed were stray cats on the Napier Bluff Hill lookout at the weekend.
SPCA general manager Rob Johnson said the hill along with East Pier and Awatoto were regular "dumping zones" for unwanted cats.
__________________________________
Last year the SPCA received 579 lost, stray, abandoned and feral cats.
Napier's hill continues to be a hot spot zone for "dumping" unwanted cats.
A Hawke's Bay Today photographer spotted five, what he believed were stray cats on the Napier Bluff Hill lookout at the weekend.
SPCA general manager Rob Johnson said the hill along with East Pier and Awatoto were regular "dumping zones" for unwanted cats.
__________________________________
Last year the SPCA received 579 lost, stray, abandoned and feral cats.
DOMESTIC CAT PREDATION ON BIRDS AND OTHER WILDLIFE
This is a re-post and puts the lie to some feral cat myths about rodent control and bird predation.
The following are summaries of specific studies:
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)
The following are summaries of specific studies:
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)
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Need a laugh? Read this nonsense!
OMFG! I cannot believe the stupidity! How did the ancient Aztecs, Toltecs, and Mayans build Empires, astrological observatories, and roads from one end of South America to the other, without cats? By respecting and relying on their natural predators, of course!
“Cats are probably the most important species in existence for mankind. We never could have gone from hunter-gatherers to an agricultural society without them,” Carr said. “Imagine life without cats out there killing all of the mice and rats. It would be awful,” They give us a higher quality of life, and we owe them something for that,” Carr said.
“Cats are probably the most important species in existence for mankind. We never could have gone from hunter-gatherers to an agricultural society without them,” Carr said. “Imagine life without cats out there killing all of the mice and rats. It would be awful,” They give us a higher quality of life, and we owe them something for that,” Carr said.
Feral Cats Swarming Yuma
This is both bad news and good news. The cat non-profits are moving in. The good news? Their methods will soon prove ineffectual and more permanent methods will be used.
My reply?
"Feral Cats Swarming Yuma" is not an animal welfare issue, but an ecological one, and should be treated as such. The safety of our Federally protected wildlife should be given top priority, not the perpetuation of an unwanted pet predator colony.
My reply?
"Feral Cats Swarming Yuma" is not an animal welfare issue, but an ecological one, and should be treated as such. The safety of our Federally protected wildlife should be given top priority, not the perpetuation of an unwanted pet predator colony.
How many cats?
How many cats do you think one has to have to be considered a hoarder, or would one's degree of obsession with them be a better criteria?
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
A tragedy for humans and animals (Hoarders)
The nurse appears crisply turned out and totally professional while at work in the hospital. When she goes home, she walks into gagging squalor.
She is a hoarder.
For some reason no one is quite sure of, a large percentage of those who hoard animals in Rhode Island are nurses, says E.J. Finocchio. Their professional lives are all about antiseptic efficiency. Their private lives are all about desperate, lonely, filthy isolation.
The nurses are just one of the strange and tragic twists in a tale of animal cruelty carried out by people convinced they are doing the caring thing.
She is a hoarder.
For some reason no one is quite sure of, a large percentage of those who hoard animals in Rhode Island are nurses, says E.J. Finocchio. Their professional lives are all about antiseptic efficiency. Their private lives are all about desperate, lonely, filthy isolation.
The nurses are just one of the strange and tragic twists in a tale of animal cruelty carried out by people convinced they are doing the caring thing.
Blackmail isn't answer for cats
My response: Do we want to be knee deep in cats? Irresponsible pet owners actions have put us between a rock and a hard place environmentally. I was told the other day it is estimated Los Angeles alone has two to three million feral cats. This was a TNR backer I was talking to and she said when she moved there she saw cats everywhere, at work and at home. Who is going to spay and neuter three million cats, much less return them to the city streets?
This is an ecological emergency, not an animal welfare issue! We have to do the responsible and adult thing and get those feral pets out of our ecology by the most efficient means possible!
"When my wife was about to begin her daily walk on the morning of June 3, another lady passed by followed by two young kittens, which she said had been following her for several blocks. They were dirty and disheveled, and had obviously been abandoned. My wife, being the compassionate type, offered to keep the kittens while she called the Humane Society to pick them up."
This is an ecological emergency, not an animal welfare issue! We have to do the responsible and adult thing and get those feral pets out of our ecology by the most efficient means possible!
"When my wife was about to begin her daily walk on the morning of June 3, another lady passed by followed by two young kittens, which she said had been following her for several blocks. They were dirty and disheveled, and had obviously been abandoned. My wife, being the compassionate type, offered to keep the kittens while she called the Humane Society to pick them up."
Has anyone noticed a shortage of cats?
Why should an unwanted abandoned pet species be given a second chance when they're murdering our natural fauna and driving them closer to extinction? Has anyone noticed a shortage of cats?
Monday, June 22, 2009
To the cat enablers, defend your agenda
To the cat enablers: Your agenda is making sure unwanted feral pets are fed, not euthanized, and can live loose in our ecology where they've been abandoned. My agenda, along with that of countless others, is to keep my property free of cats and feel it is an invasion of my privacy and property rights. I detest cat feces and urine all over my lawn, garden, and flower beds. I also abhor their murder of our already pressured wildlife, which I have witnessed many times. Give me one good reason, please, why our agenda is less important than yours.
Letter to the Editor
My post: There seems to be a problem with someone's math. Here it is, they take a cat from a neighborhood to be neutered, then they release it. Net loss? Zero!
Oh, wait a minute... Logically, we have to surmise more cats will be attracted to all of the feeders, plus more unwanted cats will be dumped there as it becomes known they are taking care of them. End result? KaChing! KaChing! More cats!
Oh, wait a minute... Logically, we have to surmise more cats will be attracted to all of the feeders, plus more unwanted cats will be dumped there as it becomes known they are taking care of them. End result? KaChing! KaChing! More cats!
Feline problem on Tuesday agenda (Yuma)
My comment? Can we consider our priorities here? Pet species roaming loose outdoors are not a matter of animal welfare, but of our ecology. Feral and roaming cats are the worst threat to our birds and other fauna, right behind habitat loss and pollution. Some estimate they now outnumber our natural predators combined. TNR perpetuates cat colonies, while inviting more irresponsible pet owners to abandon their own pets. Let's do the responsible and adult thing and end the problem we created.
The city of Yuma will host a meeting Tuesday to address the issue of wild feline populations.
"The first objective is to try and reduce feral cat problems in the city," said city spokesman Dave Nash. "The second objective is to educate residents about trap-neuter-and-release efforts."
Nash said city officials hope to arrive at some conclusions regarding the root cause of the cat problems, and they need the help of the community.
The city of Yuma will host a meeting Tuesday to address the issue of wild feline populations.
"The first objective is to try and reduce feral cat problems in the city," said city spokesman Dave Nash. "The second objective is to educate residents about trap-neuter-and-release efforts."
Nash said city officials hope to arrive at some conclusions regarding the root cause of the cat problems, and they need the help of the community.
Is your cat licensed to kill and have a right to roam free?
Is your cat licensed to kill and have a right to roam free? You may want to go visit these varmint hunter's site. chaiokitty.com I don't believe your cat is safe within 500 yards of them!
Are their methods of killing inhumane? Not when one considers they go for instantaneous one shot kills and your fuzzy kitty may toy with the animals they're protecting for hours before shredding them.
Are their methods of killing inhumane? Not when one considers they go for instantaneous one shot kills and your fuzzy kitty may toy with the animals they're protecting for hours before shredding them.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Doh! Cats are not a health issue?
My reply: Doh! Cats are not a health issue? Read this from the Asthma and Allergy foundation of America.
Allergies to pets with fur or feathers are common, especially among people who have other allergies or asthma. From 15 percent to 30 percent of people with allergies have allergic reactions to cats and dogs.
People with dog allergies may be allergic to all dogs or to only some breeds. Cat allergies are about twice as common as dog allergies.
http://www.aafa.org/display.cfm?id=9&sub=18&cont=236
More: "If the cats are simply removed, others will come in from outlying areas and take over the now vacant territory."
Pardon me for correcting you. You seem to be granting ownership of our ecology to a pet species. If you take away one cat or fifty million it will relieve their hunting pressure on our natural fauna and allow them to reclaim it. Should pit bulls and poodles be managed in colonies outdoors running free? I don't think so, and neither should cats.
Allergies to pets with fur or feathers are common, especially among people who have other allergies or asthma. From 15 percent to 30 percent of people with allergies have allergic reactions to cats and dogs.
People with dog allergies may be allergic to all dogs or to only some breeds. Cat allergies are about twice as common as dog allergies.
http://www.aafa.org/display.cfm?id=9&sub=18&cont=236
More: "If the cats are simply removed, others will come in from outlying areas and take over the now vacant territory."
Pardon me for correcting you. You seem to be granting ownership of our ecology to a pet species. If you take away one cat or fifty million it will relieve their hunting pressure on our natural fauna and allow them to reclaim it. Should pit bulls and poodles be managed in colonies outdoors running free? I don't think so, and neither should cats.
City puts limits on ownership of cats
(Cats, feral or roaming, are a domestic pet, and as such should neither be abandoned nor tolerated outdoors. To do so is rude to fellow property owners and devastating to our ecology, as well as being inhumane to the cat.)
Cats are a hot-button issue in San Antonio. When I wrote "Removing neighbor's cats is wrong" (May 24), letters poured in. Like many readers, Tina wrote, "If people love their cats, they need to keep them inside."
Other readers wondered what the city's response would be to a complaint about 50 cats in a neighbor's yard. "They (the city) have to help, right?" says Christina. "That's hoarding."
Cats are a hot-button issue in San Antonio. When I wrote "Removing neighbor's cats is wrong" (May 24), letters poured in. Like many readers, Tina wrote, "If people love their cats, they need to keep them inside."
Other readers wondered what the city's response would be to a complaint about 50 cats in a neighbor's yard. "They (the city) have to help, right?" says Christina. "That's hoarding."
Cat lover learns tough lesson trying to save colony
(Not everyone will tolerate feral cats on their property, here's one battle won!)
A few months ago, a neighbor complained to Jacksonville Beach Animal Control about the stray cats and borrowed a trap to capture them. Over the last few months, as many as 30 cats have been collected from the colony and taken to Jacksonville Animal Care and Control in Jacksonville, where they most likely were euthanized, Merrick and city officials said.
"I kept noticing missing cats," Merrick said. "Evidently they were being trapped for awhile."
When Merrick realized what had happened to the felines, he rushed to the facility. He said he was heartbroken when he couldn't find any of them, particularly when he was told that they most likely had been "put down."
A few months ago, a neighbor complained to Jacksonville Beach Animal Control about the stray cats and borrowed a trap to capture them. Over the last few months, as many as 30 cats have been collected from the colony and taken to Jacksonville Animal Care and Control in Jacksonville, where they most likely were euthanized, Merrick and city officials said.
"I kept noticing missing cats," Merrick said. "Evidently they were being trapped for awhile."
When Merrick realized what had happened to the felines, he rushed to the facility. He said he was heartbroken when he couldn't find any of them, particularly when he was told that they most likely had been "put down."
Saturday, June 20, 2009
More responses to cat enablers...
Another response to a blog:
I once bought out three aviaries within a few weeks of each other and have owned literally thousands of exotic birds. It was a matter of a rescue mission, and I found good homes for them all. Your having owned exotics is beside the point, You choose cats over the survival of our wildlife every time you allow one outside. Cats are domestic pets!
I'm certain she has seen dozens, perhaps hundreds, of birds murdered by cats. A scratch is almost always fatal. We did wildlife rehabilitation for over twenty years, which is one reason I hate the needless killing you enable. One of the Mockingbirds nesting in our yard was so tame he must have been one we raised. The cats murdered his family and left some of his entrails and wings on my porch.
I once bought out three aviaries within a few weeks of each other and have owned literally thousands of exotic birds. It was a matter of a rescue mission, and I found good homes for them all. Your having owned exotics is beside the point, You choose cats over the survival of our wildlife every time you allow one outside. Cats are domestic pets!
I'm certain she has seen dozens, perhaps hundreds, of birds murdered by cats. A scratch is almost always fatal. We did wildlife rehabilitation for over twenty years, which is one reason I hate the needless killing you enable. One of the Mockingbirds nesting in our yard was so tame he must have been one we raised. The cats murdered his family and left some of his entrails and wings on my porch.
This is my 600th Blog here
This is my 600th Blog here, the first was on 12/7/06. That calls for a toast to our wild critters, long may they live! Salut!
These people are overlooking some facts!
"The idea is that trapping and killing does little good because the feral cats will reproduce quickly enough to replace the euthanized animals."
They are guaranteeing their own failure! The idea of any war is to kill more of them than they do of us, and anyone who doesn't believe our battle to save our wildlife isn't a war is not facing reality!
They are guaranteeing their own failure! The idea of any war is to kill more of them than they do of us, and anyone who doesn't believe our battle to save our wildlife isn't a war is not facing reality!
From Michael Hutchins- The Wildlife Society Blog
(Must read!)
New U.S. Government Report Asserts Climate Change is Real and Affecting Us Now
_____________________________
"In addition, the need for active management of wildlife, including the control of introduced species and endangered species and habitat restoration, could become even more essential if we are to mitigate some of the effects of a changing climate."
New U.S. Government Report Asserts Climate Change is Real and Affecting Us Now
_____________________________
"In addition, the need for active management of wildlife, including the control of introduced species and endangered species and habitat restoration, could become even more essential if we are to mitigate some of the effects of a changing climate."
PICK OF THE LITTER
"After the cats undergo surgery, they can be released. Theyll be healthier, and they wont be producing any more unwanted litters."
They will be murdering our natural fauna, though. TNR practicers are making a choice between the lives of up to a billion native animals each year, some of them endangered, in order to to re-abandon unwanted pets!
They will be murdering our natural fauna, though. TNR practicers are making a choice between the lives of up to a billion native animals each year, some of them endangered, in order to to re-abandon unwanted pets!
Rat-catching wild cats seek new homes
"Our cat has killed over 300 mice in five years and only 3, yes 3 birds."
My reply:
Just what is it makes you believe your cat's freedom is more valuable than the lives of those three birds? How many of them may have had a clutch of five or more fledglings in a nest?
My reply:
Just what is it makes you believe your cat's freedom is more valuable than the lives of those three birds? How many of them may have had a clutch of five or more fledglings in a nest?
A post to an enabler who thinks I missed their point...
Oh, we got it alright! Superficially, it sounds like a wonderful philosophy, and if you were to take each of those pets indoors, I would send you a check to help defray your expenses. As it is though, you are choosing to subsidize their unnatural predation on OUR wildlife! You are enabling the murder of fauna that do not belong to you, they belong to each and every citizen and our descendants.
You call yourself an animal lover? In choosing to enable those killer pets you show yourself to be a cat lover, not an animal lover!
You call yourself an animal lover? In choosing to enable those killer pets you show yourself to be a cat lover, not an animal lover!
Friday, June 19, 2009
What's the Deal With "Cat Ladies"?
(A story on Slate)
A Virginia judge declared on Monday that 82-year-old Ruth Knueven is unfit to own pets, after animal-control officers seized her 488 cats. Local law enforcement and animal-control officials say they found 120 cats in her house in 2001 and that they've discovered several other cat hoarders in the area over the past year. What's the deal with "cat ladies"?
A Virginia judge declared on Monday that 82-year-old Ruth Knueven is unfit to own pets, after animal-control officers seized her 488 cats. Local law enforcement and animal-control officials say they found 120 cats in her house in 2001 and that they've discovered several other cat hoarders in the area over the past year. What's the deal with "cat ladies"?
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