nice shootin Tex...
Posted on 02/10/2013 1:42:55 PM PST by San Rafael Blue
Look around on the Net. In the last few weeks, a new fad has come to fore; the belief that CATS ARE BAD for natures balance. All of a sudden there are articles written that say that according to specialists, Cats are not simply the furry pets we've come to cuddle or avoid, depending on the person. Cats, especially domesticated cats, present an ever creeping danger to the safety of birds.
A New Zealand report asks the question; Where have they gone? Where are the species formerly common to this region? Almost gone, are the Kaka, the Wika, Kokako,and the Kiwi, says Gareth Morgan, a businessman and phianthropist. Mr. Morgan refers back to recent American reports from the Smithsonian Conservatory.
The Smithsonian has given a concluding assessment of damages now wrought by the undisciplined feline. Smithsonian representative Mr. Scott Loss speculates; There are approx. 84 million house licensed cats plus over 30 million stray cats to consider. These kill from 1.4 Billion to as much as 3.7 Billion U.S. birds A YEAR!
My first response is five-fold; a. All creatures eventually do go extinct, even ours will someday. b. Even if this estimate is true, does that mean the cats perform a service of sorts, keeping the bird population from exploding. A huge bird population would put much pollution in our natural waters, I would think. A huge bird count also takes away from bugs and worms that our fish buddies could be snacking on. c. Who is REALLY behind this new fashionable snub of the cat? I think it's some org like PETA, who does not think we humans should have any kind of pet any kind of way from the start. d. More unwanted 'Bloom-berging' or snooping into or lives, ready to create yet another government agency with a case of Chronic Giantism. e. Stay out of my life with your government strife!!
Mr. Mercat, famous for being a zoologist, says that cats serve the necessary roll of predator. Without predators, the prey population becomes weak and destroys the environment. So we feed the birds because it entertains us but we have an out door cat because they are welfare birds and nasty dirty things.
I use to live on top of a hill that was infested with the varmints. We got a cat and soon he was chasing down the gophers. He killed all of our gophers and then cleared out the neighbor's yards.
Cats don’t necessarily eat their kills, they just enjoy watching them die.They play with their food often.
This article is no great revelation. Notice a few cats around and soon the rabbits grow less.
De Nile is not jes’ a river in Egypt.
http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/blogs/outdoor-cats-are-prolific-killers-study-finds
nice shootin Tex...
Cats,Coyotees,Racoons.......
As hunters go, cats are superb, among nature’s best, but cats are opportunistic hunters and kill for food, and just for sport and play. They hunt and kill whether they are well fed or not, and whether for food or not. It’s just what cats do.
My kitty does a great job keeping the mice and gophers down. And last summer she even brought me a rabbit for stewing :)
I don't know of any community in this country that requires its residents to license their cats.........
Those mean, vicious kittehs....we need a kinder, gentler pet. One that will respect the needs of the birds and be more sensitive. /s
I don’t care who you are, that is funny! Don’t tell Andrew Cuomo, he may start hollerin’ on stage again, with his fists all balled up.
The 86 million number is from the Humane Society of the US. Don’t know where ‘licensed’ came from but the story seems to be from New Zealand where sheeple might assume everybody lives under totalitarianism.
I used to think that before I witnessed my indoor cat leap off the back deck and snatch a goldfinch that had landed on one of the coneflowers behind the deck........
FWIW, she hunts off the deck and has repeatedly caught mice and baby rabbits in the garden area on the back of it........
It's very disconcerting when I'm in the den and suddenly hear a squealing from the dining area of a creature my cat has just brought into the house...........(open pet entrance attached to my back deck doorwall.....)
If you're refering to a real gopher that lives in a hole in the ground and not a chipmunk, they're easy to get rid of.
Take a hose or a bucket of water and pour it into their hole and flush them out. Then do what you want with them.........
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