Marisawright Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 (edited) We had a cat flap so our cat could come and go as they pleased - no issues with them going out.; But how do you know? I remember a documentary about cats and native wildlife a few years ago. They tracked several cats at night to see what they did. When they presented the statistics to the cat owners, they were absolutely shocked - their cats had never brought home more than one or two kills, and yet they were killing regularly. One of the cats was killing at least one animal or bird every single night! Also, they were not eating them - cats are one of the few species that will hunt for fun. It's not through any cruel instinct - we all know how much cats enjoy chasing a furry object - a mouse is a furry object, and the cat will keep pursuing and playing with it until it escapes or drops dead. So keeping your cat well fed will not stop it hunting. http://www.our-happy-cat.com/cat-hunting.html I love animals including cats. I don't think badly of cats because they kill - they are predators, that's what they're designed for. But because they're well fed by their owners, it's unnecessary and if owners can prevent needless slaughter of other animals by the simple expedient of keeping their cats in at night, then surely they should. Edited September 21, 2015 by Marisawright Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Yeah my cats stay indoors on an enclosed balcony. They love watching the birds/possoms etc out there. I got them here and they have always been indoors though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 But how do you know? I remember a documentary about cats and native wildlife a few years ago. They tracked several cats at night to see what they did. When they presented the statistics to the cat owners, they were absolutely shocked - their cats had never brought home more than one or two kills, and yet they were killing regularly. One of the cats was killing at least one animal or bird every single night! I love animals including cats. I don't think badly of cats because they kill - they are predators, that's what they're designed for. But because they're well fed by their owners, it's unnecessary and if owners can prevent needless slaughter of other animals by the simple expedient of keeping their cats in at night, then surely they should. Not just that but you will save on vet bills if they get in fights etc. Plenty of feral cats around Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolman Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 The frustrating thing is the level of denial. Cats whether 'pet' or feral kill an enormous amount of wildlife, the evidence is inescapable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacaranda Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 I think the most I could do if I owned a cat again (which I wouldn't)is atleast attach a bell to its collar and get it micro chipped.I'm not overly fond of keeping animals caged or whatever,I can't even face keeping a pot plant!:biglaugh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolman Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 I think the most I could do if I owned a cat again (which I wouldn't)is atleast attach a bell to its collar and get it micro chipped.I'm not overly fond of keeping animals caged or whatever,I can't even face keeping a pot plant!:biglaugh: Bells are usueless, cats learn to stalk without making a sound. Microchipping only helps when to they get scraped off the road so they can be identified. The only responsible way to keep a cat is to keep it indoors or in a secure run. Too many people just don't accept the damage they do and are happy to live in blissful ignorance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacaranda Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Bells are usueless, cats learn to stalk without making a sound. Microchipping only helps when to they get scraped off the road so they can be identified. The only responsible way to keep a cat is to keep it indoors or in a secure run. Too many people just don't accept the damage they do and are happy to live in blissful ignorance.:laugh:And that's why I'd never own another cat! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolman Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 :laugh:And that's why I'd never own another cat! Well I consider that a victory :wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starlight7 Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Well my pussy cat thinks he is a possum and they sit together and sometimes eat off the same plate. The possum is the same size as the cat. He has never had a bird but has had a few rats and mice from down near the compost which he likes to share with us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lambethlad Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Humans have created an environment where birds, possums and rats are in plague proportions we need cats to control their numbers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolman Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Humans have created an environment where birds, possums and rats are in plague proportions we need cats to control their numbers. Haha, I think you actually believe that lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lambethlad Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Haha, I think you actually believe that lol I do. We had huge repair bills from rats chewing the wiring and hoses in our cars until we got a cat. 20 years ago there were no Rainbow Lorikeets here, they have come down from Queensland and now they are the rats of the sky - hundreds of the things attack our fruit trees and take the lot. Possums rip tiles off the roof and then we have water damage in our ceiling. We need to let cats do their thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Humans have created an environment where birds, possums and rats are in plague proportions we need cats to control their numbers. That would make sense if the cats confined themselves to species that are in plague proportions, and ignored the endangered ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacaranda Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Lambethlad,did you try rat poison?:eek:(before you got the cat that is?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lambethlad Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Lambethlad,did you try rat poison?:eek:(before you got the cat that is?) Yes, we used traps and poison so I guess the combination of these plus the cat all helped. We live on a small acreage property so there is a lot of room for rats to breed. The bloke who repaired our cars said he gets at least one car a week damaged by rats that don't actually eat anything but just gnaw to wear their teeth down which are growing constantly. The problem is worse in winter. The rats are attracted by the warmth of the engine when you get home from work in the evening. When my car wouldn't start I lifted the bonnet to find a huge rats nest had been built on top of the engine overnight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starlight7 Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 I found my cat will eat all the rat except the head, tail and kidneys which are presented to us. Very thoughtful pussy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starlight7 Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 Many dogs only bark when their owners are not there. The owners then announce that their dogs never bark! Huh- got news for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GetMeDownUnder Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 Wow... Some people talk on here with massive generalizations and assert it as fact to everybody else. There are just so many variables in this argument. We live in the Northern Beaches and have a large garden (both front and rear). We have possums, bandicoots and turkeys in our garden daily. We also see numerous birds including owls. We brought a dog and 2 cats from the UK. The cats are only allowed out during daylight hours and the cat flap is locked at dusk. One of our cats is definitely not a hunter. She shows practically zero interest in any other animals and is too lazy to chase anything. We have had her for 7 years and I have never even seen her hunt. The other cat came from a farm and has a hunting instinct. She brings in about 1 lizard a month that we know of (she brought in a few frogs in the UK). We do not like her doing this. Both cats spend most of the day sleeping indoors. I am very confident that one of our cats would hunt if we left her out all night and the other would not. (We have never given them that opportunity). I cannot walk down the garden without lizards scurrying under the steps. The cat has clearly had little impact on the population. In contrast, I could have chosen to install new drive or build an extension and wipe out the trees and grass in my garden. That really would kill off any wildlife in my immediate vicinity (no possums, bandicoots, geckos etc). People do this every day and it is a much bigger threat than my cat ever could be. No doubt may posters on here are happy to live somewhere urban that has already decimated all wildlife. The main factor in where we chose to live was genuinely to ensure that the cats had some space and would not annoy neighbours or get themselves run over. You cannot tell all people to leave cats at home when you have zero idea if they are off to Darwin / Uluru or some farm in Victoria that you have never heard of. I am sure the aboriginal people would have a strong argument against all of us coming to Australia and decimating the country and it's resources. People are happy to bring their kids and buy a 4WD that does 15mpg. Like everything, it comes down to responsible people. If you have cat then you should control it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bungo Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 It's ironic that I am seen as an Oz hater but I seem to care more about the native wildlife than anyone else on this forum. The idea that cats just eat a couple of birds or a mouse is quite frankly ridiculous, they are decimating Australia's wildlife and the sooner owners took some responsibility the better. You are just a cat hater. I have never seen any evidence that pet cats are decimating wildlife to these ridiculous proportions, it is just something made up by cat haters. The evidence suggests there is plenty of undecimated wildlife in Australia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 Wow... Some people talk on here with massive generalizations and assert it as fact to everybody else. There are just so many variables in this argument. We live in the Northern Beaches and have a large garden (both front and rear). We have possums, bandicoots and turkeys in our garden daily. We also see numerous birds including owls. We brought a dog and 2 cats from the UK. The cats are only allowed out during daylight hours and the cat flap is locked at dusk. One of our cats is definitely not a hunter. She shows practically zero interest in any other animals and is too lazy to chase anything. We have had her for 7 years and I have never even seen her hunt. The other cat came from a farm and has a hunting instinct. She brings in about 1 lizard a month that we know of (she brought in a few frogs in the UK). We do not like her doing this. Both cats spend most of the day sleeping indoors. I am very confident that one of our cats would hunt if we left her out all night and the other would not. (We have never given them that opportunity). I cannot walk down the garden without lizards scurrying under the steps. The cat has clearly had little impact on the population. In contrast, I could have chosen to install new drive or build an extension and wipe out the trees and grass in my garden. That really would kill off any wildlife in my immediate vicinity (no possums, bandicoots, geckos etc). People do this every day and it is a much bigger threat than my cat ever could be. No doubt may posters on here are happy to live somewhere urban that has already decimated all wildlife. The main factor in where we chose to live was genuinely to ensure that the cats had some space and would not annoy neighbours or get themselves run over. You cannot tell all people to leave cats at home when you have zero idea if they are off to Darwin / Uluru or some farm in Victoria that you have never heard of. I am sure the aboriginal people would have a strong argument against all of us coming to Australia and decimating the country and it's resources. People are happy to bring their kids and buy a 4WD that does 15mpg. Like everything, it comes down to responsible people. If you have cat then you should control it. EXACTLY! There is only one person on this thread saying you shouldn't own a cat at all. Everyone else is just saying, keep it in at night when Australian wildlife is most active. As you say, there is nothing wrong with cats, only with the people who own them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith and Linda Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 EXACTLY! There is only one person on this thread saying you shouldn't own a cat at all. Everyone else is just saying, keep it in at night when Australian wildlife is most active. As you say, there is nothing wrong with cats, only with the people who own them. Just get it stuffed! all problems solved with the added bonus of you keep it for your life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolman Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 EXACTLY! There is only one person on this thread saying you shouldn't own a cat at all. Everyone else is just saying, keep it in at night when Australian wildlife is most active. As you say, there is nothing wrong with cats, only with the people who own them. I don't actually see anyone saying don't own a cat at all, I may have missed it though. Cats should be confined DAY and NIGHT either indoors or in a secure run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortlepuss Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 I found my cat will eat all the rat except the head, tail and kidneys which are presented to us. Very thoughtful pussy. Your cat is showing love and affection. It's just sometimes hard to see it that way My cat eats very few animals apart from moths (he also tries to eat ants but not too successful) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wan2go Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 I will happily confess to being a 'cat hater' when it comes to my garden......I don't like cat sh!t with my home grown beetroot. Or to run over sh!t with the mower on the lawn.......urgh, the stench! Cats should be confined to their owners own space, not left to run wild and cause a nuisance. All the 'oh they are just doing what comes naturally' is a crock. If you were allowed to just let your dog come and go as it chooses, imagine the chaos. Responsible owners are the key, and control should apply to cats as well as dogs. If you haven't got the time or the space, don't keep animals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GetMeDownUnder Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 I will happily confess to being a 'cat hater' when it comes to my garden......I don't like cat sh!t with my home grown beetroot. Or to run over sh!t with the mower on the lawn.......urgh, the stench! Cats should be confined to their owners own space, not left to run wild and cause a nuisance. All the 'oh they are just doing what comes naturally' is a crock. If you were allowed to just let your dog come and go as it chooses, imagine the chaos. Responsible owners are the key, and control should apply to cats as well as dogs. If you haven't got the time or the space, don't keep animals. My neighbour has a wandering dog that ventures into our garden and chases the cats. Naughty boy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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