Jamie,
Having grown up on a small farm, I can appreciate how great it is to have
acreage and be able to let your pets roam free. Small farms are wonderful,
but the American dream of having a home with acreage is one of the reasons
our rural areas and forests are disappearing. The Europeans have been
clustering people in community centers surrounded by open farmland for
hundreds of years. It's probably the only way to save our rural, forested
areas from overdevelopment.
Gene Bullock
Poulsbo WA
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jamie Samans" <jsamans at gmail.com>
To: "'Tina Blade'" <tinablade at comcast.net>; "'ns johnson'"
<johnson_ns at yahoo.com>; <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Sent: Saturday, August 18, 2007 12:04 PM
Subject: RE: [Tweeters] neighborhood killer cat


> To be honest, while the cats are the *direct* cause of many bird deaths --
> the bigger issue is the suburbanization and over crowding in traditional
> population centers. More people = more cats = more dead birds. Modern
> schools of thought in urban and community planning are crowding more and
> more people into smaller and smaller areas. More people = less trees and
> open spaces = less birds.
>
> People who live on farms and on acreage have had 100% outdoor cats for
> centuries and see very little if any decline in bird populations on their
> land.
>
> I live on acreage and have two 100% outdoor cats -- really working cats
> that
> keep rodents and other damaging pests in check and out in the woods away
> from the house. I occasionally find a few feathers but their impact on
> our
> bird population is minimal. Our deck is full every summer with barely
> able
> to fly fledglings of all stripes. Right now at this moment I am looking
> out
> at junco, purple finch, black-headed grosbeak, and towhee fledglings in
> the
> rhodies around the deck and the feeders. As well as my 20 lb. cat Tom
> curled up asleep under the table on the deck.
>
> So while cats are easy to blame -- I would hazard a guess that humans and
> overcrowding are actually much more to blame for declining bird
> populations
> than cats are in the grand scheme of things. If it was simply cats then
> those of us "country folk" who own outdoor cats would see declines also.
> Instead the decline seems to be mainly focused in urban and suburban
> areas,
> which tells me there is more to it than just outdoor cats.
>
> -Jamie Samans
> Fall City
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu
> [mailto:tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu] On Behalf Of Tina
> Blade
> Sent: Saturday, August 18, 2007 10:55 AM
> To: 'ns johnson'; tweeters at u.washington.edu
> Subject: RE: [Tweeters] neighborhood killer cat
>
> Hi Tweets,
> Given the threat that cats pose to birds, especially ground birds, I
> really
> would like to see a law that requires cat owners to keep their cats
> indoors.
>
>
> That might seem draconian, but given the recent data on the dramatic
> decline
> of common birds, I think it's a reasonable step to take and not out of
> proportion to the seriousness of the problem.
>
> At the least, birders and birding organizations should be campaigning for
> this.
>
> (For the record, I myself am a cat owner with an indoor cat who is very
> happy, healthy, trim, and content.)
>
> Tina Blade
> Kirkland, WA
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu
> [mailto:tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu] On Behalf Of ns
> johnson
> Sent: Saturday, August 18, 2007 7:44 AM
> To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
> Subject: [Tweeters] neighborhood killer cat
>
> Hi, Tweeters,
>
> How do you all deal with a neighborhood hunter cat?
> One that jumps your 6 foot fence, stealthily
> approaches the shrubs near the feeders, lies in wait,
> selects his prey, attacks swiftly and makes off with a
> little passerine in his mouth. Yesterday I saw a pile
> of grey feathers in the middle of the back lawn and I
> knew he had returned for another successful theft. I
> think I know who he is but I don't know where he
> lives. A marmalade cat, he was very friendly and
> sweet before I saw him get his first of my birds and I
> started throwing rocks at him and chasing him off the
> property. Now he's a sneak and I don't see him.
>
> I have thought of netting all the shrubs he hides
> under where the little birds like to run also.
>
> Does anyone else have effective techniques?
>
> I couldn't really ever bring myself to harm him - I
> love cats and have 3 of my own who also enjoy bird
> watching from the windows as they are not allowed out.
>
> Thank you.
> Nancy Johnson
> near Echo Lake, Snohomish County
>
>
>
> ____________________________________________________________________________
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