Wildlife Policy
Statement
© Copyright
2002-2005 The Wildlife Society
Feral
and Free-Ranging Domestic Cats
Feral and
free-ranging domestic cats are exotic species to North
America. Exotic species are recognized as one of the most
widespread and serious threats to the integrity of native
wildlife populations and natural ecosystems. Exotic species
present special challenges for wildlife managers because
their negative impacts are poorly understood by the general
public, many exotic species have become such an accepted
component of the environment that many people regard them
as "natural," some exotic species have advocacy groups that
promote their continued presence, and few policies and laws
deal directly with their control. Perhaps no issue has
captured more of the challenges for contemporary wildlife
management than the impacts of feral or free-ranging human
companion or domestic animals. The domestic cat is the
companion animal that recently has attracted the most
attention for its impact on wildlife species.
Domestic cats originated from an ancestral wild species,
the European and African wild cat (Felis
silvestris). The domestic
cat (Felis
catus) is now
considered a separate species. The estimated numbers of pet
cats in urban and rural regions of the United States have
grown from 30 million in 1970 to nearly 65 million in 2000.
Reliable estimates of the present total cat population are
not available. Nationwide, approximately 30% of households
have cats. In rural areas, approximately 60% of households
have cats.
The impact of domestic cats on wildlife is difficult to
quantify. However, a growing body of literature strongly
suggests that domestic cats are a significant factor in the
mortality of small mammals, birds, reptiles, and
amphibians. Because free-ranging cats often receive food
from humans, they can reach population levels that may
create areas of abnormally high predation rates on
wildlife. When the wildlife prey is a threatened or
endangered species, the result may be extirpation or
extinction. Effects of cat predation are most pronounced in
island settings (both actual islands and islands of
habitat), where prey populations are already low or
stressed by other factors, or in natural areas where cat
colonies are established. Competition with native
predators, disease implications for wildlife populations,
and pet owners' attitudes toward wildlife and wildlife
management also are important issues.
Extensive popular debate over absolute numbers or types of
prey taken is not productive. The number of cats is
undeniably large. Even if conservative estimates of prey
taken are considered, the number of prey animals killed is
immense. Feeding cats does not deter them from killing
wildlife for they do not always eat what they kill. Humans
introduced cats to North America, and humans must be
responsible for the control and removal of cats that prey
on wildlife.
The policy of The Wildlife Society in regard to feral and
free-ranging domestic cats is to:
1. Strongly
support and encourage the humane elimination of feral cat
colonies.
2. Support the passage and enforcement of local and state
ordinances prohibiting the public feeding of feral cats,
especially on public lands, and release of unwanted pet or
feral cats into the wild.
3. Strongly support educational programs and materials that
call for all pet cats to be kept indoors, in outdoor
enclosures, or on a leash.
4. Support programs to educate and encourage pet owners to
neuter or spay their cats, and encourage all pet adoption
programs to require potential owners to spay or neuter
their pet.
5. Support the development and dissemination of sound,
helpful information on what individual cat owners can do to
minimize predation by free-ranging cats.
6. Pledge to work with the conservation and animal welfare
communities to educate the public about the negative impact
of free-ranging and feral cats on native wildlife,
including birds, small mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and
endangered species.
7. Support educational efforts to encourage the
agricultural community to keep farm-cat numbers at low,
manageable levels and use alternative, environmentally safe
rodent control methods.
8. Encourage researchers to develop better information on
the impacts of feral and free-ranging cats on native
wildlife populations.
9. Recognize that cats as pets have a long association with
humans, and that responsible cat owners are to be
encouraged to continue caring for the animals under their
control.
10. Oppose the passage of any local or state ordinances
that legalize the maintenance of "managed"
(trap/neuter/release) free-ranging cat colonies.
(This policy will expire in 2006.)