New Zealand Man Campaigns to Ban Domestic Cats

[Blues]

We have subdivisions in NZ (not many) that are next to native bush reserves , where you cant purchase a plot of land if you own a cat . I have no problem with that .

Garth Morgan is an interesting character , left on the political spectrum . I think he watches the shock jock bling of Peta to advertize to get attention for his causes .

He recently lanched a 1,000.000 $ campaign to rid some of shore island of rats and mice to protect the bird life

 

[mlp]

We took in a stray a few years back. She was perfectly fine coming in for food and at night, as long as she had outdoor access during the day. Then she ate something that was bad for her and got poisoned, and had some renal problems... we had to keep her indoors whilst she was on her meds so she wouldn't make it worse. It was awful; she was clearly distressed; noisy, restless, running around everywhere and breaking stuff, grumpy, trying to escape through any open space... almost nothing like the sweet little cat that would curl up with me on the sofa in the evening. It was really hard to do - I hated feeling like I was causing her that pain, even though it was for her own good she'd spent so long as a stray that she never would've adapted to being a shut-in.

IME, those kinds of cats are the exception rather than the rule. I've lived with 50+ cats in the years since I've been an adult (I refuse to continue counting after 50 ), and my sister has had over forty cats total. Almost all of our cats have come from the streets; many were completely feral. (We each currently have a number of cats that we still can't touch.)

Neither of us have had a cat who has had difficulty adapting to being indoor cats. (For the past four years, I have had a secure outdoor enclosure that my guys can access from the house at will, but fewer than half of mine use it.)

The only one of my cats who has ever regularly tried to *escape* in those decades is Sebastian, and in his case, it's more a matter of playing mind games with me - he likes to prove his superiority, and if I don't try to track him down to get him back in, he gets irritated.

That's not to say I haven't had other cats get out - I twice had a breach in the outdoor enclosure and a number of cats took advantage of it, but then I had a bunch of unhappy/scared cats to round up. They were definitely relieved to be back in.

 

[mlp]

What I mean is...have you ever had to keep a cat indoors that is used to being let out? They're not much fun. They try to get out as soon as the door opens, you can't have windows open, they can be destructive and vocal! Lol xxx

I guess you don't have window screens in the UK, right? I know insects aren't as prevalent there.

I think almost any cat would take advantage of an open window. Any area that they can't regularly get to is attractive to them, including any room in the house that you're trying to keep cat free. And I'm never as forcefully aware of how many cats I have as I am when I'm trying to clean up glass shards - I can tell the dogs to stay away while I hurriedly make sure nothing is left to cut paws, but the cats all crowd around. It's part of a cat's nature - there's a reason for the old saying about cats and curiosity.

 

[Pickle Juice]

Well I am not a cat hater. my little button was standing at my knee while I typed that. But he is an indoor kitty, not just because I don't want him outside killing frogs, lizards, and birds, but because I don't want him getting killed by a bobcat or a coyote or hit by a car. And I've known many indoor only kitties who lived to their mid-twenties, while outdoor kitties rarely make it past their mid-teens. I want to enjoy my cat's company for as long as possible, and he has always been perfectly content.

That guy in New Zealand may be a character, but it doesn't negate the validity of his message in this case. Every problem faced by indigenous wildlife is of human cause, when humans invade their environment. But people have to start somewhere. No one is deliberately breeding "vermin" like rats, but they certainly are breeding plenty of cats, in spite, no doubt, of having shelters full of unwanted cats.

 

[mlp]

Around here, it is extremely rare for an outdoor cat to make it past two. It used to be different - when I was growing up here, cats frequently lived 5-6 years. (But then, there weren't any coyotes here then.) However, in the past four years that I've been living here again, none of the cats dumped here that I haven't brought in have been here a year later, despite having shelter, better food, and vet care. The disappearances have all been sudden, so I attribute them to predators and/or getting hold of poisoned rodents.

 

[mlp]

I agree.

 

[Calliegirl]

I had a cat I got from an abusive situation. He was kept in a tiny cage with two other cats, it was rarely cleaned and was kept in a dark garage. When the people moved they let out all the cats and left them there. I was only able to catch one, because his eyes were so badly infected he couldn't see.

He had a hard time adjusting to being an indoor only cat (pacing, crying, constantly trying to get out, etc) which I blamed on being locked in that cage, so I let him go in and out. When we moved to a less safe area I had no choice but to make him an indoor only cat. He wasn't happy, but he did eventually adjust to it.

 

[RabbitLuvr]

A friend of mine used to have an indoor-outdoor cat who was allowed to come and go through a cracked window. Friend lived on the second floor, and the cat had to leap between the window and the balcony railing. Her town had a massive ice storm, and the cat, who was outside at the time, never came back. Maybe killed in the storm, maybe hit by a car, maybe taken in by someone who kept the cat inside or moved away with it. She keeps only indoor cats now.

There is a small population of outdoor cats in my neighborhood, and I frequently see them on the road after being hit by cars. Especially in the winter, it seems, if we've had ice/snow. I don't know if that's because they're not removed as quickly, or if the cars can't/won't swerve as effectively when the roads are slick, or what.

 

[CrazyCatLady]

I love the fact that my cat is happy to be indoors all the time. I'd worry like mad otherwise. I think when/if I get another il have to try find one like her that is already an indoor cat as I'd feel mean rehoming one that was used to being outside xxx

 

[AeryFairy]

I had a cat I got from an abusive situation. He was kept in a tiny cage with two other cats, it was rarely cleaned and was kept in a dark garage. When the people moved they let out all the cats and left them there. I was only able to catch one, because his eyes were so badly infected he couldn't see.

He had a hard time adjusting to being an indoor only cat (pacing, crying, constantly trying to get out, etc) which I blamed on being locked in that cage, so I let him go in and out. When we moved to a less safe area I had no choice but to make him an indoor only cat. He wasn't happy, but he did eventually adjust to it.

You did the right thing, getting him to adjust I'm glad he was okay in the end.

A friend of mine used to have an indoor-outdoor cat who was allowed to come and go through a cracked window. Friend lived on the second floor, and the cat had to leap between the window and the balcony railing. Her town had a massive ice storm, and the cat, who was outside at the time, never came back. Maybe killed in the storm, maybe hit by a car, maybe taken in by someone who kept the cat inside or moved away with it. She keeps only indoor cats now.

There is a small population of outdoor cats in my neighborhood, and I frequently see them on the road after being hit by cars. Especially in the winter, it seems, if we've had ice/snow. I don't know if that's because they're not removed as quickly, or if the cars can't/won't swerve as effectively when the roads are slick, or what.

I couldn't deal with seeing that, I'd be in tears every time.

As an aside... My browser tab is displaying the page title as 'New Zealand Man Camp'

 

[Moll Flanders]

I cannot wait for my cat enclosure to be built, I will feel so much better when they can feel like they are out in the open air but are still kept safe.

I absolutely agree that we should stop breeding domestic animals. I love domestic pets and can't imagine a life without one, but I also accept that my desire to have a pet is not more important than the fact that that breeding animals to our own desires and whims, to be dependent on us, isn't right. I'd welcome a ban on breeding animals.
ETA: But obviously, I don't agree with euthanasia to this end.

+1.