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Concord rejects cat herding
By adamg on Fri, 04/27/2012 - 8:33am
Birds will just have to fend for themselves, Town Meeting decides (but recall it took four tries to get a ban on plastic water bottles).
Neighborhoods:
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Comments
But don't try to feed those cats
bottled water!!! Or the cats will be escorted to the town line.
The complainant was probably
The complainant was probably not thinking about how many rodents are killed by outdoor cats. Remove the cats and they might have a rat problem.
Then again if there are too many cats (to reference the Simpsons), just bring in "Chinese Needle Snakes, then snake-eating gorillas, and then "when wintertime rolls around, the gorillas simply freeze to death."
Problem Solved!
They already have a "rat problem"
She's the one who proposed the leashing cats in the first place.
Same woman?
You know, the one who was upset because cats were attacking her backyard animal sanctuary? If so...HA!
Bell them!
Having read several articles and watched a relatively long interview with Ms. Lodynsky, I was a bit surprised that all the talk has been about leashes and outdoor-restriction. Did not see/hear a single mention the most obvious and probably most effective solution - require cats to have brightly colored belled collars.
Doesn't hurt the cat, is a crazy cheap solution for the owner, and the combination of bell+bright color has proven effective in lowering cat kills in surburban communities in England.
***
Btw, also hard to believe - Concord (pop >17k) apparently doesn't have an animal control officer, or apparently even a collateral agreement with any of its neighbors for one of theirs.
The Problem With Bells, ...
... aside from weird ambient noise around the neighborhood, is that every so often a cat wearing a collar will get it caught on something and literally hang itself. The solution would seem to be so-called "breakaway" collars, which claim to release the cat from the collar when enough force is exerted, but...
Pet Rescue Site
Suldog
http://jimsuldog.blogspot.com
Breakaway collars are a suggestion.
Like you've pointed out, they do have problems though. Some of them are too hard to break loose, such as the plastic snap ones. I've also had the elastic stretch ones on my cats. Those came off too easily, and were always getting lost.
Feline Alarm Clock
Just got an upgrade.
In Georgia, all cats needed to wear collars....
... and needed to wear tags showing licensing and that they had gotten required shots. Animal control would pick up cats without ID.
Bells
The other problem with bells is that the noise makes it harder for kitty to escape from hungry coyotes. Just trust me on this one :(
What is the real problem them?
If hungry coyotes are a concern, why let the cat out in the first place?!?
I've had outdoor cats in the past, and of the assorted dangers which they faced; cars, dogs, racoons, other cats, getting caught on a collar was certainly the least of them.
Additionally their are issues
Additionally their are issues with hearing loss in cats with bells.
But really the problem with bells is that they make it harder for kitty to kill things. That is what cats are supposed to do.
Anyone who prefers birds over cats [or macs over PCs] should be themselves hunted by cats.
Anyone who prefers birds over
Anyone who prefers birds over cats [or macs over PCs] should be themselves hunted by cats.
Dare I ask why I deserve to be hunted by cats (for preferring birds; I'm a Linux user), or are you just trollin'?
Trap the Cats in Have-A-Heart Traps
Come on. If you're a cat owner, YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE for that animal and it's well being. If it strays onto neighbor's property, you really have no reason to be upset or do anything other than apologize. Trapping the offending animals and turning them over to the nearest shelter or animal control officer seems like an appropriate and reasonable measure.
Holy crap...
You must be the guy all of the kids are afraid of. You know the one, "C'mon Sam, it's your turn to sneak onto his lawn and get the ball back...".
There are lots of stray cats in my neighborhood. I planted catnip to attract them to my outdoor areas, and haven't had a single rodent problem. Can't say the same for my neighbors.
So you trap the cats and then ...
... complain about the rats ... or the coyotes that now come for those rats ... or the fishers ... or the skunks and possums ...
Bad idea.
Perhaps you should read a little something about how and why the Plague spread through Europe so quickly and extremely? Something to do with killing all the cats, maybe?