Take that, cat lovers.

[Valka D'Ur]

I simply don't have a better idea that is both feasible and actually qualifies as being half concerned about the environment that doesn't involve the mass culling of unattended outdoor domestic cats. Unfair to the cats? Well, insofar as you can be unfair to a cat, sure - it is. I'm sure some people will value feral cats and their ability to let their own cats wander about more highly than conservation or native bird/mammal populations.

I won't deny there are irresponsible cat owners. However, I'm not one of them. I always tried my damnedest to make sure our animals stayed in the yard, but it wasn't always possible. I had to resort to some creative fencing to keep my Siamese from wandering (after a particularly exhausting chase around the neighborhood at 3 a.m. one summer night). She was much more manageable after being spayed.

As for my dogs, we had one that loved to take himself for walks. Before he was even legally ours (we were sitting for him for my great-uncle), some idiot visitor of ours let him out without letting us know. It took a week to find him - he'd been hauled in to the pound after making it halfway across town. We caught a break on the fines because we'd been frantically calling the pound and SPCA, actively looking for him, and he had a collar and license - just not a local one, since my great-uncle was from another province. After we got him back, we had him groomed, and my grandmother fell in love with him (it was mutual). When my great-uncle returned, he was very displeased to hear what had happened, and my grandmother noted that the dog was an inconvenience to his legal owner, she and the dog had become attached, and could she have him? It took him all of about 30 seconds to think it over and say, "Well, okay." After that, we got him neutered, a current, local license, and then I started obedience training and regular walks with him. He did get out a few times after that, but would finally come when called.

My point is that you really shouldn't assume that all pet owners whose pets get loose actually allow them to be loose, and that they don't care.

 

[Farm Boy]

All? No nono, not all. Enough to be a problem. Enough that there should be fines and enforcement. Enough that there are enough animals that I think they probably need a blanket destruction program. Enough that they're a significant problem. Dunno, maybe a bounty program for pelts like they used to do would work. Hard to get that to function close to urban areas though. Probably better off paying state employees.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

The only legitimate reasons I can think of for wanting certain breeds (as in purebred) is because of medical reasons (if you want a dog/cat and need one that's hypoallergenic or hairless) or if you need a service animal for a specific job (ie. German Shepherds for police dogs, labs for seeing-eye dogs, other breeds for farm work, guard duties, etc.).

And the exceptions you carve out covers a ton of uses and a ton of breeds, so it's rather a moot point. After all, it was only recently that people began breeding dogs to look good in someone's purse or other dubious reasons. Before that, breeds largely existed to do specific jobs and are still capable of doing those things and are often bought to do them.

The thing is that there are not enough regulations regarding breeders. And the legal consequences for puppy/kitten mill owners are beyond inadequate. And who supplies the stores? These same puppy/kitten mills, where the conditions are often horrendous, only the "perfect" offspring get sold (and they're often not that perfect, medically), and the rest are either killed or left to exist in miserable conditions until they die.

You're preaching to the choir! I live in Missouri, which is known as the puppy-mill state.

Typical sales pitch: "Buy this beautiful specimen of a dog that is it's own grandpa for only $500. Act in the next 30 minutes and receive a complimentary case of kennel cough ABSOLUTELY FREE!!!!"

It's so bad that the people of MO passed a referendum to curb the questionable activities of puppy mills only to have the Republican-led legislature overturn the new law because it wasn't business friendly enough. They did put in some new laws, but they don't go as far as the original.

Anywho, yeah, shady breeders are terrible because they degrade the standing of breeds altogether and they are responsible for lots of very sick or even dangerous dogs being put into unsuspecting homes. Do cats face similar issues? I've never heard of a kitten mill...

Why murder the pet for something that's the owner's doing? And even then, sometimes a pet gets let out by accident, or it escapes and the owner is actively looking for it.

Who says they are all pets? That's the problem I raised earlier. Sure, some are people's pets that they let run free, but very many of them don't belong to anyone. Besides, we don't usually hesitate as a society to cull wild animal populations when required and we certainly don't seem to have a problem culling abandoned pets (and doing street sweeps to pick up loose dogs only to have many of them culled). So why do cats get an exception? I never see animal control go after wild cats (not that it doesn't ever happen, but it's much rarer given that wild cats are literally everywhere) but they will pick up every stray dog they come across.

 

[bhsup]

For the record, I am proud of the skunks that my mighty and courageous Suki has slaughtered. She hates them with a visceral, instinctive hatred and is nigh uncontrollable if she sees one.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

I take it she's been sprayed and she still has the balls to engage one of those fiends!
That's...
impressive.

 

[Farm Boy]

Feral dogs, by comparison to feral cats. Are easy to find and catch, they don't multiply as quickly, and they're significantly more dangerous to people once they pack up. It's both harder to notice and care about the cats. Out of sight and out of mind on that damage for the most part.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

true story
Plus, feral dogs usually come when called and will not ignore food you bait them with.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Anywho, yeah, shady breeders are terrible because they degrade the standing of breeds altogether and they are responsible for lots of very sick or even dangerous dogs being put into unsuspecting homes. Do cats face similar issues? I've never heard of a kitten mill...

You don't think there are breeders who charge $$$ for hairless cats, Persians, polydactyls, and so on? And with the recent popularity of "Grumpy Cat" I wouldn't be surprised if there are breeders trying to cash in that popularity. There was a case where a woman was caught breeding and/or stealing black kittens, cutting off their tails, and piercing the stubs (and piercing their ears). She was selling them as "Goth kittens."

So yes, there are kitten mills. There are other kinds of pet mills, too - a former friend of mine started out with a pair of guinea pigs. She later decided to breed them and intended to sell a few to one of the pet stores in Edmonton. I know this happened because in the early days, I helped her. I now know this was wrong, and can only say that at that time (years ago) I didn't know as much about pet mills as I do now. My ex-friend eventually got to the stage of having 49 guinea pigs in her living room, in cages stacked up in tiers of 4 all over the room. I'd stopped helping her long before this, and eventually reported the situation on the grounds of health concerns (she also had 5 birds, 2 turtles, and a tankful of fish).

There are rabbit mills, and on one occasion on the local Freecycle group, I nipped a situation in the bud when I refused to let a message go through for 6 FERRETS ack.

Honestly, where did you think the pet stores get their inventory?

I never see animal control go after wild cats (not that it doesn't ever happen, but it's much rarer given that wild cats are literally everywhere) but they will pick up every stray dog they come across.

Some communities do try to curb the cats. Some have brought in utterly draconian bylaws to do this - including asking people to spy on neighbors, and for delivery people like Canada Post, couriers, etc. to report people if they see an uncollared cat, even if the cat was seen through a window.

As for the emphasis on dogs... when is the last time you read about a child killed or maimed by a cat? I'm not saying cats never attack, but it's rare in comparison to dogs, and never on the same level as when a pit bull or other dog attacks a human.

For the record, I am proud of the skunks that my mighty and courageous Suki has slaughtered. She hates them with a visceral, instinctive hatred and is nigh uncontrollable if she sees one.

And you have a standing order at your grocery store for tomato juice?

 

[LucyDuke]

Hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and Dr. Bronner's, if you want to actually get the stink out.