Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve_In_Cheshire  This cat is out at all hours so it will have access to a cat flap 24/7, in my opinion a cat owner should NOT let a cat have access to getting outside after a certain time, ive heard cats in the past fighting at 2am and another cat making that baby crying noise right under the bedroom window.
You see hardly any with bells on their collars either, i bet the majority of cats don`t have them as ive never heard jangle jangle once from a cat bell. |
Steve,
Actually I'm in agreement with you entirely ... the problem with domestic cats is wholly down to their owners being irresponsible. No domestic cat should be allowed to roam freely after dark, as much for its own safety, as for the safety of wildlife. Unfortunately, there seems to be an accepted myth with many cat owners that cats need to be put out at night ... that's not easily overcome though and typically it's the folk who can't really be bothered with cats who are most to blame, so attempts at educating them otherwise are generally pointless.
We run a wildlife refuge here and have 3 formally feral cats ... all are neutered and subject to a strict curfew that they accept happily as their daily routine.
The two male cats are allowed out only after 0900hrs and wander back by 1130hrs or 1200hrs ... sooner if it's raining heavily or windy. Thereafter, for the remainder of the day and night they are entirely content to be indoors.
The female cat has only 3 legs and so goes out for short sorties, only under supervision (and accompanied by her best pal, the dog).
Even so, all our cats wear collars with name tags and 3 bells ... as much so we can locate them as for wildlife protection.
Single cat bells are pretty ineffective, but with two or three bells, even the most cautious creeping of cats will jangle a sufficient warning for birds.
My point is only that we should try not to demonize the cat, when the fault lies squarely elsewhere ... essentially with irresponsible cat owners.