Q. I take care of feral cats in my neighbourhood. But I’ve been getting a lot of flack from my neighbours lately. They don’t understand that I’m just taking care of these poor creatures!!! What can I say to get them to back off and leave me and these cats alone?
By: Terri-Lee Reid
A. The feeding of feral cats provokes many emotions. Life for a feral cat is tough – there are fights with other cats, predators, vehicles and poor weather. One estimate indicates that there are approximately 8.5 million pet cats in Canada and about 1.4 to 4.2 million feral cats. Your heart is in the right place, but feral cats can cause issues with neighbours including:
- They can be noisy, especially when they fight
- They can be smelly when they mark their territory with urine
- They are predators of birds, small mammals, amphibians, and other wildlife
- They can dig in flower and vegetable gardens, using them as litter boxes
As a conservation organization, we can’t help but be concerned with the impacts cats, an invasive species, have on our native wildlife. It is estimated that between 100 and 350 million birds are killed in Canada each year because of cats, with most predation likely caused by feral cats. And then there are the small mammals, amphibians and reptiles that also become prey. It’s said that even if a cat is well-fed, it may still not be able to resist the temptation to hunt. Perhaps another option is to volunteer with your local humane society. Hopefully you and your neighbours can come together to find ways to help the feral cat situation in your community without putting birds and other wildlife at risk.
