Dialogue: Cats aren't responsible for slaughter of native birds

By BOB KERRIDGE*

Claims from environmentalists that New Zealand is facing a "cat explosion" and that cats are primary killers of our native bird population fill me with deep indignation and concern.

Those claims are simply not consistent with research carried out by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. We have clear statistical evidence that our cat population is, in fact, declining slightly and that stoats, possums and rats are the major threats to the native bird population.

We have also received authoritative research figures which show that only half of domestic cats actually hunt.

The SPCA advocates responsible cat ownership. It is the place, after all, which has to cope with society's irresponsible attitude to cats. But I cannot buy into this alarming, if oblique, attack on the cat.

Sadly, this attitude is not new. History shows that cats have been both worshipped and vilified. One example of vilification came in the 1600s when a tax was imposed on cat ownership. This reduced cat numbers dramatically and contributed to the Great Plague in London when rats ran rampant with no cats to curb their numbers.

I feel privileged to have shared my life with cats. They are wonderful, complex, often misunderstood creatures which bring happiness and comfort to tens of thousands of New Zealanders.

We are a nation of cat-lovers. At 900,000, we have the largest population a head of cats in the world. Clearly, they are our most popular companion animal.

Because no framework exists for the management of cats, the Auckland SPCA's comprehensive Cat Position Paper has just been released for discussion. It has some far-reaching proposals on the issue of cat responsibility.

The paper, which we believe is the first exhaustive analysis of the cat situation in New Zealand, will also be presented at a companion animal workshop in Christchurch in August.

The paper presents some concepts that need to be aired and could be considered as a nationwide strategy. These include:

Agreement on what constitutes the three main categories of cat (that is, domestic versus owned or stray versus feral).

Establishment of the exact environmental risk that cats pose without the exaggerated and irresponsible killer claims being made.

Implementation of nationwide microchip identification, a system which should be introduced for all pets.

Implementing management programmes of a self-regulating nature at the community level covering such vital issues as identification and desexing.

Education of the community on cat-owner obligations and the positive aspects of cats in general.

Working with local and central government to provide legislative mechanisms to help responsible cat ownership.

At the SPCA we believe desexing programmes are essential components of responsible ownership and, combined with this education, we need to dispel some dangerous myths.

Female cats do not need to have a litter of kittens to enjoy a healthy life. On the contrary, we know that cats which are spayed when they are young are spared many health problems later, and the tendency to roam.

It is thought that about half of cats are "acquired" rather than bought and it is in those cases that one is more likely to find instance of genuine financial hardship. There, the Auckland SPCA assists by issuing a voucher for some of the cost, to be redeemed at a veterinary clinic of the owner's choice.

Taking this a stage further, the Auckland SPCA proposes a trial of franchised desexing clinics, involving local vets with financial help from the relevant local authority. This service would be available for hardship cases and for the desexing of stray or unowned cats living in adopted domestic situations or colonies.

For more than a decade, we have advocated the use of microchip implanting to identify and manage the dog population. Its use is even more important for cats. Many lost cats, and cats which have no identity, could be then returned safely to their distressed owners.

It would also establish whether stray cats are owned or not, thus eliminating the danger of indiscriminate trapping of owned animals which has become rife in Auckland.

The real crux of the cat issue, however, lies with the confusion in the terminology applied when discussing the nature of the various categories of cat. This needs to be clarified once and for all.

Unless this confusion is eliminated, there is a great danger that the innocent - that make up the vast bulk of our cat population - are lumped together as culprits with feral cats. (How often we have heard lost or frightened cats incorrectly referred to as feral.)

Where truly feral cats do pose a threat in certain situations, the domestic and stray or unowned cats are generally well cared for and are harmless.

Responsible management, appropriate to the particular environment, should be used to discourage cats from harming endangered species of wildlife, but there must also be a recognition of the role cats play in the control of vermin and other pests.

My real fear in this campaign to brand cats as pests is that cats may be persecuted or subjected to draconian legislative measures which we, and all cat lovers, will find unacceptable.

The SPCA's Cat Position Paper is a positive step towards finding a way ahead which is acceptable to all reasonable parties.

* Bob Kerridge is executive director of the Auckland SPCA.