Why Australia Plans to Kill Millions of Feral Cats
In a controversial move to preserve native fauna, the Australian government is using poisoned sausages to kill 2 million feral cats by 2020. The plan to “cull” 2 million feral cats was set into motion in 2015, and has faced much controversy and criticism. Most recently, the government has settled on sausages stuffed with a potent poison containing the active ingredient sodium fluoroacetate, known as “1080.” The sausages are made of a blend of kangaroo meat, chicken, and other spices designed to appeal to feral cats.
Marked as "invasive predators," feral cats in the wilds of Australia kill hundreds of millions of native birds, mammals, and reptiles each year. Cats arrived with European settlers in the 1700s and are thus classified as an invasive species, one that has apparently been wreaking havoc on native wildlife.
JOSEPH JOHNSON
According to the New York Times, feral cat overpopulation has already led to the extinction of many native species; 34 mammal species found only in Australia have vanished. The Times wrote that cats are thought to be directly responsible for 22 of those extinctions.
While these numbers are certainly devastating, there are Australian scientists who question the basis of targeting 2 million feral cats. The scientists, in part, say the government had not given a clear metric or scientific reason for that number.
They had failed to indicate how, or whether, the cull would actually impact the feral cat population - as feral cats reproduce at very rapid rates. They also did not necessarily state how and whether the culling of 2 million feral cats would actually increase the populations of endangered species. Estimates of the number of feral cats actually living in Australia vary widely.
The researchers published a paper in the journal Conservation Letters, in which they questioned the 2 million target:
“The focus on killing cats runs the risk of distracting attention away from other threats to biodiversity, most prominent of which is widespread, ongoing habitat loss, which has been largely overlooked in the Threatened Species Strategy.” While feral cats are a big issue, according to CNN, the government has focused heavily on them over more “politically sensitive” issues like habitat loss caused by urban expansion, logging, and mining.
The researchers continued in their published paper: "The culling target [of 2 million] is a highly visible symbol of a broader campaign around feral cat research and management in Australia, rather than a direct indicator of conservation action and success. We are concerned that progress toward the 2 million target could be misinterpreted as progress toward conserving threatened species when the link between the two is not clear.”
Similarly, Kelly O’Shanassy, chief executive of the Australian Conservation Foundation, called the program "commendable;" however, she also states it fails to address habitat loss, which is an even greater threat to vulnerable species.
"The strategy … fails to meaningfully address the biggest threat to threatened species and ecological communities — the loss and fragmentation of habitat — either through investment in new protected areas or by safeguarding existing critical places," she told The Guardian.
This plan to cull cats not only in the hundreds of thousands, but in the millions, is why programs like Trap, Netuer, Release are important to stopping feral cat overpopulation over time. TNR programs reduce the number of feral kittens being born and work to prevent overpopulation.
What is TNR?
Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) is a proven humane method to spay or neuter unaltered feral cats by safely trapping them, then returning them to the location where they were picked up.
- Trap: All feral cats in a colony, or as many as possible, are humanely trapped.
- Neuter: The trapped cats are taken to an animal or veterinary clinic to be spayed or neutered, receive vaccinations, and are sometimes marked by eartipping to let people know that the cat has been through the TNR process.
- Return: Healthy adult feral cats are returned to their outdoor homes, where their lives are greatly improved without the strains of mating behaviors (aggression, fighting) and pregnancy. Stray cats and kittens that are socialized to humans are adopted into homes.
spay and neuter programs work everywhere else! Come on people let’s be a little more compassionate!
The poison sausage approach is questionable. I had to look up the kangaroo meat part, because that honestly sounded fake. What a strange thing to do.
BUT, culling an overpopulated species can be a merciful thing to do. Domestic cats aren’t well equipped to live in the wild and they often live short, sickly lives. TNR is controversial because some studies are showing that it isn’t very effective. This way, we’re preventing the spread of the population and preventing the suffering of these cats’ possible descendants.
Additionally, why are cats the only species that deserve our sympathy? What about the native species that didn’t evolve to survive against cats? It’s irresponsible to ignore the human factors causing this, and honestly infuriating, but it’s also true that these poor animals are dying out because of cats introduced by humans not long ago in the scheme of environments.
If they were also addressing the human causes, and doing it in a more careful way that wouldn’t kill unintended animals, I would still be sad but I wouldn’t have a problem with it.
I’ve had a petition I started against this for a few years. I think it is stupid and pointless to mass murder 2 million cats to curb their population when Australia’s laziness over the matter contributed to the red flag problem. 1.) TNR is much smarter and productive to keep the cat population from getting put of control. 2.) Australia poisoning 2 million cats will not keep them from having babies and growing out of control again. 3.) poison will also harm other animals who find a deathly sausage to snack on or if a predator eats them, they die as well. 4.) Australia is not taking accountability for their stupid actions. They treated their country like neglected parents and now are acting like Hitler in a mass genocide. Smarten up Australia! Trap, neuter and fix the problem humanely and for real this time!!! Don’t get caught up in your dumb circle of life over and over again because you can’t control the issue like a smart American.
and this is why i will NEVER EVER EVER Visit your Country , WHO THE F**K gives you the right to Kill any Living Breathing thing , you are not God , not even close , i Hope you all involved in this Nasty Vile decision all Rott in hell ,
NEED TO VENT – CONTACT ME – mr.lee@inbox.com – Birdman of long beach – but check your Spam for my response because I will answer you back you have my word. I am a disabled U.S.M.C. veteran so I am home a lot and I have plenty of time for e-mails and potential new friends. I am really not in that bad of physical health and mostly I am simply stuck without transportation but I have lots of animals to surround my life with. I still jump between dogs bigger than me to break up fights and somehow manage not to get bit. My whole life for the past 30 years has basically been rescue work. I have rescued a lot of cats for TNR and fed thousands of cats for years and still feed all the Cats & Dogs & Birds in my neighborhood daily plus Rabbits, Puppies, Chickens and a Duck behind me and keep everyone in Ice Cold Water all summer long. The thought about killing animals with poison is as sick and twisted as it gets. I have heard poisoning is such a horrible slow torturous way to die and how could any human approve of this. I guess that is why I love animals a million times more than most humans because animals really do understand love, friendship and honesty and would never deliberately poison a human being.
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