Delaware Avenue stray cat. This is one of the two that visit our garden. It has no collar. It seems well fed, but we do not feed it. Blogfinger photo© 8/22/17 ©
Feral cats are born and raised in the wild. Stray cats had a home at one time. We suspect that the cats which wander around and come into our back yard are usually being fed by someone and that many of them do have homes. We think they are attracted by our pond fish (although we have never suspected a fish loss due to a cat) and they like the birds which visit our feeders. Little sparrows and wrens are probably quite tasty.
Some owners like their cats to run around willy-nilly, so they happily let them out, but not everyone welcomes those hyper-allergenic visitors.
And some homeowners with mice might welcome a fierce feral feline mouser in their yard. But the other side of the coin is that some people don’t like dogs or cats. My mother was terrified of both, but especially of cats.
Why should cats be entitled to stroll onto our property and make themselves at home? Isn’t that trespassing? That’s a fine how-do-you-do. And who’s going to pick up after the feline poopers?
Cats don’t need licenses, but they do need spaying/neutering and vaccination. You can call Neptune Animal Control. I think the Humane Society (Shafto Road) is subcontracted for that.
It makes no sense that cats are not monitored as dogs are. Sure cats rarely attack humans, but they do attack each other as well as animals including dogs, fish, mice, and birds. And they make lots of babies if they haven’t been fixed, and many of those babies wind up being “put down.” In addition felines can cause diseases in humans such as cat scratch fever and rabies.
We were walking our son’s dog on an Ocean Grove sidewalk. It was a peaceful stroll when, all of sudden, a cat leaped from behind a bush, screeching with claws bared. We managed to pull them apart, but it scared the dog and us!
What about disturbing the peace? There are ordinances in Neptune about dogs becoming nuisances, but how about cats? And OG’s geography provides many predatory cats with terrific hiding spaces.
And it is also risky for cats, especially strays, because cats often get into fights and can be fatally injured. They can be injured by dogs many of whom love to go after cats or by nasty humans. Cats are not necessarily happy in “the wild.”
Owners think that it’s good for their cats to get some exercise, because wild cats can get into up to 40 hunting trips per day. But the cat can get hit by a car or have some other sort of accident. Then who will care for that cat, whereas a housebound cat can be quite happy indoors and get proper care?
If a stray cat visits your home, do not feed it unless you want a permanent visitor. And if you do, the cat is considered yours in terms of responsibility—legal and otherwise (such as vaccination.) What about a law suit if a cat that you maintain and allow to run free hurts someone, causes damage, or kills somebody’s pet.
Cat lovers say that cats are complicated and thoughtful creatures. Just ask T.S. Eliot, whose book inspired the Broadway show CATS. Below are two quotes from:
― T.S. Eliot, Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats
“For he will do
As he do do
And there’s no doing anything about it!”
And another quote from old T.S.
“Before a Cat will condescend
To treat you as a trusted friend,
Some little token of esteem
Is needed, like a dish of cream;
And you might now and then supply
Some caviar, or Strassburg pie,
Some potted grouse, or salmon paste —
He’s sure to have his personal taste.
(I know a Cat, who makes a habit
Of eating nothing else but rabbit,
And when he’s finished, licks his paws
So’s not to waste the onion sauce.)
A Cat’s entitled to expect
These evidences of respect.
And so in time you reach your aim,
And finally call him by his name.”
CATS Broadway Show by Andrew Lloyd Webber: “The Old Gumbie Cat”