Feral Cats and Dogs: would you cull them?

[wildcat junkie]

Having a Barred Owl help reduce the varmint chickens is a pretty neat idea !

Yeah I wish I could take credit for a brilliantly concocted plan, but I was a surprised as anyone when all those feral chickens disappeared. I didn't even notice it for almost a week. I doubt that the neighbor ever made the connection.

[Curmudgeon]

Speaking of fighting cocks - why not digress further - I used to work with a guy who raised them. He too kept the cocks caged. His wife converted to become a Jehovah's Witness. After several attempts by her to get him to give up cock fighting, she released all the cock birds just after he left for work one day. He came home to a bloody mess.

[grampy]

Feral animals are doing the same thing I would do if living in the woods.  Hunt.....

[Black Bellamy]

I see a dangerous attitude running through some of these posts, that of entitlement.

 

I want to remind several individuals here that you are not entitled to hunt, that the woods are not yours, and that if some dog or cat chases off your deer or whatever, that's just too bad for you.

 

I understand there are feral packs of animals, and it's the job of professionals to deal with those, not yours.   You don't get to kill animals because they make life inconvenient for you.   You have a wild bird feeder that attracts a cat, the problem is your bird feeder.   Wild birds will find their own food, but you have to attract them to your house for your enjoyment, and then you kill animals that you provided a food source for?   You're baiting in cats and killing them over bait, that's what you're doing.

 

I allow my cat to roam outside because he is a working cat that kills vermin before they get into my house.  I understand that he might be eaten by a coyote, or run over by a car, or die in some other cat-like manner.   But I am fond of the beast, and so is my wife.   If I ever found my cat with a bullet hole in it, I would go looking for whoever did that.   

 

 

 

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Cats make super fox bait, so I am told.

[dbHunterNY]

I see a dangerous attitude running through some of these posts, that of entitlement.

 

I want to remind several individuals here that you are not entitled to hunt, that the woods are not yours, and that if some dog or cat chases off your deer or whatever, that's just too bad for you.

 

I understand there are feral packs of animals, and it's the job of professionals to deal with those, not yours.   You don't get to kill animals because they make life inconvenient for you.   You have a wild bird feeder that attracts a cat, the problem is your bird feeder.   Wild birds will find their own food, but you have to attract them to your house for your enjoyment, and then you kill animals that you provided a food source for?   You're baiting in cats and killing them over bait, that's what you're doing.

 

I allow my cat to roam outside because he is a working cat that kills vermin before they get into my house.  I understand that he might be eaten by a coyote, or run over by a car, or die in some other cat-like manner.   But I am fond of the beast, and so is my wife.   If I ever found my cat with a bullet hole in it, I would go looking for whoever did that.   

 

I agree with you that someone shooting your cat is wrong unless it was on their property and turned on them.  also I assume it's taken care of in that it's not spraying all over their stuff.  I think the point some are getting at is owners say they love their pets and crucify those that hit them with cars on accident or boot them off their porch or say shoot them.  however, that situation means you don't love your cat.  would you let your child play out in the road and whatever happens happens? No.  If you knew dangers whether it be your neighbor said they'll shoot it or whatever, and then you ignore that, well you'd be just as guilty as the person pulling the trigger.  the entitlement goes both ways in my opinion.  you can let it outside but treat your pet like your kid and nobody has anything against you.

[dbHunterNY]

Cats make super fox bait, so I am told.

 

 .... just kidding.....

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Also. Using my mulched flower beds as a littler box is a capital offense.

[Curmudgeon]

I understand there are feral packs of animals, and it's the job of professionals to deal with those, not yours.   You don't get to kill animals because they make life inconvenient for you.   You have a wild bird feeder that attracts a cat, the problem is your bird feeder.   Wild birds will find their own food, but you have to attract them to your house for your enjoyment, and then you kill animals that you provided a food source for?   You're baiting in cats and killing them over bait, that's what you're doing.

 

I allow my cat to roam outside because he is a working cat that kills vermin before they get into my house.  I understand that he might be eaten by a coyote, or run over by a car, or die in some other cat-like manner.   But I am fond of the beast, and so is my wife.   If I ever found my cat with a bullet hole in it, I would go looking for whoever did that.   

 

The feral cat colony here was a danger to wildlife. It was more of a danger to livestock and people due to rabies. We had a rabid raccoon in the barn. It was probably one of the raccoons being fed on the porch by the cat lady next door, about 100 yards away. My vet and the public health nurse both told me to ignore the animal cruelty laws and kill the feral cats.

 

Re bird feeders, if people are feeding birds because they love them, no one's cat has a right to come on their property and kill those birds. The crazy cat lady is gone now. I don't shoot my neighbors cats but if I had a problem with them killing birds at feeders or bird houses, it would get fixed one way or the other. I would approach her first.

 

If you love your cat, keep it inside where it is safe.

 

CAT FIGHT!

 

Edited March 11, 2015 by Curmudgeon

[jjb4900]

I once had a stray cat pissing up my flowerbeds, so I live trapped it and brought it to the shelter..........I was informed that they don't take stray cats, you would think that if a homeowner is a having a problem and goes out of their way to help with the problem, they would take them in and just euthanize them as a service to the community as I don't think you can take a totally feral cat and turn it into a pet.

Edited March 11, 2015 by jjb4900

[phade]

I see a dangerous attitude running through some of these posts, that of entitlement.

 

I want to remind several individuals here that you are not entitled to hunt, that the woods are not yours, and that if some dog or cat chases off your deer or whatever, that's just too bad for you.

 

I understand there are feral packs of animals, and it's the job of professionals to deal with those, not yours.   You don't get to kill animals because they make life inconvenient for you.   You have a wild bird feeder that attracts a cat, the problem is your bird feeder.   Wild birds will find their own food, but you have to attract them to your house for your enjoyment, and then you kill animals that you provided a food source for?   You're baiting in cats and killing them over bait, that's what you're doing.

 

I allow my cat to roam outside because he is a working cat that kills vermin before they get into my house.  I understand that he might be eaten by a coyote, or run over by a car, or die in some other cat-like manner.   But I am fond of the beast, and so is my wife.   If I ever found my cat with a bullet hole in it, I would go looking for whoever did that.   

 

A feral cat just pissed all over my daughter's brand new stroller (a couple weeks) that cost me $200. I set it outside to get some sun/air after wiping off a slight spill. Want to stick your kid in a stroller that just got pissed all over by a feral cat? I don't, because that smell isn't going away. Nor has the fact that every week, I have to pick up my trash can because the pussy knocked it over and ripped apart the bag, an enjoyable experience. I love picking up a couple day old diapers that were already once bagged, trashed, and are now sopping wet and smell about as well as you would imagine they would. Or, the fact that two of my vehicles have scratches all over them because the darn cats jump up on my hood. I feed no birds. The professionals told me to "deal with it" in a manner I find refreshing.

 

People have been shot for less than that (right or wrong).

 

The fact you willingly let your cat roam, potentially to other people's private property, is irresponsible if you cannot take accountability for that cat's actions. If the cat does die in a non-cat like manner, the mirror is the first place you need to go looking. Entitlement is thinking your cat has a right to cross private property lines that you do not own.

Edited March 11, 2015 by phade

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Did I say that cats make great fox bait?

[Doc]

You have a wild bird feeder that attracts a cat, the problem is your bird feeder.  

Wrong!! The problem is pet owners who profess to love their animals but refuse to own them responsibly which really shows that they talk a good game but don't actually give a damn about them. Yes they turn them loose and then whine about careless driving when they run out in front of cars and become highway Frisbees. They think it is just fine for them to be torn limb from limb by coyotes or foxes or shredded birds of prey. And if they become the scourge of wild-life, it is of no concern to these people. The dog owners that "owned" the dogs that tore our sheep apart thought it was a nice thing to let their animals run loose. I have heard people moving out into the country talking how nice it is that the dogs can be allowed to run free. Yes, that is the lack of responsibility that a lot of people in this thread are responding to. If you can't control your animals, you don't deserve to have animals. And don't be blaming others for your thoughtless attitude toward pet ownership.

[phade]

Did I say that cats make great fox bait?

 

I imagine ground up and mixed with molassas you probably have a great coon bait too.

[greg54]

I see a dangerous attitude running through some of these posts, that of entitlement.

 

I want to remind several individuals here that you are not entitled to hunt, that the woods are not yours, and that if some dog or cat chases off your deer or whatever, that's just too bad for you.

 

I understand there are feral packs of animals, and it's the job of professionals to deal with those, not yours.   You don't get to kill animals because they make life inconvenient for you.   You have a wild bird feeder that attracts a cat, the problem is your bird feeder.   Wild birds will find their own food, but you have to attract them to your house for your enjoyment, and then you kill animals that you provided a food source for?   You're baiting in cats and killing them over bait, that's what you're doing.

 

I allow my cat to roam outside because he is a working cat that kills vermin before they get into my house.  I understand that he might be eaten by a coyote, or run over by a car, or die in some other cat-like manner.   But I am fond of the beast, and so is my wife.   If I ever found my cat with a bullet hole in it, I would go looking for whoever did that.   

You shouldn't own any pets.

[Jennifer]

I see a dangerous attitude running through some of these posts, that of entitlement.

 

I want to remind several individuals here that you are not entitled to hunt, that the woods are not yours, and that if some dog or cat chases off your deer or whatever, that's just too bad for you.

 

I understand there are feral packs of animals, and it's the job of professionals to deal with those, not yours.   You don't get to kill animals because they make life inconvenient for you.   You have a wild bird feeder that attracts a cat, the problem is your bird feeder.   Wild birds will find their own food, but you have to attract them to your house for your enjoyment, and then you kill animals that you provided a food source for?   You're baiting in cats and killing them over bait, that's what you're doing.

 

I allow my cat to roam outside because he is a working cat that kills vermin before they get into my house.  I understand that he might be eaten by a coyote, or run over by a car, or die in some other cat-like manner.   But I am fond of the beast, and so is my wife.   If I ever found my cat with a bullet hole in it, I would go looking for whoever did that.   

 

The entitlement is yours. Your cat is a domestic animal, and you are responsible for it. If it provides you a service outside of pest control, you must accept that by allowing it to roam off of your property, it is out of your control, and any number of things might happen to it.

Cats are hardly a scourge only of birdfeeder areas. They take billions of wild birds each year on a national level, and believe you me, that is not all at the birdfeeder of a neighbor.

Ironically, wild predators generally provide better pest (for most people, this is mice) control services around homes, when we provide habitat and don't wage war on them.

 

Before I get accused of hating cats- I actually do like cats. We have one. But she never goes outdoors unless she is on a leash or in an enclosure. I expect we will enjoy her company for a long time.

[NFA-ADK]

LOL as a responsible cat owner I have found life with cats indoors is work, most lazy people think cats are easy because "we just let them out".  Sounds like a typical delusional idiot who should not own pets or have any say about the environment.  Probably one of our politicians.  LOL now that's just funny!!!  But sadly true.

[Pygmy]

Hmmmm... I never do ANYTHING against the law...

I also never have ANY problems with feral dogs or cats..

I guess I am just LUCKY that way...

[wildcat junkie]

LOL as a responsible cat owner I have found life with cats indoors is work, most lazy people think cats are easy because "we just let them out".  Sounds like a typical delusional idiot who should not own pets or have any say about the environment.  Probably one of our politicians.  LOL now that's just funny!!!  But sadly true.

Dogs have owners, cats have staff.

[wildcat junkie]

Hmmmm... I never do ANYTHING against the law...

Have they repealed all of the sodomy laws in NY State?

[Curmudgeon]

Dogs have owners, cats have staff.

 

Cats still haven't forgotten that they were worshiped in Egypt. Their attitude remains the same.

 

[NFA-ADK]

Cats still haven't forgotten that they were worshiped in Egypt. Their attitude remains the same.

 

LOL Now that is funny, and so true!  Arg now I feel like a waiter, feeding time.  

[Doc]

Really, there is absolutely no difference between an out-of-control population of domestic pets running amok through the other critters, and out-of-control wild predators running amok, other than domestic pets have no legal hunting season. And for me that is the only thing saving them from becoming prime targets of opportunity.

[Steuben Jerry]

Neither my wife or I have ever owned cats in our lives. We have owned dogs ever since we’ve been married (35+ years) and when we were kids, both of our families had dogs but no cats. Dogs always lived in the house, only outside to play or exercise on a leash or in a fenced yard. There were some short lived escapes over the years that caused problems, but that’s another story.

 

We live in a rural area. About a year ago someone dumped a young cat on our property. We heard the car pull up in front of our driveway in the evening, and when I looked out the window, the person was just getting back into the car and drove off. The next day we found the cat in our chicken coop curled up with the chickens. We connected the dots with the previous car stop. The cat looked good (not feral looking like the ones I see in the woods), but malnourished and very timid of people.

 

Over the next couple of days, we called every animal shelter we could find in the area, and absolutely not one of them was accepting cats. So yes, I fed the darn thing. I couldn’t let it starve and the way that it was obviously wary of people, I guess it was mistreated. I like animals. We let it live with the chickens while we tried to find a shelter. That turned into weeks and we didn’t find one that wouldn’t just euthanize it. A Craigslist ad to give her away didn’t help either.

 

Well, what we didn’t know is that she was also pregnant. Only one kitten survived. We recently had her and her kitten spayed, shots, etc and otherwise brought “up to code”, and now we are accidental cat owners for the first time in our lives. They live outside with the chickens (heated coop in the winter) and are not coming into the house with our little dog. They catch mice, the chipmunks that dig up the flower bulbs, and I’m sure they take the occasional bird. I’m a pretty lousy bird hunter, so I figure it evens out...The few neighbors we have nearby all have cats. I don't care that they come on our property, and they don't care about ours. Everyone has had their cats fixed, and it looks like the cats have their own little friend network.

 

I would shoot a feral cat if it was obviously feral. The ones that we do have in the woods are gnarly looking, nasty cats. But if it looked like someone's escaped cat I give them a pass.

 

As far as cats getting into the garbage, I've got more of that with bears and raccoons so I don't put it out any earlier than I have to.

Edited March 19, 2015 by Steuben Jerry

[thunnus]

Pretty incredible that a straightforward question many of us have asked in the field elicited >70 responses.

As these texts are anonymous, would any of you mind if I forwarded them on to the author of article I cited in the original post/question?