On Mon , 25 Sep 1995, Jan Vafa wrote:
> I am concerned with some of the comments I have heard bandied
> about, regarding the elimination of the feral/abandoned cats at the
> landfill. I guess my concern is that the "hole" that would be created by
> their removal, could lead to larger problems. One person did note that
> if the cats were removed, others would probably move in. I think the
> problem with the current situation is that the cat population is not
> stabilized. If the adult cats were to be trapped, tested,
> spayed/neutered, and returned to the colony as non-breeders, the
> population and territories would stabilize.

I'm sorry, but I think this is silly. I have normally deleted these 'cat
thread' posts, but the above is an example of either illogical thinking or
a poor understanding of the bird/cat situation, typical of the
animal-rights types. First of all, the last sentence lacks any evidence.
Do you have any evidence for that claim? 'Stabilize' is not the right
term. Who is to say it's not 'stable' now? Reproducing cats will be
replaced by their more competitive young, sterile cats will be replaced by
more competitive reproducing cats. Either way you still get an area with
lots-o-cats, and not-so-lots-o-birds. If all the cats in western
Washington were sterilized tomorrow, then maybe this solution would work.
But they aren't, and they won't be. So it becomes a very ineffective,
expensive solution. And the part about the 'hole' is also silly. The
'hole' was always there, without feline predators, for millennia. The
birds have evolved without that pressure. Removal of cats would not
result in the 'hole' being filled, except by living, breeding birds.
Prior to cats and rats, there were no mammalian predators as efficient as
house cats in eating birds. Thus more birds. Make sense? Coyotes can't
do as well, Bobcats mostly eat rabbits, moutain lions eat deer. I say
kill them all (the feral cats, not the other stuff I mentioned). I would
like to say a removal program just like for loosestrife of cats and the
Mute Swans. I'm not an opponent of live-trapping and taking to the
pound; but they'll just get euthanized there also, so why not save one
step? I'd also favor getting rid of the rats, but that's probably
hopeless, and the rabbits (wait for a few years until they're everywhere).

I can't believe I succumbed to participating in this argument...
-------------
Michael R. Smith
Univ. of Washington, Seattle
whimbrel at u.washington.edu
http://salmo.cqs.washington.edu/~wagap/mike.html