We trap cats in our yard and call Provo Animal Control. They come pick them up and take them to the Animal Shelter, where... lets be honest...they are likely euthanized.
The alternative to this is to continue to let these cats use our yard as a litter box. Or worse yet - mating grounds. Last year we captured and turned in 5 baby kittens. Sad? If you look at it that way. I am simply following Bob Barkers admonition to "help control the pet population." (just realized that if Brianna is reading this years from now, she will have no idea what I am referring to. Sweetie - either ask me, or google it).
Estimates are that the US has 900 million domestic cats. That is about 3 per person. So unless we all have 3 pet cats at home, millions of strays out there running around using the world as their litter box and mating grounds.
So Brianna and I will continue CAT HUNTING.
11 comments:
Cat hunting is great fun! We catch lots of those at Steve's warehouse too. The only problem is Tanner loves them ands wants us to bring them home!
And I'll keep cheering you on! We need people like you!
When Brianna gets bigger, she is going to try to let those cats out of the cage, that will be quite an adventure. I wonder where all of those cats come from, is it your neighbors???
My house in Ferron always has a few stray cats running around.
I'm sorry but I just think this is really upsetting. I lost a couple cats growing up- never knew what happened to them. It was the most painful thing not knowing and wondering if somebody took my beloved cats. My sister has four children now who also recently lost TWO of their three cats. They live in a neighborhood of cat-haters and they think the neighbors did something to them. In our Gospel, we're taught to respect all life. We're admonished to eat meat sparingly not only for our own health but because of the value of each and every spiritual creature- we're not to take such things so lightly. I don't understand how it's become so accepted, even funny, to hate an animal so much we're willing to kill for no better reason than to participate in a wordly fad. I had no idea you felt this way and this comment is probably sounding extremely harsh, but this is a very serious topic and I would feel hypocritical to not express what I feel to be a crucial and sincere truth. If you want to be involved, then you should take the responsibility of being involved. That means that at the very least, you try to notify neighbors through posted signs that you've "found" a cat and taking good care of that cat for at least a week before turning it in to the shelter. If you're not willing to take those extra steps, you really should not be actively trying to capture them.
In response to recent comments, a few details must be clarified:
I DO NOT HATE CATS. I grew up as most children - an animal lover. Now as a mature adult, I realize the way to be an "animal lover" is to be an animal advocate.
Or, as it could be rephrased - a steward. Indeed, the gospel does admonish us to be good stewards of the earth and all creatures.
So - does a "good steward" sit idly by and watch these cats haphazardly reproduce at dangerously high rates?
Our neighborhood doesnt need more speedbumps - which is what these stray cats become. Im sure its at least mildly disturbing for the children to go outside and see roadkill cats in the middle of the street they play on.
Perhaps a good steward would do their part to help control the stray cat population. Not only for the benefit of the animals, but more importantly - for PEOPLE. Yes, human beings are more important than animals. Its a tough fact for some to comprehend.
My neighbor has two young boys who like to play in their sandbox. Their sandbox is now full of cat feces and urine. So she has three choices: allow her boys to risk illness and disease by continuing to play in the contaminated sandbox, go outside everyday and clean out the "litter"box, or forbid her children to play in their backyard. How fair is that to her? The only mistake she made was moving into a home next door to an irresponsible cat owner.
My neighbor a few doors down also suffers because of the unwelcome visiting cats who jump her fence and use her garden as their litter box. She is pregnant. She now cannot work in her garden because of the high risk of toxoplasmosis. Their family is struggling financially, as her husband is in school and she stays at home with their 18 month old. They use their garden to help reduce their grocery bill. But they have to neglect it this year to protect their unborn child. Why? NEGLIGENT CAT OWNERS.
Those who have "beloved" cats as pets have a skewed perspective. Their cats are healthy, sweet, loving, clean, and often considered part of the family. I had two such felines for 8 years of my childhood. These cat owners dont seem to understand that the same species they adore cause serious problems for society. In being a RESPONSIBLE cat owner, they are doing the world a favor by setting a good precedent and allowing one less cat to run around destructively. If only everyone could be like this, I wouldnt have to use my valuable time in damage-control (ie, cat-trapping).
Specific response to Ashley: no, Brianna would not try to let these cats out of the cage. She would be scared to death of them, as any normal child would be! These are FERAL animals. Savage, vicious, violent. Not your average grandmas cuddly lap-cat. When Brianna is old enough, she will learn the joy of proper pet-ownership. She will get her chance to love her kitten/puppy/hamster/whatever. I think its a great opportunity to teach responsibility. She will also learn that some people choose not to be responsible...consequently their animals turn feral and need to be kept away from a community striving to be healthy and clean.
So perhaps Im part of the "worldly fad" of trying to protect Gods children from destructive creatures. Just like every caring parent who swats the flies/bees/ants that invade their home.
Our 13th article of faith states that we believe in upholding the law. A Provo city ordinance dictates that each household may own no more than two pets of each species. When I DID call Animal Control (several times, over a period of months), they came to the perpetrators home and issued warnings and a citation. The homeowners (if they happened to be sober that day) claimed they only owned two cats. The others "just happened to hang out in the backyard." Right.
I hope this post has helped elucidate the situation.
Can anyone tell me another more reasonable, ethical, or moral course of action to take?
Wonderful response and it does clear up quite a bit for me. If you know for sure that these cats are wild, feral creatures, then I understand what you're doing and I do believe what you're doing is right. I'm sorry I misunderstood and thank you for clarifying. As for the sand box issue, there's nothing that can be done except to buy lids with your sandboxes. I try VERY hard to keep my cat indoors, but he inevitably gets out. If he ever used a neighbor's sandbox (which I know would be more temptation for him than he would be able to resist) I hope they would either buy a lid, or tell me so I could buy one for them and apologize for my dumb cat getting out. As for why I was so blunt in my comment: I've known quite a few people who love to torture animals and think it's funny. Your post sounded a lot like the things they used to say. Again, I thank you for clarifying, I apologize for misunderstanding, and I hope you forgive me.
Chels, it sounds like you've got some rather irresponsible cat owners in your neighborhood. However, as Nikki mentioned, even responsible owners' cats will get out every once in a while and do their thing. I think both parties should do their part to protect against "cat problems" and then work to be understanding when they take action. For example, if you find a stray cat, take the time to make sure that it really is stray by asking neighbors/posting signs. But, on the other side, if a cat is caught and turned into the "pound," know that it was hopefully done in good conscience with a mind to protect and control - not to torture.
I detest cats.
Wow, I have never seen such long comments on a blog post!!
I dont know you and you dont know me I was blog surfing and found your blog off of Rhett and Julies. So I have a big cat problem at my house. Where did you get your trap. I would love to have one. Cats use our kids playground as their litter box, and they kill our grass. Sorry to all those who find this upsetting but I would rather my baby girl not come in with cat poop if you will all over her hands and knees from crawling. That is the reason I dont have cats myself so why would I want to clean up after someone elses.
i'm late to jump on this, but just wanted to add that the same bunny has been at the Humane Society for over 4 months. So, taking the cat to the pound doesn't result in imminent death. I think it is the first place I would look if my cat was missing. I don't think it is really practical for someone to take in another person's cat and put up signs--that is the owner's responsibility.
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