# the feral cat issue



## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/08/17/feral-cats-colonies-rabies-risk/2665359/

I was reading trough the November December issue of trappers post , in the back they had a reprint of this article , a link was a lot easier than typing it all 


anyway I know this can be a controversial subject but , we don't allow feral pigs or feral dogs because of the huge amount of damage to native wild life and domestic animals. but for some reason people have been unable to see feral cats in the same way as feral dogs 
part of this is that because feral cats tend to be loan hunters and not pack animals people do not see them as the immediate physical threat a pack of hunting dogs is.


the shooting or trapping of feral cats is legal in Wisconsin so we are not talking about a SSS topic.

the birders have paid for some studies that now show feral cat damage to song birds as much more than previously thought 

I have had **** , opossum and feral cats in the same trap , the feral cat is the only animal that wanted to try and attack me from the trap 

I think some feel there is no way to tell if it is someones pet or a truly feral cat , I assure you i have had a bunch of pet cats in traps , pets sit and meow waiting to be let out , feral cats try and come through the trap and kill you. 

the rabbit population , in early spring of 2011 I trapped all the cats out of the neighborhood , this included some 5 house cats that had been turned out when a lot of houses around me went to foreclosure and 3 feral cats , in the year 2012 i stared seeing more rabbits by 2013 there were lots of rabbits , this made growing peppers much more difficult but it made me realize how many rabbits the cats must have been killing especially when i had seen them hunting and going after the young rabbits in the nest.
the amount of small game in an area is very much a measure of the habitat , mice and rabbits are a huge food source for native species like fox. 

we wouldn't accept a invasive species of any other type to decimate our song bird and rabbit populations , but apparently some cute online videos of little fuzzy kittens and everyone thinks the hole species is cute and cuddly house pets


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

I agree with you 100%. I've seen the destruction roaming pet cats can do and the feral ones are even worse. I shoot every feral cat I trap. I'd hate to try and release one. I'm afraid they will come back and tear me up.


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## Brighton (Apr 14, 2013)

I would rather have a few feral cats around, and my barn cats than the dozens of rabbits who eat my garden down to the dirt.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

You eat feral cats? Just curious because when the rabbit population gets too high I can always eat the rabbits.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Pete, not far from you, there was an extensive program to establish pheasants in Iowa and Grant counties. Any cat not in someone's yard was fair game for anyone involved in the project. Same area used to have tons of jackrabbits into the 1950s and cats were one of the factors which caused them to now probably be totally extinct in that part of the state. Last jack I shot was in 1961 and haven't seen one since.

Martin


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

another example of the cat double standard , Is that if my dog chased deer , the warden would shoot her and fine me.

but if your cat kills protected birds , chicks still in the nest , rabbit kits still in the nest your cat needs to be shot and you need to be fined , but it doesn't happen. 
If I killed a Robin Wisconsin's state bird , the fines would be issued , but if your cat kills 50 nothing happens . all I am asking for is equality 

dog at large , the dog is caught and the owner fined 

cat at large , funny never heard of someone getting a ticket for that 

Feral cats should be captured and contained or killed same as Feral dogs
if some group wants to build a facility that will contain the cats to an area around a barn and feed them and let them chase mice , go for it but you wouldn't get away with taking an old barn and releasing dogs at it un-fenced and just dropping off feed every week.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

Paquebot said:


> Pete, not far from you, there was an extensive program to establish pheasants in Iowa and Grant counties. Any cat not in someone's yard was fair game for anyone involved in the project. Same area used to have tons of jackrabbits into the 1950s and cats were one of the factors which caused them to now probably be totally extinct in that part of the state. Last jack I shot was in 1961 and haven't seen one since.
> 
> Martin


I grew up around Bong state recreation area , my grandpas farm was only a few miles from there , i worked at another not far from there , back in the 50s 60s and even early 70s the area was full of native pheasant , by the 80s you almost couldn't find one , and in the late 80s and early 90s they were and still are releasing them almost every weekend of the fall , they have been trying to get back a pheasant population.

my uncle talks about the field being alive with pheasant cackling

why is it that they had such healthy phesant populations , well my grandpa could better explain this but in the late 40s and early50s he could be found with his buddies riding thru the country on a Friday night cat hunting there was a bounty on them they would meet up at the filling station and divide up into cars and go looking for cats part of the year , they also kept the fox population in check , great grandpa owned a hatchery with thousands of chicks born every week you can imagine cats and fox were not welcome 

there was a guy with a air plane just down the road from grandpas farm he lived at the corner of EW and NN he is dead now has been for many years he would fly over the tree tops after the leaves were out and all the fields picked and attached to the underside of his wing was a big PA speaker he could call out the location of where the fox was going to come out and they would chase it down and shoot it from the cars yes it really was riding shotgun 

today and even then trapping of fox and cats could have been used but this was the method they came up with and used no one ever got hurt , but you can see why it stopped laws change public oppintion changed and teenage boys riding in cars with shotguns out the window became less acceptable .

trapping on the other hand done right is still a tremendous tool , and anyone who has an issue with problem animals should contact their state trapping association as see if they can find a trapper in their area to come trap the problems control the population and in a way that the animal gets put to good use.

sorry still no market for cat fur that i am aware of , and most of the ones i have caught were so full of mites the fur was no god any way.


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## Madsaw (Feb 26, 2008)

We had a vet that lived next door. She would bring all the unwanted cats from the clinic home and let them loose. Many was town ferals. We had ,7 coveys of bobwhites around. In less then 3 yrs they were gone. Learned fast yo carry a 22 when doing field work. Still get about 6 strays a yrs here at the farm.
---- city officials then started trapping the dam things and dumping them. Sure was a stink over that.


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## Brighton (Apr 14, 2013)

Danaus29 said:


> You eat feral cats? Just curious because when the rabbit population gets too high I can always eat the rabbits.


I don't need to eat the wild rabbits, or feral cats for that matter, I raise my own livestock for meat. I also like to eat what I plant in my garden and not just feed wild rabbits.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

as for releasing thing safely ,from a live trap , use a silage fork to go down thru the cage just behind the door do this on soft ground you can get the tines right down into the ground then while your holding that you can safely open the door and prop it open , then you can put your foot on the back of the cage and pull the silage fork when your ready to let them out keeping the trap and the fork between you and them. I have never had any animal decide to turn on me yet. but then i am usualy prepared for it one would


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## Wolfy-hound (May 5, 2013)

I like cats. I like dogs. But feral cats or dogs shouldn't happen. It's the real world and they do happen but a lot of people really prefer to ignore the issue because it's too painful to think of killing an animal they see as someone's beloved pet. 

Dogs are easier to see as a threat, feral dogs having attacked humans in many cases across the US. Dogs that are feral are large carnivores, akin to a wolf in the human brain when they act wild.

Cats are still small fluffy cats and people don't think of how much damage they can do. Not only do cats decimate wildlife, they can damage domestic livestock, attack domestic pets including pet cats and spread disease not only to pet cats but also to other species and to humans(their feces contaminates places and can spread parasites also).

I don't equate responsible barn cats to feral cats. Responsible being the key word. You can't dump cats at a remote barn and never do anything else and say "Oh they're fine". Barn cats should receive vaccines and regular worming when needed and be spayed and neutered to prevent them BECOMING a feral cat population. 

I prefer for humane killing, so a bunch of untrained joyriders taking random potshots at whatever shows up would not be what I want to support. But trapping and killing or responsible hunting, yes. I would feel bad for each cat killed, but it's way better than them dying of all the various things that kill feral cats all the time, and way better than them destroying the wildlife.


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## okiemom (May 12, 2002)

in Australia they are not allowed to roam due to the killed wild birds and the damage the pet kitties do.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

GCP, never had a dead feral cat try to attack me. Once I trap a feral there's only one way it's getting out of that trap. Worse than raccoons and groundhogs, IMO.

Don't get me wrong, I am a cat person. I loved the cats I had. But with the last one I saw just how devastating they are to wildlife. I have no problem at all with house cats.


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## littlejoe (Jan 17, 2007)

It's not just feral cats that damages small wildlife, your typical house or barn cat does the same. Any cat I've seen tends to roam a bit, and they are opportunistic killers even if they don't kill it immediately.

I'm not a cat person, but I will tolerate one being around. They're not a pet to me, just a tool that I use to keep rodents in check.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

for the release i wasn't specifically talking feral cats but anything you may want to release that you don't want your hand near the door 


barn cats are not feral cats , if vaccinated and kept around the farm but if they have wandered a mile from your farm to the woods ,that have crossed the feral line 

the days are clearly passed that teen aged boys could ride thru fields eradicating cats , teen aged boys have changed many of the then 16 ,17 and 18 years old had been working several years having left school after the 8th grade they were farmers just young ones , now it will be up to the hunter , trapper and farmer alike to keep these menaces in check


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Barn cats are little less dangerous to wildlife as feral cats. If one has enough rats and mice to where barn cats never venture away from the barn, then one has a very major problem. Many small birds rely on the same type of landscape which exist around many farm buildings. Wrens, robins, and swallows are three which have adapted well to living near humans. They are just as much lunch for farm cats as for feral cats. Same fate for small animals, primarily rabbits. Bad part is that the cats often don't even eat the rabbits after they are killed. 

Problem is not only in the wild but cities as well. I've caught a number of cats which definitely were not housecats. They move in from the countryside during the winter when there is little to eat in fields and forests. If they snarl at me, they are dead. If they meow, they have a chance at adoption. One even stayed here for 4 or 5 years.

Martin


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## Oldcountryboy (Feb 23, 2008)

I've had a cat problem around here ever since someone bought the land across the road from me and put in trailer court. Renters will come in and bring a kitten with them and then when they move out, they leave the cat. Which no one feeds so next thing you know he's hangin around my place or he becomes ferral. 

I need to get rid of about 3 or 4 now that I keep seeing while driving nearby my place.

Forgot to mention: Ever since the trailer court and the cats arrived, the rabbit population dropped way down. So much that I can't even find a rabbit around here during the winter to hunt.


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## Oldcountryboy (Feb 23, 2008)

Brighton said:


> I would rather have a few feral cats around, and my barn cats than the dozens of rabbits who eat my garden down to the dirt.


Ever hear of chicken wire?


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## LoonyK (Dec 12, 2009)

Never have noticed a feral cat problem here. Rabbits, voles, mice are too plentiful most of the time, keeps my barn cats happy.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Most of the people who I know that own house cats don't allow them to go outside. Around here house cats that get outside are coyote food.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

If any of you have lived in the country long enough, you know that there is some sort of mindset with some city people who think that every farm needs one more cat. Our home farm was about as far from any town as one could get in that location. That is, at least 10 miles. Tame cats would show up quite regular and not always old ones. I was deer hunting one time and heard mewing off in the distance. I meowed back and cute little half-starved tabby could hardly contain himself for joy at finding a friend. After eating two slices of big bologna from my sandwiches, he curled up in my jacket pocket and went to sleep. Probably would not have survived another few nights. Not his fault for being born a cat, it's the fault of whomever dumped him with little expectation of survival. 

Martin


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## littlejoe (Jan 17, 2007)

Well... did you take it home and add it to the herd?


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

I already had one at the time. Took it with me to my aunt's and she kept it until one of my cousins adopted it.

Martin


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

a size large havahart trap from farm and fleet if you catch them on sale they can be had for about 25-28 dollars the 10" wide 12" high 32" long 

and a slice or to of lunch meat or chicken all the way in the back of the trap is an almost sure recipie to have a cat the next morning if they are around 

we have some freinds that live that majic distance out of town , about 5 minutes past the end of the 25mph zone on a 2 lane state hyw , they regularily hear a car door slam but don't see any one in the drive way , a short time later they have another cat and they are almost always pregnant.


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## rod44 (Jun 17, 2013)

I always say, "if you don't like cats, try different recipe."


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## tiffnzacsmom (Jan 26, 2006)

Some areas have a program where if you trap feral cats you can get them vaccinated and spayed/neutered free. It helps keep the rodent population down and keeps the cats from reproducing.


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## CCCC (Nov 21, 2011)

tiffnzacsmom said:


> Some areas have a program where if you trap feral cats you can get them vaccinated and spayed/neutered free. It helps keep the rodent population down and keeps the cats from reproducing.


 This reminds me of a program or a story of doing the same thing to coyotes in Texas to that had been killing the ranchers sheep. I will stop there to keep this post clean.

Been trapping and shooting Ditch Cougars for years and will continue to do so, if they are a 1/2 mile from anybody's place they are fair game where I come from. I have nothing against a good farm cat, but these critters are very prolific. Also I have no doubt they kill pheasant chicks and other birds each year although diminishing nesting habitat has had more effect than anything on bird numbers, but that is another conversation. 

Practice the three S's and if you are using a 220 Conibear you only need 2.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

A 220 is overkill and could get you sued if you kill someones dog even if it's on private land. A 120 is big enough.


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## bowdonkey (Oct 6, 2007)

Ah, a subject close to my heart. Hunting ditch tigers next to the roads at night was big sport back when I was a teen. Still practiced in areas. I agree cats are huge predators of songbirds. And for that reason they are fair game at all times. I've even dinged a couple with my longbow while living in the city. Great sport! I also have cracked the garage door and caught them in baited buckets and 220's. No mess, easy clean up (cat goes out in the garbage), and no one is none the wiser. City living at its finest.


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## rod44 (Jun 17, 2013)

tiffnacsmom

To finish CCCC's story nicely. The cats are not having sex with the songbirds - they are killing and eating them!:shocked:


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

The article explains the biggest problem with the capture spay nutter , vaccinate program is that cats need 3 shots ideally from very young , then a annual rabies booster and they don't seem to really be reducing the numbers , just collecting large amounts of cats in on are that can then spread out from there

annual recapture and vaccinate is almost impossible 

be care full with those 220s 

live traps in town are great , cause you can let the neighbors cat go when you get it , body grip traps don't have a catch and release option. but I have seen a plywood box a guy built that fits up to the front of a live trap there is a recessed 220 in the box and both ends open , the caged animal leaves the live trap just to walk into the trigger of the 220 , still no mess no noise


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

One big misconception is that there is a massive breeding colony of feral cats in the country. It is true that there are some which are born wild but most are dumped cats. I've never seen a half-grown cat in the wild as would be the case if born there. It does not take long for a cat to revert to the wild state of their ancestors. If the kitten which found me had survived on its own, its memory as a domestic cat would have soon been replaced by instinct. He would have become just another feral tom needing to kill something almost every day just to survive.

Martin


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## bowdonkey (Oct 6, 2007)

Oldcountryboy said:


> I've had a cat problem around here ever since someone bought the land across the road from me and put in trailer court. Renters will come in and bring a kitten with them and then when they move out, they leave the cat. Which no one feeds so next thing you know he's hangin around my place or he becomes ferral.
> 
> I need to get rid of about 3 or 4 now that I keep seeing while driving nearby my place.
> 
> Forgot to mention: Ever since the trailer court and the cats arrived, the rabbit population dropped way down. So much that I can't even find a rabbit around here during the winter to hunt.


I'll be heading back to the home farm this Thanksgiving and we will probably set a bunch of rabbit snares again. Last year where a housing development borders our farm we caught no rabbits but did get a big tom. Caught lots of rabbits further away. Less cats because the nephews keep them shot out. They got some fantastic video of 3-400+ yard shots. Lots of fun on the farm.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Those "feral colonies" are supposed to contain only spayed/neutered cats. One ear is cut off part way to distinguish the altered cats. 

One of those colonies was near a Burrowing Owl habitat. The founders of the colony were ordered to remove all the cats or have them destroyed because of the damage done to the owl population.

As for the rabbit/cat issue. I can fence out the rabbits. The cats just climb the fence then proceed to tear up my garden. Cats have done much more damage than rabbits.

Groundhogs are a different story and cats don't kill them.


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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

Well, isn't this just peachy? It turns out that, here in Minnesota, I shouldn't shoot feral cats. Or, I can. Or, I can't. Spoke with DNR about this. If I'm out hunting and I see what I believe to be a feral cat, I can shoot it, but I may have to go to court over it. According to my state legislator, who happens to be a former DNR CO, it would be a bad idea. While feral cats are not protected, they can't be shot either. Someone, clarify this for me.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Most likely because shooting other animals is not legal. In Ohio it depends on what you are hunting and what time of year it is. I'd have to look up your state hunting laws for a more detailed and accurate explanation but according to Ohio that's the reason. Also, could be where you are hunting. In some places you are allowed to hunt only certain animals. Cats are off limit unless you are on private property you or your parents own.


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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

Thanks Danaus. My argument (not with you) would be that if a hunter or CO sees one of my dogs chasing a deer, I will be missing a dog. As I should be. I can shoot a crow, out of season, if it is committing damage or about to commit damage. Feral cats are, by nature, predators. I realize not many people own pet deers or crows though. I do wonder, though, if I saw a raccoon about to commit damage to a pheasant nest, would I/ could I/should I kill it?


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

Snowfan said:


> Well, isn't this just peachy? It turns out that, here in Minnesota, I shouldn't shoot feral cats. Or, I can. Or, I can't. Spoke with DNR about this. If I'm out hunting and I see what I believe to be a feral cat, I can shoot it, but I may have to go to court over it. According to my state legislator, who happens to be a former DNR CO, it would be a bad idea. While feral cats are not protected, they can't be shot either. Someone, clarify this for me.



that sounds very Minnesotan , the you can but you shouldn't , but you could open your self up to legal issues , they don't want to tell you no and they don't want to make the cat people mad so they muddy it up so ba no one can decide what is or isn't , and in the mean time nothing gets done 

well except by all those people who learned a long time ago to first not get caught and second don't talk about it.


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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

Talk about what?


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Wisconsin laws are very evasive without mentioning cats in particular. They would be included in "all other wild mammals not specifically mentioned...."

Martin


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

Snowfan said:


> Thanks Danaus. My argument (not with you) would be that if a hunter or CO sees one of my dogs chasing a deer, I will be missing a dog. As I should be. I can shoot a crow, out of season, if it is committing damage or about to commit damage. Feral cats are, by nature, predators. I realize not many people own pet deers or crows though. I do wonder, though, if I saw a raccoon about to commit damage to a pheasant nest, would I/ could I/should I kill it?


in Wisconsin if on your land you can shoot a raccoon any time you like if it is doing damage 


conversely if you see a dog chasing deer during deer season you can capture it or report it to the warden and he can shoot it . but your not supposed to.

but then we are back to land owners being able to protect live stock or crop damage being ok 
what they don't want is every guy in orange unloading on a dog barking at a deer cause they are angery that people walk their dogs in all the public hunting grounds when they are not supposed to. it is a safety issue for the moron walking the dog wearing a brown coat and a white fuzzy knit hat , the politicians need all the morons they can get to stay elected so they make rules like this.

but land owners , do what you need to do


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

In Ohio if the raccoon is out of season no you can't shoot it. Out of season you have to trap it. Once trapped you have to shoot it or release it where you caught it.


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## DryHeat (Nov 11, 2010)

Somebody mentioned Australia; I know I saw a documentary-sort of report back over ten years ago at least discussing folks on OZ being fairly organized about trying to hunt down feral cats. Like rabbits and prickly pear cactus, they'd been reproducing like crazy and in the case of the cats, killing a huge number of native marsupials as well as birds. I forget if areas had official bounties but they followed one fellow who was spending a lot of time hunting cats with dogs, maybe jacklighting them too, proudly wearing a "cat-skin" hat like Davy Crockett is imaged wearing coonskin, except the front of it was a full snarling cat's head/face. For the last 20 years, we've had from two to six pet kitties but we keep them indoors only both to keep them from being coyote-bobcat-owl food outside but also to protect the small wildlife we value having everywhere around us. I like the idea of giving a stray wandering around its shot at "meow-not-snarl" and trying to place any such human-socialized with a forever home. Obviously feral, far enough from a farm or barn or house that it's not *likely* to be even a designated "barn" cat, I have no problem with the forever home being a hole in the ground or in some scavenger's belly. Once you get into the situations involving crazy cat people feeding twenty semi-tame felines that aren't always vaccinated, fixed, or tamed, or rural areas where some barn cats may be rather well cared for, possibly tame and recognized, well, imo it gets murkier, if for no other reason than that you could get a human or two really deeply angry at you if you were known to have offed a few of "their" wandering felines. Overall, I'd go with SSS to protect wildlife *unless* the feline in question had a collar or a constant visible presence at a neighbor's house.


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## poorboy (Apr 15, 2006)

Cats without a bell on a collar are shot on sight on my property..If it's wearing a bell I'll give it a bye...


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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

This must be where I would use the 3S policy. Shoot. Shovel. Shut-up.


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## PrincessFerf (Apr 25, 2008)

We have 3 "barn" cats. They keep the rodent population down at our place. All are spayed/neutered and stay pretty close to home. My theory is that: I don't want a litter of kittens and if I ever need another cat... there are 1,000's to be had. 

My cats mostly live outside and hunt rodents, but also have food and water available to them. When the temps get very cold, they will hang out in the house for a few hours. We keep them UTD on shots and de-worming because they're friendly with our dogs and kids.

I'm tempted to put a bell on them so it can warn birds, but I don't want the rodents to have a warning, especially the mice in the chicken coop!


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## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

Some of us don't care about protecting wild birds or wild rabbits.
Feral cats take care of pests, ever see what a rabbit can do to a sprouting garden? or what birds do to tomatoes and other veggies? not to mention mice, rats, voles, etc. Never had a feral cat damage my garden.

I'll take the cats over the other pests any day.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Feral cats have torn my garden up. I trapped a feral in a seedling bed and shot a feral that was digging out just planted bulbs.

ETA, there was no bait in the trap in the seedling bed.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Snowfan said:


> Well, isn't this just peachy? It turns out that, here in Minnesota, I shouldn't shoot feral cats. Or, I can. Or, I can't. Spoke with DNR about this. If I'm out hunting and I see what I believe to be a feral cat, I can shoot it, but I may have to go to court over it. According to my state legislator, who happens to be a former DNR CO, it would be a bad idea. While feral cats are not protected, they can't be shot either. Someone, clarify this for me.


Cornish?


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## CCCC (Nov 21, 2011)

Fishhead

The 220's are meant for ***** and other critters and I always have permission to trap where I do and always let land owners know where traps will be located. These are fairly secluded areas, but cat's still seem to show up in these area's never caught a dog and pray I never do.


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## rod44 (Jun 17, 2013)

So many cat, so few recipes.


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## CenTexJenn (Nov 25, 2013)

Seems to me that people that don't want them shot because they're seen as cute, fluffy pets just haven't worked enough in a real world rescue/animal shelter situation. There's not enough homes for all the unwanted cats out there so what else are we supposed to do besides shoot them/put them to sleep? Generally speaking a feral cat lives a short, brutal life and dies young possibly from injury, disease or such. 

My ex's grandfather completely disgusted me with his attitude towards them. He put out food for the ferals because he said he liked to watch them. When I asked if he wasn't worried about them reproducing completely out of control he said no because within a few years enough had died off from problems caused by inbreeding that it trimmed the numbers back down. Ugh, lovely. 

I ran my own rescue for about 13 yrs and worked more different types of animal related jobs than anyone I know. IMO, there really isn't anyone out there who loves animals more than me but I keep a realistic view too! There's things that can and often do happen to feral cats that are MUCH more horrible, painful and cruel than a quick death from a bullet or in a shelter. I'm against animals suffering and sometimes death is a good way to prevent it.


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## Pops2 (Jan 27, 2003)

The whole rodent control stuff is a load of crap. Most cats are picky and will only kill certain kinds of rodents. Further no cat will ever match the efficiency of a working bred terrier. Just look at some of the catches pictured here.
https://www.google.com/search?q=ter...urce=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=Fy2eUv7SCtDdoATp9oDoBw


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## brownegg (Jan 5, 2006)

WOW....Everyone is a manager of our wild outdoors. If you need to eat it, then harvest it....if you don't, then allow it's freedom. Mother Nature has it all figured out 
without our help. Live, and let live! Just cause you catch it in your trap...it ain't you'rs...just let it go....if you ain't man enough to let something go from your trap....maybe you should keep the traps home....just sayin!


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

not the point , the problem is people dumping hundreds of thousands of domesticated animals , an invasive species , on an ecosystem 

we have laws against animal dumping , against transporting or releasing live fish or other exotic or domestic animals but because people see cats as a cute cuddly friendly house pet they can't see the damage they do as an invasive species.

the fines should be steep for dumping them , and release shouldn't be allowed the same way it is illegal to release an invasive fish once caught.


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## bowdonkey (Oct 6, 2007)

Pops2 said:


> The whole rodent control stuff is a load of crap. Most cats are picky and will only kill certain kinds of rodents. Further no cat will ever match the efficiency of a working bred terrier. Just look at some of the catches pictured here.
> https://www.google.com/search?q=ter...urce=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=Fy2eUv7SCtDdoATp9oDoBw


Awesome, awesome, awesome. We have always had terriors on the farm. Even now. Great memories of ratting in the corn cribs snd grainery. But nothing even close to those pictures.


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## MichaelZ (May 21, 2013)

Use some judgement on this. It could be a neighbor's cat, even if it does not have a collar. We have at least one outdoor cat to control mice, and we give it shots annually as well as have it fixed, and it wears no collar. And a bell on an outdoor cat would be the kiss of death for it by us with the predators as we have. If it is obviously feral, then trap it in a live trap and relocate it or shoot it and don't say anything. There are crazy laws on this, and there are kooky enough people to report you, even if the cat is vicious and perhaps rabid. See http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/14/us/14cats.html?em&ex=1195275600&en=c2835051a6ce9371&ei=5087
 and http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20100302-NEWS-3020359 A raccoon live trap works very well - I made use of it this way once. 

A cat that wanders quickly uses up its many lives - we have had many disappear and I would say most became part of the food chain. It is no accident that the one we have left outside is jet black and is near invisible at night. Also, she stays close to home. So I do not worry too much about feral cats - at some point they become dinner in our neck of the woods. The one I did catch was by accident when I was trying to catch a raccoon. 

BTW, how do those terriers do on mice?


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## bowdonkey (Oct 6, 2007)

Ours are outstanding, but mainly in a crib or grainery. Ours are not like cats as far as hunting for food.


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## bassmaster17327 (Apr 6, 2011)

When my uncle was living in a trailer park he shot a cat that was always tearing out his trash with a pellet gun, a neighbor saw him and he ended up in jail. He was sentenced to 90 days in jail, he appealed and ended up getting a year probation.

I asked a game warden what to do if I caught a cat in a trap while trapping the game lands, his response was "they don't belong here, I didn't see anything"

It is illegal for use to let dogs run loose but not cats, we can shoot a dog if it is chasing a big game animal and we just have to report it to game commission within 48 hours


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

bassmaster, was the trailer park inside city limits? If so that might have been the issue.


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