While the title may seem overblown, and there were indeed issues beyond the singular marauding cat, the evidence suggest said single cat is still largely responsible for the disruption.
While the title may seem overblown, and there were indeed issues beyond the singular marauding cat, the evidence suggest said single cat is still largely responsible for the disruption.
God yes, a thousand times yes. Cats are efficient predators, they cause absolute havoc for the ecology of cities, namely birds. And they can also be vectors for pathogens (from wild birds and...
God yes, a thousand times yes. Cats are efficient predators, they cause absolute havoc for the ecology of cities, namely birds. And they can also be vectors for pathogens (from wild birds and rodents) that they bring back to people. It drives me nuts when I see them outside without a leash.
I don't think that limiting cats to licensed individuals is warranted by these types of incidents (at least not for most locations). Bears have requirements because they difficult to control (even...
Should cats be treated as a controlled/invasive species?
I don't think that limiting cats to licensed individuals is warranted by these types of incidents (at least not for most locations). Bears have requirements because they difficult to control (even if you know what you are doing) and are dangerous to people when loose.
Cats pose a hazard to the environment if loose, so prevent cats from posing a hazard and from being loose. I would bet that people saw this cat in the community before it began attacking the bird colony. If one had spoke up after seeing it (ignoring the cat caucus right?) and local authorities had taken care of it (again, ignoring the cat caucus) then this could have easily been prevented. There may also be more to be done about enforcing the laws requiring tagging mentioned in the article, but that would be difficult to enforce in many circumstances.
It would probably be impractical in most cases, including this one, but building barriers to separate nature reserves and domestic areas could also work. Though making barriers insurmountable to cats would likely be much more difficult than the insurmountable cat caucus.
While the title may seem overblown, and there were indeed issues beyond the singular marauding cat, the evidence suggest said single cat is still largely responsible for the disruption.
One reaction on twitter suggested this as an example as to why domestic cats might be best kept inside. What does Tildes think of the suggestion?
God yes, a thousand times yes. Cats are efficient predators, they cause absolute havoc for the ecology of cities, namely birds. And they can also be vectors for pathogens (from wild birds and rodents) that they bring back to people. It drives me nuts when I see them outside without a leash.
I don't think that limiting cats to licensed individuals is warranted by these types of incidents (at least not for most locations). Bears have requirements because they difficult to control (even if you know what you are doing) and are dangerous to people when loose.
Cats pose a hazard to the environment if loose, so prevent cats from posing a hazard and from being loose. I would bet that people saw this cat in the community before it began attacking the bird colony. If one had spoke up after seeing it (ignoring the cat caucus right?) and local authorities had taken care of it (again, ignoring the cat caucus) then this could have easily been prevented. There may also be more to be done about enforcing the laws requiring tagging mentioned in the article, but that would be difficult to enforce in many circumstances.
It would probably be impractical in most cases, including this one, but building barriers to separate nature reserves and domestic areas could also work. Though making barriers insurmountable to cats would likely be much more difficult than the insurmountable cat caucus.