Killing Cats

[VoodooJoint]

I'm thinking this isn't the best solution to the problem.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/science....ap/index.html

[tashagurl]

Thats horrible. What if they shot someones pet?

[synesthesia]

That's what I was wondering.

[tashagurl]

Do they just say "oops" and go out and shoot another cat?

[Quiet Things]

I think in Australia you can hunt feral cats but you have to get licenses or something. I may be wrong.

Thats actually a very wrong thing, shooting indiscrimantly at cats, imagine the old guy next door with a loathing of cats shooting your new cat saying he thought it was stray. How is that ever going to get passed? how could anyone vote yes for it?

[LuvMyPiggers]

6,000 some people did say yes opposed to 5,000 some saying no

[Slap Maxwell]

That's horrible. I can't imagine if that was my cat. I hope it dosn't become law.

[pennick]

I'm not sure where but there is a state where it is legal to shoot stray cats.

[Access]

Shooting a gun in a city is always dangerous. Most cities have a law prohibiting the discharging of firearms (anything beyond a paintball gun, airsoft gun, 4.5mm BB/pellet air gun, etc.) within city limits. Any time you fire a gun in a city, you are creating a real hazard that could result in the death of a bystander or other innocent victim.

I don't know if the article is actually refering to shooting the cats or not, but common sense dictates that one wouldn't shoot cats in the city in the first place. More likely I think the hunters would use traps or a device like a blowgun / dart gun designed for use on animals of that size (like the "guns" some zookeepers have that fire tranquilizer darts).

[Sabriel]

I'm gald I don't live there. I'd be in tears. My indoor cats have escaped before (for no more than a couple minutes I assure you. Pesky little critters) and even though they have collars with tags it is possible for a cat to lose it's collar. That's why microchipping is popular in conjuction with a collar. Even though you can't see the chip the cat can't lose it.

What happens when they shoot a chipped cat? That proves it's a pet. Are they just going to say oops and be on thier way. I can see big lawsuits happaning.

The song bird explination makes no sense. A couple starys cannot bring down an entire state's song bird population. Song birds belong to an eco system. They must have natural preditors to keep thier numbers in check or they will over populate and compete with other animals for food. Other animals eat birds. Heck some birds eat birds. Why don't we shoot seagulls while we're at it. They eat birds too.

Sometimes I wonder about politicians. Don't they have something better to do, like helping the poor or making the state more efficient.

[suzy_99]

Although I do not agree with this, from experience I can say that the problem itself does make sense. Around 20 years ago we had a severe problem with wild dogs in our area that have been in the wild for at least a couple of generations. These dogs were not part of our natural ecosystem because man had put them there. Well, they began killing off animals like foxes and raccoon, along with large animals like deer. It was not legal to shoot them, but nothing was done if you did shoot one. They were a severe treat to our animal population. Well, all the wild dogs are now gone, but about 1 month ago the local SPCA went to a local reserve and captured over 40 dogs who were all euthanized shortly after. These dogs had no actually hurt anyone, but they scared people. All i'm trying to say is that this type of stuff happens all of the time, but it is not usually passed into law. Also, nowadays, if their truly is a problem, the spca should be handeling it, not local hunters.

The reason that we don't shoot other animals that kill birds is because they are part of that ecosystem. Domesticated cats are not. They were introduced by us. It can be very harmful to many species of animals and plants any time that there is an overbundounce of animals that are not native to that particular area. I an not sure how big this problem is, but I know that we had at least a few hundred wild dogs at that point and that many animals can cause a severe problem.

I am not trying to condone what they are doing at all, because I think that there are much better ways to handle this situation, but it is quite common. It is a classic example of why spaying and neuturing animals is so important. This problem probably only started with a few strays that were not spayed and it continued to multiply.

[VoodooJoint]

Makes you wonder what kind of Government system we are working with doesn't it?

They are willing to pass a law to hunt and kill cats. YET, there is no talk whatsoever for passing a law to implement mandatory spay/neuter or to create stricter breeder licensing/regulation.

It seems to me that the only reason to have an unaltered cat or dog is to breed it. Therefore shouldn't all people that own unaltered pets be forced to pass a qualifying exam and buy an expensive breeder license with yearly licensing fees? Any unaltered pets who's owners do not have the appropriate and updated breeder's license should be subject to a hefty fine. I betcha if people were facing this type of barrier to own an unaltered pet they would choose the cheaper route of spay/neuter.

[Sabriel]

Not all unaltered pets are kept for breeding. Some people are afriad that their pet will become lazy when they alter it. Some people also show thier cats. I've been to a cat show or two. That cats seemed quite content to be lazy and pampered. I know my mom's cat would have loved it Not that the same applies to guinea pigs. I think some animals enjoy attention more than others.

[VoodooJoint]

Winning show cats/dogs are often bred. Thinking your pet will be lazy is just an excuse. I know some men who will not have their male dogs' neutered because they hate the idea of their own testicles being removed (pretty dumb equation huh?). I know that not all unaltered pets are bred but I still feel the same breeder status should apply.

I know I'm strict but look where being lax has gotten us.

[Baby Bears]

Oh boy. This is gonna be ugly.

Everyone keeps saying "there are better ways to take care of the problem."

No one is saying what the "better way" is?

[suzy_99]

well, right now the only real solution is probably euthanization, but I don't believe they should be shooting them. The shelters are probably already overun with cats who are being euthanized because nobody wants them, so as much as I hate to say it, there is no good solution to this problem. However, to stop this type of thing from happening, spaying and neuturing are really the only solutions, but I am against the idea of having to say that we are "breeders" is we keep unaltered pets. I myself have 10 animals and all are fixed except for my 4 guinea pigs and my two oldest male dogs who are brothers. My male dogs are not breed and they have never seen a female dog in their life (besides my little terrier, who is spayed). I am not a breeder and I just didn't know any better, however, I would still not neuter them to keep them from breeding, because I do not breed. I would neuter them because one of my dog's has a terminal illness that is a direct consequence of him still being intact.
I have taken in stray cats all of my life and I am very pro-animal welfare and would be extremely upset if I were labelled a breeder, because this has already been done to me by the local SPCA. I wanted to foster homeless cats, but they said that "responsible" owners get their animals spayed/neutured, which I do agree with however, if situation is different. My dogs are now to old to neuter (11 years), so I will not be able to provide a temporary home for homeless cats until they pass away, which is such a morbid thought. So, basically I do agree 100% with spaying and neuturing, but just because someone doesn't do it doesn't mean that they are a breeder or an irresponsible owner.

[Cavies4eva]

Thats stupid, cats should be allowed to roam freely around their neighbourhood.