Cats everywhere!

[GoldfinchFeather]

Since we have plenty of threads to moan about dogs and dog owners, how about a bit of balance and a thread for the same about cats?

I, for one, am not a fan of the things and think there are too many around. And sure, while the problems they cause may be less obvious than dogs/dog ownership, I personally think they're worse in many ways. Particularly for the terrible effect they have on local wildlife and birds in particular.

On numerous occasions I've had the misfortune to come across birds and animals that have clearly been attacked by cats. One distressing incident occurred just a few weeks ago - on an evening walk I came across a domestic cat that had just attacked a tiny baby wild rabbit. Despite shooing the cat off and it still being alive when I got to it, it didn't survive.

Seeing that made me just want to go and give the bloody thing a boot up the backside.

Yet many cat owners seem to find this behaviour either a mildly amusing part of their cat ownership ("you'll never guess what my Tiddles caught the other day!"), or have no qualms about letting their cats roam freely and slowly kill all wildlife within a several mile radius. When really, they should just be kept indoors.

And if they were, there'd be far less of them that were always going bloody missing or being stupid enough to get themselves run over on the road.

Surely I can't be alone in my hatred of cats?!

Balderdash.

On islands with no ground predators cats can be disastrous (New Zealand etc). In the U.K. Cat’s aren’t the problem, humans are.

This one was an excellent ratter in his youth but sticks to napping these days.

Because one belongs to be there, the other is a man-made problem.

I’m with you, OP. Not sure why I have to put up with other people’s cats coming into my garden and piss and shit everywhere. Most annoying creatures around. You love cats? Fine! Have ‘em. But don’t make them my problem. You think it’s cruel to keep them indoors but it’s perfectly fine for them to go around killing small animals and pooing their way around other people’s properties, ruining gardens. Yay, how cute! At least dogs can be kept on a leash and if you don’t pick up after them, you get fined.

I love cats however the impact they have on wildlife is terrible.
Also the fact they crap in people’s gardens.
My cat is an indoor cat, so I get to clean up her litter tray and the neighbours cat poo from my garden too 😒

Little Tennyson caught a magpie yesterday and catches a lot of mice. He rarely leaves his own garden and when he does he doesn't go far. He's particular about the company he keeps. He doesn't care for the opinion of someone who thinks booting him up his backside is normal behaviour.

The lack of Police Cats is why I love them. Sticking it to the man, one purr at a time

Our cat catches the occasional mouse but is far too lazy to hunt rabbits.
I think some farmers keep feral cats as a form of eco friendly rodent control, so they may be the ones you see terrorising rabbits.
270 million animals seems a lot! I wonder how they estimate that

If its not dogs its cat if its not cats its kids their everywhere cant get away from the fuckers.

Cats have been here for millennia, keeping rodent populations down is what they do.

That’s far more to do with the relentless destruction of habitat to facilitate ever more humans with cars, houses, AstroTurf, windmills for ( ineffecient) electricity generation, factory farming which needs pesticides and herbicides but doesn’t suit birds much, solar farms which confuse birds and cover the ground where they used to nest…

what did you do with the rabbit, btw , OP, once you had ‘ rescued’ it from the cat who was about to despatch it and presumably eat it ? Did you kill it or did you humanely let it suffer a bit longer. Did you pick it up and roast it for dinner , leave it for carrion eaters, or put it in the rubbish for ‘landfill’.

Mine says why would he go OUTSIDE? Ugh. His TV shows, the bed and me are inside

Yes, but not to the problematic number they are now.

I'm an industrial strength cat lady and would probably marry my cat if it wasn't frowned upon so not an impartial observer in this discussion...

But... can't you just ignore them?

I think people are really OTT in their hatred of dogs but to be fair it can be quite hard to get away from them.

But you could literally go through life without having any interaction with a cat. Why preoccupy yourself with something you don't have to interact with?

So many different opinions naturally, however ... you mentioned foxes and I for one am not enamoured about "fluffy" foxes because they kill for pleasure too. We have two cats one no longer hunts and just likes to hang around outside, younger one is coming to the end of his hunting years and we are grateful for his desire to eradicate the local rats as we live rurally. However, we did have a much younger cat who sadly died but he was basically an indoor cat and we have decided that is how we will bring up any future cats but the older ones, it's too late to change their habits and they were brought up on farms (one is half feral).

I wonder where all those 270 million animals would live, given we are systematically destroying habitats for housing… How many of them are mice and rats - that would have MN up in arms at 100m extra rats running across the garden?

I am sure mine are unusual but they don’t leave the cat-proofed garden and have never brought me any ‘presents’.

I love both dogs and cats but I’m getting fed up with dogs everywhere! Dogs pushed in prams, dogs in shops, pubs and restaurants. Cat’s don’t affect my life at unlike dogs and I’ve never heard of a cat killing a person!

Only problematic to people who want to harm them for some sick reason like you.

This is not the cats fault though, this is human error. That’s like saying polar bears are terrible animals because someone let two loose on the streets and people died. The animal was placed in unnatural environment and is acting in a natural way.

I guess if you said “I have no problem with cats in theory but I don’t agree with outdoor free roaming cats as they are an invasive species and harm our wildlife.”

The above sentiment I actually agree with. I love cats, all cats. I have 3. They’re amazing pets and wonderful companions and I wouldn’t ever let them free roam. If you have a problem with cats that is not directly and solely human’s fault then you haven’t voiced it yet.

Tolkien rarely leaves the garden and doesn't hunt these days but he doesn't care what you think either.

The facetious nature of your question aside, I took it to a vet. As it was still moving its head and breathing, I believed it had a chance of recovery. Sadly it wasn't to be, but at least it was able to slip away comfortably free from any risk of being tortured any further by that cat.

And no, most cats don't eat what they catch. They torture them, slowly, and usually out of boredom. People have attempted to make comparisons to natural predators, ignoring the fact that in those cases they are purely for food. Things that have the misfortune of being caught by a cat usually endure a far worse fate.

I love my cats. I actually have 5 foster kittens right now from the local shelter who we're trying to socialize them so they can be adopted.

I don't let them go outside because of the number of animals and birds that have become extinct due to cats. I know it's their nature, but they're not native to the US (where I am) so the argument that it's ok because it's their nature falls a little flat for me when they are not native animals.

As a dog owner who likes cats, I am astounded about the sheer stupidity that seems to come with and around cats. Seriously the unhinged cat-rescuers or crazy cat ladies (yes always women) on my local boards are astounding. And also people who happens to see a cat in their garden and feel the need to post on various local boards about a cat that 'looks lost' picture of a healthy looking cat with a collar looking for another fee meal.😫

No, problematic to nature. At least do some basic research if you're going to try offer up some feeble defense.

Bloody rabbits are a pest and they breed like well rabbits. We have our veg plot pretty much fenced and netted but the rabbits particularly small ones still get in, so go tiddles! Cats also keep the rats and mice down. I don't like them killing birds with the possible exception of pigeons and not many cats tackle those, but birds are much harder to catch, lots of hunts but very few successes usually being able to fly is a good escape. The squirrels, crows and magpies, not to mention sparrow hawks and now kites, take more of a toll on eggs and baby/small birds.

You might need to take this up with the Creator, who clearly thought food chains were a good thing.