You people are the ones spreading faux conservationist propaganda, not the feral cat advocates. Your so-called science is suspect, especially if it is based on those discredited Wisconsin studies. Feral cats get blamed for far more damage then they could possibly ever cause. Don’t they have just as much right to live out their lives as other wildlife? Why single them out? People have been managing feral cat colonies for years and no one I know of has ever contracted any disease from them. Hand washing works just fine. If you are so concerned about ocean fish depletion, why not also target the millions of pet cats who also eat fish products — and I believe the fish in cat food products is from fish byproducts that would be thrown away anyway, not food grade fish. I also love wildlife and believe that feral cats and wildlife can co-exist anywhere except on isolated islands where prolific breeding populations can take over. I have a feral and stray cat feeding station in my back yard located 10 feet from a bird feeder and 3 feet from a birdbath and have rarely observed cats stalking the birds much less actively hunting because they are well fed and cared for. Cardinals visit the feeder daily. I have only found 2 dead birds in 6 years and don’t know the cause of death for either. The birds are very adept at avoiding the cats and the feeder is high enough where the cats can’t get to it anyway. TNR and other spay/neuter programs are actually quite effective in controlling stray and feral cat overpopulation in communities where there are strong feral cat organizations. These cats should be dealt with in a humane way like every other species. In the past 3 years our local TNR organization (Sterile Feral Foundation) has sterilized over 3,000 cats in McLean County IL and surrounding areas. Humans who originally abandoned their cats and failed to get them sterilized are the real problem, not the cats who must find a way to survive outside through no fault of their own.

Sheryl’s comment well represents the nonsense promoted by the TNR advocates, who have no sensitivity to the damage that non-native feral cats do to native species.

All too often these TNR advocates actually practive F&L… Feed & Leave. Having dealt with a feral colony near by backyard, I’ve rescued litter after litter, while the ‘crazy cat ladies’ did nothing but leave food (even though they were participants in a recognized TNR group). The truth is that these folks don’t see feral colonies as a harsh reality, but as valid habitat.

Humans may have caused the problem, but wild animal species did not. And those animals and especially endangered birds should not be further threatened because the CCL’s anthropomorphize cats. They don’t practice rescue, but faux rescue, perpetuating miserable lives for the cats, and miserable deaths for wildlife. They are compulsive cat hoarders who think their collection should be in somebody elses back yard.

Thanks Chris. You are absolutely right. Feral cat advocates have not read the peer-reviewed literature and don’t care to. Feral cat advocates are practicing religion, not science, and what they are doing is very bad for both our native wildlife and for people. Religious zealots do not and will not listen to logic or reason, and they fight back by questioning the science, no matter how valid its conclusions (re: evolution). I’ll say it again: people that manage feral cat colonies might as well be given guns and permission to shoot all of the migratory birds they want–because the end result is exactly the same. I go back to Ed Clark’s comments that a large percentage of the animals they treat at the Virginia Wildlife Center are there because of feral cat predation. So the idea that wildlife conservation and feral cats are compatible is pure baloney.

Maybe you “conservationists” should start conserving something rather than killing things. The biggest threats to our environment and all the animals (whether native or not) come from human activity…over-development, cutting down trees, pollution, pesticides, I could go on and on. If conservationists are so worried about the state of the natural world and you really want to make a difference, then start targeting the activities that are causing the most degradation. Even if you were to kill all non-native species all over the world, there would be no point because us humans will have destroyed everything that is needed to survive. There will be nothing to save in the end.

But that’s not what you will do, instead, you will throw up your hands in defeat and say those issues are too large to tackle or hey, maybe you’re organization is even getting some financial support from these big businesses (I’m sure chemical companies give you funding to research how to kill non-native species so they can sell more chemicals) and you will continue to pick on innocent creatures that have nothing to do with this because they were just living their lives before we decided to mislocate them, creating their current situations…but hey, whatever helps you sleep at night.

Maggie: It’s unfortunate that you appear to know little about what conservation organizations and professional/scientific societies actually do. We share your frustration over the impact of humans on our natural world and do, in fact, work to address issues such as rampant development, pollution, invasive species, human-wildlife conflict, emerging diseases, and so forth that are causing native species’ endangerment and extinction. And we do it in the face of overwhelming resources and opposition from those who care little about wildlife, or have little knowledge of what must be done to realistically conserve it in a human-dominated world. We represent the dedicated and highly trained people that work on the ground day-by-day to try to address these problems, of which feral cats are only one of many. By the way, there are many cases where animal populations–both wild and domesticated–must be controlled to save endangered species and ecosystems or to promote human safety and welfare. The issues are not as simple as those in the animal rights and feral cat advocate communities would have people believe. I find it ironic that you are criticizing the very organizations and people that are doing the most to try to reverse the trends which you obviously feel passionate about.

Maggie’s is another of the completely illogical arguments against those who oppose TNR. (And some of the tangents reinforce my belief that a lot of the pro-TNR CCL’s could use a check-up from the neck-up).

The three biggest threats (in descending order) on wild bird species are: 1. habitat encroachment; 2. buildings (as in flying into the side of them); & 3. feral cats.

The feral cat defenders take the approach that since there are two things that are worse for wild birds than feral cats, we should ignore the feral cats.

How does that make any sense at all?

I have done what I can to support open space causes in my community. I do what I can to make my house less of a threat to birds. And I oppose TNR. It makes sense to me.

I think that it is also important to note that no less strident defenders of animals than PETA oppose TNR – because they realize that this is a “greater good” issue.

Chris: I totally agree. The idea that feral cats are “just one of many” negative impacts on our native wildlife is certainly NOT a reason to ignore them. I’ve tried to make the point on many occasions that these impacts are cumulative, and even MORE of an argument to remove feral cats from the environment. Its not enough that birds have to contend with pollution, windows, habitat loss, etc.–they also have to run a gauntlet of razor-clawed, sharp-toothed non-native predators that simply don’t belong in their environments. That’s a recipe for disaster.

“But Michael, you’re murdering Sylvester, Garfield, Felix, and Puss in Boots.” That’s the substance of the pro-TNR argument.

Chris: I realize you’re being facetious. However, feral cats are “murdering” our native wildlife at levels that are likely unsustainable. We can either have feral cats or our native wildlife–we can’t have both. I choose our native wildlife! I recognize that that is a value-laden decision, but it is one that is also compatible with our understanding of ecology and respect for nature. In addition, I do not see live capture and euthanasia (a practice accepted by all professional veterinary organizations) as an inhumane or unacceptable way to end life. Our society does it everyday for millions of unwanted pets. While I wish this wasn’t necessary, it is a far, far better option than the alternative–which is rampant and unrestricted population growth, with its subsequent threat to wildlife and human health and safety. Better that enlightened pet owners be taught the importance of sterilization and contraception.

“There will be nothing to save in the end”? That’s not an encouraging proclamation, Maggie, and not one I’d want to live by… each of us has a responsibility to do our part to mitigate our impacts on the environment and wildlife in an increasingly human-dominated world. I for one am constantly uplifted by the amazing ways wild animals find to adapt and survive in a changing world… but I am discouraged by the often shameless self-indulgence of many feral cat advocates, who seem to have so little respect for the rest of us. If cats are your passion, there are plenty of ways to help them without harming wildlife… but I am repeatedly struck that so many cat advocates don’t seem to have any regard for other life — whether in the form of the factory-farmed and industrially-fished animals that go into cat food, the native wildlife that outdoor pet and feral cats kill, or their own neighbors who may not want cats on their property or defecating all over their neighborhood.

Sheryl, the fish in cat food is in fact human food grade in many cases. An eye-opening peer-reviewed paper published in 2008 reported that: “the pet food industry is proceeding towards a constant increase of production and producing and marketing premium and super-premium preparations. These gourmet pet foods contain a significant amount of fish as the primary raw material that may be suitable for direct human
consumption.” This paper, “Towards Understanding the Impacts of the Pet Food Industry on World Fish and Seafood Supplies,” by authors De Silva and Turchini, also documents that an estimated 13.5% of wild-caught forage fish are used for purposes other than human consumption — such as cat food. This is at a time when fish and other aquatic animal populations are crashing around the world due to intense and unsustainable fishing practices!

Take-home message: if you consider yourself an animal lover — whether of domestic animals or wildlife or both — you need to consider all the impacts in the choices you make — those you can see with your own eyes, such as cats killing birds, and those you can’t — such as turtles and albatrosses caught in nets and longlines, as well as our plummeting populations of wildlife in the water and on land. These are some of the many reasons why I am with Mike in opposition to feral cat colonies (and letting pet cats roam as well). Instead of proceeding with the hypocrisy of TNR — or more accurately Feed & Leave, as Chris says (I have seen much more of F&L than TNR from the cat feeders in my town!), let’s promote genuine respect for our fellow species — including fish, chickens, wildlife, and yes, cats — by encouraging responsible alternatives. In the end, there is a lot left to save — and no time like the present to both save and celebrate it!

@Sheryl

Sheryl, there is value in the research done by Coleman and Temple. Even conservative estimates of wildlife mortality are huge. Further, there are many reputable studies and peer-reviewed literature on the subject that show the magnitude of this problem. Go to a university library and do some research rather than jump on the bandwagon claiming that ‘our science is suspect’.

You asked whether feral cats have as much right to live out their lives as other wildlife. First, feral cats are not wildlife. They are the same species of cat as the one that is sitting at home on the couch. Second, to answer your question, sure, as long as that is not at the expense of native wildlife, public health, and property rights, which means, either socialize the cat and find her a permanent indoor home, or provide sanctuary for her, or enclose or fence in the colonies on private property. The domestic cat (feral, pet, stray, abandoned, semi-feral and so on), Felis catus, has no natural place in any North American habitat.

So, no one YOU know has contracted any diseases? For someone concerned about the validity of ‘our science’, that bit of anecdote is not very scientific. Free roaming cats are a public health issue.

http://tnrrealitycheck.com/references.asp

The depletion of our oceans relating to the pet food industry:

http://www.springerlink.com/content/30h281g68648h431/

Also, why must you invite the songbirds to their last supper? If you are feeding the cats, then take down the bird feeders and bird baths! Just because you do not see predation does not mean the cats are not killing. Cats may completely consume their prey, kill the prey and take somewhere else, or an animal may appear to have escaped a swipe only to die later from bacterial infection or internal injury. Even the presence of cats can affect wild birds. They may not nest in certain areas that could otherwise have been suitable and much needed habitat. Or they may not tend as often to their young, thus decreasing the chance of offspring survival.

You can feed those cats all you like – that does not lessen the motivation to hunt.

There is no scientific support for TNR:

http://tnrrealitycheck.com/studies.asp

So your local TNR group sterilized 3000 cats? Do you realize just how insignificant that is? In the US there are an estimated 60 to 100 million feral cats and not even one percent has gone through TNR. What is the total population of feral cats in McLean County?

Irresponsible pet ownership is the root of the problem, and you are not addressing that by doing TNR. On the contrary, you are encouraging outdoor lives and deaths for domestic animals and furthering abandonment/dumping in these ‘managed’ colonies.

@Maggie

There are a number of conservation organizations working on a variety of issues that affect wildlife. There is climate change, habitat loss, and a long list of anthropogenic causes of wildlife mortality, including but not limited to by-catch, collisions into communication towers, buildings, vehicles, wind mills and power lines, oil spills and oil pits, pesticides, methane gas burners, and yes, domestic cats. Domestic cats are not to blame, but they are a human-caused action that results in death for wild animals. Any time someone permits a cat to roam, or dumps one, or releases one through TNR, that person is further degrading habitat. End of story.

Responding to the original comment by Sheryl (in quotes).

“Your so-called science is suspect, especially if it is based on those discredited Wisconsin studies.”

The TNR folks seem to think that whenever they have a blog post criticizing a study it is “discredited.” That’s not the way it works, folks. If you disagree with a study then publish something in the journal it was published in that says so. The literature on cat impacts post-Wisconsin studies is quite large and the most recent studies very explicitly compare predation with measured wildlife population sizes to conclude that for some species cat predation is in fact not sustainable.

“Feral cats get blamed for far more damage then they could possibly ever cause. Don’t they have just as much right to live out their lives as other wildlife? Why single them out?”

Feral cats are not “wildlife,” they are a domesticated species. They have the same right to live as any other domesticated animal, as a pet. They are so harmful to native wildlife because there is either no native analog or they are orders of magnitude more abundant than any native predator ever would be. If they were wildlife, people wouldn’t be feeding them daily, taking offspring to adopt them, and providing veterinary care.

“People have been managing feral cat colonies for years and no one I know of has ever contracted any disease from them.”

Read this newspaper story: http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2010-04-16/news/os-volusia-issue-rabies-alert-cat-attack-20100416_1_feral-cats-rabies-wild-animal-population

And don’t tell me that all cats in colonies are vaccinated because they aren’t. Add to that the fact that you can get toxoplasmosis and not realize it, until it starts screwing with your brain and changing your behavior.

“I believe the fish in cat food products is from fish byproducts that would be thrown away anyway, not food grade fish. ”

That’s some grade A wishful thinking to avoid the cognitive dissonance, isn’t it? The truth is that an estimated 13.5% of the wild caught forage fish is used for pet food, mostly for cats. It isn’t just byproducts.

“I also love wildlife and believe that feral cats and wildlife can co-exist anywhere except on isolated islands where prolific breeding populations can take over.”

The “only on islands” argument is another interesting deflection, since TNR advocates don’t seem to realize that habitat islands (e.g., patches of natural habitat) function like islands and are considered to be islands in conservation planning. The Crooks and Soule study of isolated canyon habitats in San Diego showed the role of cats in the local extinction of birds in such habitat islands. So you are right that wildlife is more vulnerable on islands, but those islands can be created by fragmentation or the natural patchiness of the landscape (e.g., sandy beaches), it doesn’t just refer to oceanic islands.

“I have a feral and stray cat feeding station in my back yard located 10 feet from a bird feeder and 3 feet from a birdbath and have rarely observed cats stalking the birds much less actively hunting because they are well fed and cared for. Cardinals visit the feeder daily. I have only found 2 dead birds in 6 years and don’t know the cause of death for either. The birds are very adept at avoiding the cats and the feeder is high enough where the cats can’t get to it anyway.”

Just because you don’t see something doesn’t mean it isn’t happening. Are you watching the birds’ nests at night? Feral and owned cats are well documented nocturnal nest predators. Also, seeing some species of birds doesn’t mean that there are not other species that would be there were it not for the cats. Following on your criticism of the science above, it is particularly interesting that you base your argument on a single anecdotal observation at your own house rather then verifiable research.

Thanks Ecology Professor for clearing up those common misunderstandings. The science is clear about several things: (1) TNR does not reduce the size of feral cat colonies; (2) feral cats from those colonies range widely and can impact wildlife far from their feeding stations; (3) feral cats (and housecats left outside) are having a significant impact on our native wildlife and NOT just on island ecosystems. It is time to dispel the myths and get onto the important task of eliminating or at least controlling free-ranging feral and domestic cats. We do it for dogs, but not cats. Where is the logic in that? Cats also pose a risk to humans through the spread of diseases, such as rabies and toxoplasmosis. The human health issues alone should be enough to convince people of the inadvisabilty of feral cat colonies, not to mention the fact that they are affecting other species as well, including sea otters on the west coast, which are getting toxoplasmosis from freshwater runoff.

Here’s another article on the disease risk from feral cat colonies: raccoons and skunks, also attracted to the food put out for feral cats, are fostering the spread of rabies–a deadly zoonotic disease that once contracted effectively has no cure:

http://www.examiner.com/x-13595-Boston-Animal-Advocacy-Examiner~y2009m7d30-Rabid-skunks-in-Norfolk-put-spotlight-on-management-of-feral-cats?#comments

Add this to recent articles on rabid feral cats biting people in Florida (which probably contracted the disease from raccoons), and perhaps our public health authorities will start getting a clue. TWS published a technical review on baiting and supplemental feeding of wildlife, and one of the expert authors’ biggest concerns was the transmission of disease at unnatural concentrations of animals at feeding stations, where they often come into close physical contact.

Also please ignore the TNR propaganda in the article, as any concentration of cats is going to pose this potential threat.

@Chris Well said Maggie.

I sincerely hope that our bird lover friends can find it in their hearts to do the right thing. Promote spaying and neutering of all pets. Keep companion cats indoors or on a leash. Spaying and neutering feral cats so we can limit their numbers.

Advocating the preservation of one’s favorite species to the detriment of those that interfere is not reasonable. I cannot think of one TNR advocate who would not prefer to find a real home for all feral cats. The sad reality is that, due to irresponsible behavior of cat owners who refuse to spay and neuter, we don’t have enough homes for the number of kitties available. Additionally, cats who are born without human contact for the first few months of life are not tamable.

I do have an argument with pet owners who allow their cats to roam. Cats in my state are under the same legal restrictions as dogs and are suppose to be confined or leashed.

As for stray cats, I have spent 16 years taking cats off the streets and trying to find them good homes. A few have required rehabilitation to remind them of their domestic roots – these have turned into the most affectionate kitties. Sadly, some have had to be released because they were truly feral. This isn’t my first choice. But, I’m not going to kill a cat any sooner than I would kill a bird because it wasn’t domesticated.

I feed birds too. The only predator to attack them has been a hawk – another bird. Should I shoot the hawk for killing a preferred species? Of course not.

So, off I go today to trap another cat. If I can tame it, it will find a home. If not, it will be released after being spayed or neutered. I hope others will join me so we can end the suffering of stray cats not born to be wild and limit feral numbers.

Melanie, spaying and neutering of owned pets is the right thing to do, as well as encouraging pet owners to be responsible for their animals and keeping them under their control/on their own properties. Bird lovers, conservationists and so on know this. But we also know that re-releasing a non-native invasive predator back to the wild where she does not belong is NOT the right thing to do – not for the cats, not for the wildlife, not for public health, and not for the neighbors who may not want a bunch of felines on their property.

You talk about advocating the preservation of one species over another. That is precisely what you are doing. Each and every time you release a feral cat through TNR, you have made a choice. That cat can kill dozens if not hundreds or more wild critters during the course of her lifetime. The release of that cat is a human action that results in wildlife mortality and habitat degradation.

A hawk killing a bird for food is nature. Cats are not part of nature. You need to understand the complex and necessary relationships between native predators and prey. This is needed for biological diversity. Cats do not help that – they deplete it.

Most cats can be socialized. For those that truly cannot, there are options of finding a sanctuary environment or enclosing the cats/fencing them in on private property. Euthanasia is IMO a more compassionate outcome than life and death on the streets for a domestic animal.

Toxoplasmosis is epidemic in most of the third world. It is enjoying a dramatic rise in the US. Women who seem way to happy being around cats should get a test for this cat /rodent specific brain parasite. Causes huge birth defects in human offspring. Rarely diagnosed, ocassional flu like symptoms when appearing at all. Toxoplasmosis causes carrier, be it rodent or human, to crave the company of cats. Do you really, really like cats?

Melanie: Absolutely, if you can tame a feral cat and find it a good home where it won’t be let outdoors–fine. That is good for both conservation and individual animal welfare. However, that will not be true of most of the feral cats out there. We already euthanize some 20 million dogs and cats in the U.S. annually because of irresponsible pet owners. There are millions of feral cats out there, and we simply must start addressing the problem from every angle possible. I respect your passion for the lives of individual cats–no one likes to end life. However, euthanasia is not a bad thing–when there are no other viable alternatives.

Once in a great while the feral cats we feed kill a sparrow or a starling (both the European variety). Where we live, the only other birds species we see often are crows, pigeons, and terns. Every so often we’ll see a house finch, a mockingbird, a cardinal, or a robin. In ten years, we have never seen a member of these species killed by a cat. We can tell, because whenever they kill a bird (maybe once or twice a year), they bring it back to their eating place and devour it. Now, they DO catch and kill quite a few rats. But you say CATS are the reason we don’t see more bird species besides the standard Urban Five – and more other species, period. And you want our activities (feed, stick around, clean up afterwards, and periodically scoop every place we can access) to cease so our neighborhood can again be populated by scores of breeding cats that will be rounded up and killed … rinse, lather, repeat. Because people WILL “put out” unsterilized cats, thinking they are equipped to feed themselves. Presumably your solution for that is a hundred-fold increase in funding for animal control. Or maybe you are trying to convince every individual to personally catch and kill every free-roaming cat he runs across. Good luck with that. It’s makes about as much sense as the other ideas you probably have: that nuclear energy, deep sea drilling, and genetic engineering are completely safe, that in fact they will be the salvation of humanity. I love science, but god save us from scientists. Why don’t you just come out and say “the only good cat is in a laboratory”? It’s a bit ironic for people in such a hubris-plagued occupation to become entranced with “the wild”. Oh, right. A whole other set of living beings for “experts” to perform studies on and control.

PS Our feral colonies haven’t grown over the years. In fact, they’ve decreased slightly in size. Over half of the deaths we’ve had occurred to cats in their teens … sometimes via euthanasia after the veterinary treatment we provided (in our home) became either unaffordable or impractical (considering the cats were less than tame). So much for that “short miserable life” myth.

The issue is what birds, and in what numbers, SHOULD be there instead of any cat colony.

Unless you are monitoring 24/7, you may not see the carnage. Cats predate at night too and climb trees. They disturb roosting birds. Cats can completely consume prey, kill the prey and take elsewhere, or prey may appear to have escaped a swipe of the paw only to die later from bacterial infection or internal injury.

Conservationists are well aware that the primary challenge for native wildlife is habitat loss. That is not to say that climate change and the many anthropogenic causes of wildlife mortality are any less important. We have to address all the issues, as the effect on wildlife is cumulative.

Any time a person allows his/her pet to roam or dumps a cat or releases through TNR, that person is further degrading habitat. Those are all human actions that result in wildlife mortality.

Did you ever consider that people do in fact put out unsterilized cats because as a society we do not value these companion animals? And why is that? We are still led to believe that cats can fend for themselves and do not need human intervention. More people own cats, yet cats are not brought to the vet as often as dogs for basic wellness exams. TNR perpetuates the idea that cats CAN and SHOULD live and die outdoors – feral or not. We will NEVER convince people to be responsible for their animals and give cats the attention and care they deserve by condoning a practice that truly is not in the cats’ best interest (and a practice that produces so much collateral damage to the environment).

The root cause of cat overpopulation is irresponsible pet ownership – TNR undermines any effort to improve this.