Here is the video on X. It is weird and painful to realise that this woman allegedly ate a domestic cat and apparently there are witnesses so it seems she ate the cat in a public place. Dare I ask: "Did she kill and cook the cat, or did she just kill the cat and eat it raw?"
Makes me puke to think about it. But is it true? Remarkably it seems that there is a claim from Republicans that Haitian migrants in Springfield, OH are killing and eating pets. This arrest might be linked to that story. These claims are it seems politically motivated to boost Trump's campaign because he is very much against immigrants. The woman above is I believe Allexis Telia Ferrell and the place is Canton, OH, about 200 miles from Springfield.
I have just written about Trump's incredibly poor decision-making to rant and rave about this viral social media story in the presidential debate when it is not based on hard fact [link to follow-up article]. A terrible decision by him and he has egg on his face.
On Monday, social media was flooded with posts from prominent conservative lawmakers and commentators claiming Haitian migrants in the town of Springfield, Ohio, were brutalizing and consuming local cats and ducks. - Rolling Stone
This woman was arrested for eating someone’s pet cat in Ohio. How does something like this happen? pic.twitter.com/5zaFcARrHv
If she did eat a cat she must have been high on drugs surely. No other way a person could do that unless they were mentally ill. Days later the information is that this is 'fake' news but the picture is not clear.
The police officer wanted the Humane Society to take the deceased cat away. A bit odd that. Surely the cat should have been kept as evidence and after a trial cremated. It looks like the police had no intention of charging the woman and taking the matter to trial. Perhaps the police don't believe the witnesses. Perhaps this supports the claims that this is all bogus political shenanigans.
During his first debate with Kamala Harris, former President Trump told the millions of viewers: "They're eating the dogs, the people that came in. They're eating the cats, they're eating the pets of the people that live there. And this is what is happening in this country and it is a shame."
On the issue as to whether the allegation that Haitian migrants are killing and eating pet dogs and cats, Viles Dorsainvil, president of Springfield's Haitian Community Help and Support Center, told NBC News: "It's just bigotry, discrimination and racism. There is a group of people who have been fabricating some news just to denigrate Haitians."
JD Vance has admitted that "It's possible, of course, that all of these rumours will turn out to be false."
Although Trump insisted that they were true and as mentioned on this page, the Springfield city manager's statement that "there have been no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured, or abused by individuals within the immigrant community," means that it's unlikely that the claims are true. And as mentioned also on this page I have hinted before that there appears to be an agenda here based on racism. Although a proper investigation would help.
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P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins. Also: sources for news articles are carefully selected but the news is often not independently verified. Also, I rely on scientific studies but they are not 100% reliable.
A domestic cat can never become a feral cat but they can become a stray cat if they are ejected from their home, living with their caregiver. Or they might simply leave their caregiver's home. The reason why a domestic cat can never become a feral cat is because they have been socialised normally during the first seven weeks of their lives and that process stays with them all their lives. It means that they can be called a domestic cat.
The word 'feral' is sometimes used to mean 'stray' and vice versa. And there is a blurring of the boundaries between stray and feral cats. There is a spectrum of degrees of socialisation.
A stray cat under a car looking to to approach a pedestrian because they are looking for a home.
It is a process which is immutable and cannot be reversed. Although it can be weakened slightly. What I mean by that is if a domestic cat is homeless for a very long time they will revert to a certain extent to the wild and become somewhat feral but not a true feral cat.
The difference between a stray cat and a feral cat is that a stray cat will not be fearful of humans in a general sense whereas a feral cat will be.
Clearly, some stray cats will be more timid than others and therefore be reluctant to approach a person but this is different to a feral cat being genuinely fearful of people because they've not been socialised to people.
You must have read about socialisation. I will very briefly mention it here. It occurs during the first seven weeks of a kitten's life normally when they interact with people in a nice way by being fed by a person and/or playing with that person. This tells the kitten that there is no need for them to be fearful of humans. They learn to understand that humans are not dangerous and it overcomes the innate instinct of cats to fear humans.
The default position for a cat born within a person's home is to be fearful of humans. That's what you get without socialising them. Domestic cats wouldn't exist without socialisation.
Feral cats can be socialised as adults but it takes a lot of patience and sometimes as much as 18 months of careful interactions with the person doing the socialisation. At the end of the process the cat should be socialised and no longer fearful of people.
However, sometimes they will retain a little bit of their wild character which may emerge from time to time despite being fully domesticated.
There is actually a spectrum of cat types living outside of the human home from the true feral cat to the semi-feral cat to the community cat to the stray cat. The true feral cat is a wild cat essentially. The semi-feral cat is the kind of cat that is looked after by TNR volunteers. The community cat the kind of cat that is looked after in a community such as you find in countries like India where shopkeepers and other individuals feed community cats but they rarely take them to a veterinarian. And the stray cat, as mentioned, is essentially a domestic cat without a home.
All these types of cats living outside the human home are going to suffer health problems or are likely to because they don't have a direct human caregiver to check up on their health and ensure that they don't need to be taken to a veterinarian. I am sure that some community cats are looked after like this but by and large they are not. Sometimes stray cats are found in a community of feral cats being looked after by TNR volunteers.
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P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins.
The statement in the title seems to be exaggerated and plain wrong. It seems to be too negative and unhelpful. It can't be true can it? There are millions of domestic cats in nice homes in America. They are well cared for. They are happy. They live good lives and their human caregivers are nice people. This is all positive. It indicates that cat domestication in America is successful from both the cat and the human's perspective.
But I cannot agree for this reason. And below my reason there some detail on this thanks to Bing's co-pilot who did some research for me.
If you weigh the unhappiness experienced by feral and stray cats and compared it to the happiness experienced by domestic cats in good homes, which is the greater? See below for more on this.
I'm told that the recent figures from the United States estimate that there are 82 million pet cats living happily in people's homes throughout the country. I'm also told that the population of stray and feral cats in the United States is estimated to be between 60 and 100 million. Some estimates are more conservative ranging from 30 to 80 million. Notwithstanding the difference in these estimates, you can see that there is a very similar number of feral and stray cats to the number of domestic cats.
A stray or feral cat lives a very tough and harsh life in both the urban and semi urban environment in the United States. It's hard for them. PETA, the animal advocacy charity consistently state that feral cats are miserable. They argue or have argued that it is more humane to euthanise feral cats rather than operate TNR programs for them. They want to pull them out of their measurable existences and send them to heaven.
A lot of people disagree with that including Nathan Winograd but they make a point. It is difficult to arrive at a conclusion other than that feral and stray cats are likely to be unhappy or indeed miserable, living relatively short lives compared to their domestic cat cousins.
They are preyed upon by coyotes and other predators, they are shot at by miscreant and unpleasant cat hating people. They are poisoned by similar people. They are denigrated by others who don't want them in the neighbourhood. They are euthanised at cat shelters because they don't want feral cats. There are people who say they should be put back where they came from and left to die.
All in all a bad picture for the millions of feral and stray cat in the United States. If you are going to work out the success of cat domestication you have to weigh up the pros and cons. You have to carry out a balancing act between the good and bad.
Negative spin-off
Stray and feral cats are a negative spin-off, a bad consequence of cat domestication. They are there thanks to the carelessness of humankind. They are a failure in cat domestication. They should not exist at all. Every feral cat is a symptom of failure in the human-to-cat relationship. This was not the end game envisaged by humans when cat domestication first started.
Wildlife
And think of the wildlife that feral and stray cats kill. A lot of people don't like that. This is another aspect of failure in the cat domestication process.
'Weighing' the good and bad in cat domestication
Now let's imagine we add up all the pain and misery suffered by stray and feral cats in the United States. Let's put that pain and misery on a scale and call it negatives. Now let's add up all the happiness and contentment enjoyed by domestic cats in nice homes. Let's call that the positives.
My argument is that the negatives are the same "weight" as the positives" and therefore he cannot say that cat domestication in the United States is successful.
I can add a further factor here. Of the approximate 82 million domestic cats in America at this time, not all of them will be happy. There must be a reasonable percentage who are unhappy because their caregiver simply don't do a good job. I'm going to guess and say that about 10%-15% of human caregivers of domestic cats are underperforming and the cats are unhappy. This further adds to the equation I mention above and it tips it in favour of cat domestication failure. What do you think?
Number of stray and feral cats in the USA - 2024
In the United States, the population of stray and feral cats is estimated to be between 60 and 100 million. These cats, once they leave the comfort of our homes, become one of America’s most impactful invasive species. They pose ecological, economic, and ethical challenges for animal welfare groups. The issue of unowned cats has long been a community concern.
Here are some key points about stray and feral cats:
Origins of Stray and Feral Cats:
The general understanding among experts is that the homeless cat population is growing and currently sits at around 60–100 million cats. Some estimates are more conservative, ranging from 30–80 million.
Only 85% of pet cats are spayed or neutered. Spaying or neutering pets is crucial for controlling stray and feral cat populations. When pets escape or roam outside, they can mate with neighborhood cats, perpetuating the problem. The closer we get to 100% pet neutering, the more we reduce the strain on welfare groups and the current homeless cats in our communities.
Roughly 15% of cat owners lose their pets at some point during a 5-year period. Cats and dogs tend to roam when the front door swings open. However, only 75% of lost cats are recovered, compared to a 93% return rate for dogs. Over a five-year period, this translates to over 3 million cats becoming lost and never returning home.
The challenge of managing stray and feral cat populations requires a collective effort from pet owners, animal shelters, and governments to address this complex issue.
Number of domestic cats in the US - 2024
In the United States, cats are the most popular house pet, with approximately 90 million domesticated cats residing in around 34% of U.S. homes. That’s quite a feline presence across the nation!
To break it down further:
The average number of cats per household is 1.78.
There are approximately 123.6 million households in the U.S. according to the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau data.
Roughly 26% of households have at least one cat.
So, if we do the math, we get approximately 82 million pet cats living happily in people’s homes throughout the country. That’s a whole lot of purring companions! 🐾🐱
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P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins.
NEWS AND VIEWS: Here is the summary of this news story in which unsurprisingly the woman's cats play a part. Cats are not infrequently used as tools by men to leverage desired human behaviour sometimes in an obnoxious way. The humble domestic cat is vulnerable to being used in this way as women (and men) normally have a close emotional bond with their cat. Threaten to harm the cat and you emotionally harm the owner and force them to behave in a way which is against their wishes.
Salisbury City Councillor Mark Mewse outside Salisbury Magistrates Court (Image: Ollie Thompson/Solent News)
In a rather bizarre and unsettling turn of events, Mark Mewse, a Tory councillor, embarked on a peculiar campaign to win back his ex-lover, Sarah Houchin. Let’s delve into the details:
Lovebombing with Presents:
Mark Mewse, besotted and determined, showered Sarah with gifts. Not just any gifts, mind you, but specifically for her feline companions. Yes, he bought presents for her cats in a desperate bid to rekindle their romance.
The court heard that he left flowers on her car bonnet, sent her cards, and even gifted her and her cats a bag of goodies for Christmas. It’s like a feline-themed love story gone awry.
Persistent Pursuit:
Undeterred by Sarah’s clear rejection, Mewse continued his relentless pursuit. He bombarded her with a constant barrage of messages, hoping to melt her heart.
CCTV footage revealed him waving and blowing kisses at her as she drove around Salisbury, Wiltshire. He even followed her into her workplace, leaving her feeling anxious and nervous.
Threats to the Furry Companions:
But here’s where it takes a dark turn. When Sarah firmly declined his advances, Mewse allegedly threatened to kill her cats. Yes, you read that right. The same cats he had gifted presents to earlier.
It’s a chilling twist that involves both love and feline lives hanging in the balance.
The Court Drama:
The case unfolded at Salisbury Magistrates’ Court, where Mewse faced charges of harassment.
Sarah, in her early 50s, stood her ground, making it unequivocally clear that she wanted no part in a relationship with the defendant.
Mewse, the Chair of the Personnel Committee at Salisbury City Council, denied the charges, but the evidence against him paints a vivid picture of obsession and misguided affection.
In summary, this tale combines romance, cat presents, and a dash of menace—a script that even Hollywood might find intriguing. 🐱❤️🌹
By a factor of more than 10, Australian journalists and the authorities in Australia exaggerate the number of native animals killed by roaming domestic cats. I mean that they multiple by more than 10 the true number.
Domestic cat predation in Australia is hugely exaggerated. Image in the public domain.
How can I make that bold statement? Well, perhaps one of the oldest if not the oldest study about the predation of animals by roaming domestic cats was published in 1987. The scientists found that each domestic cat in a village killed 14 animals in one year.
"A total of 1090 prey items (535 mammals, 297 birds and 258 unidentified animals) were taken, an average of about 14 per cat per year." - Predation by domestic cats in an English village. Link: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1987.tb02915.x
There was a factor of 14 between animal killed and domestic cats. There are 3.8 million domestic cats in Australia according to Wikipedia. But only 2.9 million are allowed outside according to the journalist I mention below. Multiply 2,900,000 x 14 and you get 40.6 million.
That means domestic cats that are allowed to go outside in Australia kill 40.6 million animals per year in Australia as a rough number.
Laura Chung writing for The Sunday Morning Herald opens her article (link) with the statement, "the Biodiversity Council, Invasive Species Council and Birdlife Australia found that roaming pet cats kill 546 million animals a year in Australia, 323 million of which are native animals".
This is more than 10 times than that which was revealed by the study I mention which is a very distinguished and recognised study.
And, I think we can use our personal experience on the subject. My cat who is a great hunter and who is allowed outside in a productive urban environment in terms of access to wildlife, perhaps kills around 10 animals per year maximum.
Laura Chung is stating that each pre-roaming domestic cat in Australia is killing 188 animals per year! Does that sound right to you? Can you believe it? I can't. It seems fanciful. It looks like fiction to me. It means that each domestic cat is killing an animal every 2 days. It's just unbelievable.
It is another example of how journalists in Australia and the authorities on that continent exaggerate the predation of domestic and feral cats on their native species in order to push forward and campaign for domestic cat confinement around the clock. This is the goal of the authorities in Australia.
The ones who don't know better have been indoctrinated by the news media and by the authorities to believe what Laura Chung states in her article. It's a gradual training of the mind of Australian citizens to believe what I think is a fiction. It is wrong.
I could go to any other study actually and come up with a similar result. In a counterargument, you might state that free-roaming domestic cats in Australia have a much greater opportunity to kill prey animals because there are more prey animals to kill. I don't believe it. If you want to state that you're going to have to produce evidence to back it up.
There are a lot of theories about if and why male domestic and stray cats (tomcats - unneutered) kill kittens. There are different points of view about this. I've seen all those points of view and it's confusing. That is the disturbing truth! It appears to me that we are unsure about the reason and how rare it is.
I've just watched a video with the same title as this article and I don't think the person who presents that video is accurate (see video at base of page). Essentially, they say that male adult domestic cats kill kittens because they are threatening and they threaten to upset their territorial objectives. I don't believe that. I don't think kittens are threatening to adult male cats. I can't see how that can happen. So, I believe there is a lot of information on the Internet on this topic which is misleading.
Image: MikeB
A person I admire and respect, Sarah Hartwell, tells us that a tomcat will normally establish a territory which contains a number of female cats. I agree that. She then goes on to say that "it is in his own interest to repel other males and to destroy kittens which may have been fathered by another male and which contain the genetic complement of his rival".
She goes on to explain that a tomcat will be able to recognise his kittens through their smell and their appearance. She is more or less reciting what people say about lions in the African Savannah when they kill kittens produced by other male lions within a pride as part of the process of taking over that pride.
I'm not sure that she is correct to be perfectly honest. I tend to prefer the thoughts of another person I admire, Dr. Desmond Morris (a great zoologist and author). He states in his book Catlore that the male domestic cat has been looked upon as a sex maniac for centuries. He disagrees that tomcats (unneutered male cats) destroy the litters of kittens in order to get the females back on heat again more quickly. This, once again as a reference to how male lions behave when taking over a lion pride. He says the story has lasted "well during the past two millennia and many people still believe it".
He doesn't see any "possible biological advantage of such a reaction on the part of tomcats". He, too, appears to have got that wrong because male lions do this in order to father their own kittens in order to further their breeding line. But do unneutered domestic cats do this?
Dr. Morris likes to refer to observations of the European wildcat. He is referring to the ancestor of the domestic cat which is actually the North African wildcat but there is no difference between that subspecies and the European subspecies in terms of behaviour.
He says when you observe the behaviour of the wildcats you will see that "far from being kitten-killers, the males sometimes actively participate in rearing the young."
He adds that:
"One tom was seen to carry his own food to the entrance of the den in which a female had given birth and placed it there for her. Another tom did the same thing, supplying the female with food while she was unable to leave the nest during the first days after producing her litter."
And this tomcat became very defensive and threatened human visitors in a way that he had not done before the kittens were born. These observations took place in a zoo where he says it would be more likely to see tomcat aggression towards their young.
In the wild, cats have very large territories. The chances of a tomcat coming across a female in her den with kittens is remote. This means there is little possibility of a male cat providing parental care or parental infanticide. In a zoo which is crowded and in which the cats are in closer proximity there will be an increased likelihood of tomcat/kitten encounters where four types of reactions might occur:
The male cat simply ignores the kittens.
The male cat behaves paternally towards them as mentioned.
The female attacks the male soon as he approaches her nest and drives him away before he can do anything concerning the kittens.
The male cat kills the kittens.
The fourth reaction is the traditional one that we read about a loss on the internet. But it is, in reality, extremely rare.
Dr. Desmond Morris states that a female cat sometimes experiences a false heat a few weeks after she has given birth. This may excite a nearby tomcat. The female normally fights him off and drives him away.
The male cat is in a great state of sexual arousal at this point. He is frustrated. If he meets a small kitten at this time, he may try to mount it and mate with it.
This may be enhanced by the low crouch to posture of the kitten which is similar to the sexually responsive posture of an adult female cat.
The kitten is unable to move away quickly when the male cat mounts it which acts as a sexual signal to the overexcited male cat. This, Dr. Morris says "seals the fate of the unfortunate kitten".
The male cat does not deliberately attack the kitten but when mounting the tiny offspring he performs the normal neck bite that he employs when mating with a female in order to keep her passive. For a kitten, this feels like their mother maternally grabbing the kitten when moving them to a new den. The kitten does not struggle. Indeed, it responds by keeping perfectly still. This is the sexual signal from the adult female that tells the male that she is ready to mate.
This compounds the misunderstanding which causes disaster when the "mounted tomcat discovers that the kitten is too small for mating. He cannot manoeuvre himself into the correct position. His response to this problem is to grip the kitten's neck tighter and tighter as if he is dealing with an awkward adult mate. In the process he accidentally crunches the tiny kitten's delicate head and it dies.
Once the kitten has been killed it may trigger off a new reaction in the tomcat. Dead kittens are often devoured by their parents as a way of keeping the nest clean. As a consequence, the male cat's sexual frustrations may now lead to the kitten being eaten as a further anomaly in the feline mating sequence.
These are rare instances but they led to stories of tomcat cannibalism painting the male cat as a savage monster intent on slaughtering and eating their offspring.
Dr. Morris goes on to say that often rare events when they become established become the "norm". They become part of folklore. But they are exaggerated and over-egged stories based upon, as mentioned, extremely rare and unusual instances.
That, in a nutshell, is what Dr. Desmond Morris states about tomcat killing and eating kittens. It does happen. I will leave it to you to decide what you think is the right answer. There is one certainty; it's a rare event and people should not think that it is normal male cat behaviour.
Answer (my answer!): the cat is listed as one of the 12 zodiac animal species as the tiger, a specific species within the cat family. The creators of the zodiac therefore included the cat but as a distinct species and not generically as at the time of creation of the zodiac - 2,500 years ago - there were no domestic cats in China.
There are 12 Chinese zodiac signs, in the following order: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. There is ostensibly a shocking omission: the 'cat'. With the domestic dog, the domestic cat is the most popular companion animal in the world.
However, the cat is listed in the zodiac as a specific species namely the tiger. If you read the serious version set out below, you'll see what I mean.
Chinese zodiac of 12 animals. Image: MikeB
There are 2 versions for the reason for the omission. One serious and the other a myth.
Serious version
The Chinese Zodiac was created about 2500 years ago. It hasn't changed since that time. At the time of its creation the domestic cat had not arrived in China. This occurred when pet cats were introduced to China along the silk Road during the period 386-589 A.D. around 1600 years ago.
On those figures, the Chinese Zodiac was created 900 years, almost 1000 years, before the people who created the Zodiac had seen domestic cats.
Comment: I think that's a pretty weak argument. My research indicates that the South China tiger was in China 2 million years ago. There must've been tigers in China when they created the Zodiac.
Tiger
This is why the tiger is listed as one of the signs of the Chinese Zodiac. The tiger is obviously a cat, actually the world's largest cat species. Therefore, they could not include another cat species in the zodiac when the domestic cat arrived a thousand years later. Logically this must be the reason why the "cat" is not specifically listed as a generic name for all the species of cats.
The problem is that they have taken one species of the cat family - the tiger - and listed it whereas for the other animals they have used generic terms and not broken it down into specific species.
Myth
The myth plays out as follows. The divine Jade Emperor organised a race for animals and there would be 12 winners each one getting a spot on the zodiac.
The cat and the rat were in the race but they were friends. They joined the race together and they hitched a ride on an ox to cross a river. While they were crossing the river the rat pushed the cat off the ox because they were fearful of being beaten by the cat in the race.
The cat did not drown but lost the chance of securing one of the 12 zodiac signs. This, incidentally, is why the cat hunts rats which is not actually true because modern day rats are a little bit too big for the average domestic cat!
Note that I am referring to a specific tail movement, that of wagging, which is back-and-forth on the same plane. Cats will move their tail for other reasons and in other ways but the movement is not true "wagging" 😎. Often, you will read articles on the Internet which state that a cat wags their tail because they are angry. This is only partially true. It's more about indecision perhaps leading to frustration.
Cat stalking and tail wagging. The open ground does not provide cover for the cat which leads to indecision as to whether they should advance or not. This can result in tail wagging. Photo: in public domain with arrows added.
A domestic cat may be more irritated than angry when they are wagging their tail because they are in a state of mental conflict. The cat wants to do two things at the same time and is unsure which is the best choice.
I remember seeing my late, now deceased, female cat sitting on a lawn where there was no cover for her to hide while she had a mind to stalk a bird. She wanted to chase the bird but did not have the cover to do it successfully and was in two minds whether to go or stay, and so she wagged her tail.
In another example, your domestic cat might like to go outside. You open the door and your cat encounters pouring rain and thinks twice about whether to go outside or not. Their mind is in conflict and this mental state is made visible in a wagging tail.
The interesting thing about a cat wagging her tail is how it originated. Desmond Morris, the well-known animal behaviourist and biologist, says that it originated from the fact that the cat's tail is a means of balance; the tail helps the domestic cat to balance.
You will notice that the tree dwelling wild cats have thick and long tails. The most noticeable tail on a wild cat is the rope-like tail of the snow leopard. The snow leopard has to negotiate very steep rocky slopes when hunting. You will notice that the snow leopard's tail moves from left to right all the time to help the cat to keep balance.
The argument is that the physical action of keeping balance through a swishing tale has evolved into an expression of the state of the mind of the cat when the cat's thought processes are in balance because he or she is uncertain about what to do next. Of course, not all cats all the time will be in this state of emotional indecision when stalking prey. It depends on the cat and the circumstances.
You can recognise the nice symmetry in the argument. Both physical and mental balancing is expressed in a wagging tail movement. It is really neat.
This is a comprehensive discussion about cat overpopulation in the United States. Core information comes from The Welfare of Cats (ISBN 978-1-4020-6143-1). If on occasion I sound like someone who fervently believes that we can do better and that the current situation is untenable then it is true, I am. I think people have to become more passionate about this subject because we can't ignore it.
A well-known picture signifying cat overpopulation! Image in the public domain.
I will minimise stating my opinion but will refer to the opinion and work of Americans in studies. I can't quote what they say because that would be a violation of their copyright. What I write will be a précis (a summary in my words). That way no one can criticise an outsider for commenting on something he knows nothing about. I actually know quite a lot about it through reading.
It is a grizzly subject but one that has been around so long and become so entrenched that is has been normalized. All the problems and issues about cat welfare in the USA pale into insignificance next to the welfare problems associated with cat overpopulation because it leads to their mass euthanasia.
Apparently, every minute of every day, four cats are killed at shelters in the USA (2012). Makes you think, doesn't it? Since first addressing this issue things have improved but there is a long way to go.
It is ironic that 90% of Americans think of their cat as a family member. A lot of former family members are being deliberately killed every day. It seems that cats are more disposable than dogs as there are some shelters where demand outstrips supply - something that is unheard of in the cat world.
Cat overpopulation is dictated by:
Overbreeding
Breakdown of human/cat relationship leading to relinquishment
Failure to sterilise cats
Requirement to increase adoptions from shelters.
Introduction
America is divided into people who see the huge numbers of unwanted cats that are deliberately killed each year (euthanized) as a tragedy and those who act irresponsibly and who regard their cat as disposable. The latter group are indifferent to the mass slaughter and to the suffering that their actions cause the cat. Perhaps many are blind to it. They just don't think about it.
The attitude that cats are disposable is handed down from generation to generation. The cycle remains unbroken to this day. The origins of this mentality are unknown. I have made some tentative proposals (first and second). Comment: one comes to mind while writing this.
If veterinarians set standards that undermine respect for the cat, it must be a contributing factor. It may be a major factor because what the vet does is a form of education and leadership to cat owners in the US. If vets treat cats as a commodity by which a profit can be earned it sends out the wrong message. Vets have an important role to play that goes well beyond treating cats with medical problems. Declawing cats is indicative of treating cats as commodities.
Vets don't realise that when they declaw, they not only mutilate cats unnecessarily but they also teach cat owners that cats are customizable. And that is a bad lesson to learn. It means they can be discarded as and when necessary.
Cat Overpopulation Defined
Some people refer to a 'surplus of cats'. Others say that there is no cat overpopulation problem but an organisational problem of placing relinquished cats with homes that want a cat. Others just turn it around and say there are not enough homes. The fact is that if millions of cats are euthanised in America each year we have to conclude that there is a cat overpopulation problem and it is irrelevant how you interpret it. We have to work within the circumstances that we find ourselves.
P.H. Kass defines "cat overpopulation" as:
The existence of cats that are at risk of euthanasia because they are both unwanted and not owned.
As he says this includes the large number of cats at shelters.
Handsome feral cat. Image in public domain.
Vets Feral Cats and Numbers
Veterinarians in America are "frequently" presented with unwanted pets. They are sometimes asked to euthanise the companion animal. Some agree to do it and some don't (comment: I would have thought that killing a healthy cat - euthanasia is the wrong word - is a major breach of the veterinarian's oath and so I am shocked to hear that. It seems that the vet's oath has no meaning amongst a minority of vets or is it the majority as nearly all declaw cats in breach of the oath).
Many of the reasons for a breakdown in the human/cat relationship that can be overcome by cat owners working with veterinarians. This option is not taken up by the cat's owner and it seems that the vet does not always or even sometimes use his or her best efforts to sort things out.
Feral cats are a massive subject. Their beginnings are in abandoned domestic cats. They are ultimately part of the "disposable cat" mentality problem. The feral cat may have become part of the landscape and part of the US ecosystem. I don't know. They may serve a hidden purpose in keeping down rodents which is ironic as that is the original reason why the wild cat was first domesticated. Whatever we think, the feral cat also divides Americans. Some loathe them, others see vulnerable animals requiring help. The division in attitude is along the lines of disposability and respect for the cat mentioned above.
Comment: some kind people adopt colonies and feed, trap, neuter and return feral cats while others look on in disgust and want to criminalise this behavior and/or simply exterminate feral cats. There is a raging battle between bird conservationists and cats supporters. The feral cat and domestic cat are considered invasive species damaging native wildlife. They are in the internet news almost daily. Feral cat numbers are the single biggest news story regarding the cat after cat hoarding.
Whatever, they are part of the American cat overpopulation problem and millions join domestic cats to be killed at shelters. How many shelters are their? We don't know apparently. Some are privately owned making it difficult to work out total numbers.
The Humane Society of the United States says that there are 1,800 while the American Humane Society says 3,000 to 5,000. Also records on numbers of cats at shelters are suspect even if it is obligatory to keep information (for local authority shelters) or it is not available to the public (for private shelters). Comment: I am told that shelters are reluctant to assist in providing information on any issue. I know this from personal experience in collecting data through this site about declawed cats at shelters. Personally, I am suspicious about shelters and the commercial aspect of shelters.
Are the figures from government shelters on "euthanasia" understated? They are certainly imprecise.
What are the figures at 2007? They vary widely. Comment: indicative of a lack of real concern by the authorities?
5.7 - 9.5 million cats euthanised at animal shelters in 1990 (source: Kahler 1996)
5 - 7 million cats (American Humane Association 1993)
4 million (American Humane Association as referred to by Patronek 1996)
3.18 million
3.62 million (Rowan 1992)
Sometimes someone wants real, hard figures! California gathered some hard data in 1992 from government shelters:
81% of the almost half a million cats at shelters were euthanised in 1992 (391,435/484,173 x 100).
73,935 were adopted or claimed by their owners.
4% of cats were unaccounted for.
12% of the American population of cats are in California. Extrapolating these figures to nationwide figures results in 3.6 million cats euthanised yearly.
Note: as some cats at shelters would have been euthanised for genuine reasons the numbers killed at shelters does not necessarily = the number of adoptable cats. Some were not adoptable for health and/or behavioral problems (comment: the assessment of behavioral problems is problematic to say the least. Cats at shelters are often stressed. How do you assess adoptability accurately under these conditions?). Anyway, what are the numbers in this respect?
The estimate is that 17% of cats euthanised at shelters are for genuine reasons and therefore this percentage should be deducted from the total figures above (source: Kass 2001). Apparently, people come into shelters to have their cat euthanised rather than go to the vet as it is cheaper (free in fact) and more convenient. The average age of these cats is ten.
Comment: Ten years of age is not old, although technically a cat is in old age at ten, so I am surprised at that figure. How do we know how many of these cats have terminal health problems that require euthanasia? How are they assessed? By shelter staff and the owner? I can see a lot of subjectivity taking place under these conditions. What I mean is the shelter staff will be happy to please the cat's owner and also be used to euthanising cats by the tens of thousands. Don't people become inured to death under those conditions? Personally, Kass's figure of 17% should be substantially reduced in my opinion. Also, it seems a little uncaring to me to walk into a shelter to have your cat euthanised.
There is a need for far better record keeping at shelters which should be made public. The records should accurately compile data on input/output, numbers euthanised, reasons for euthanasia, numbers of cats euthanised on request of owner etc. This would allow the effectiveness of local programs to reduce cat overpopulation to be assessed properly. Comment: Shelters are a vital source of information on cat populations and cat ownership trends.
Uncontrolled Cat Breeding
Some cats are not spayed or neutered. These cats breed sometimes. That is a major factor in the cat overpopulation problem.
But for the fact that more than 80% of domestic cats in the United States are sterilised the cat overpopulation problem would be a lot worse, obviously. The problem is that it is only about 80% of the cat population and not 100% because it is the remainder of cats who are not fixed that are sometimes allowed to breed. Although cat haters like to exaggerate the breeding rate of cats, both feral and domestic, they are good survivors and therefore good breeders.
One important issue is the age at which a kitten or cat is sterilised. Some cat caretakers believe that a female cat should "experience parturition" (give birth) before being sterilised. Some people believe it is good for the cat's health. Some vets say a cat is potentially healthier after the operation. Or the cat has a right to reproduce. A study revealed that about 20% of cats give birth to an average of 2.43 litters of an average of 4.3 cats before being spayed.
Comment: and as for male cats there is a discussion as to whether early neutering (before sexual maturity) affects the development of the male cat's characteristics making him more feminine in appearance. In fact, some people equate declawing with neutering and spaying. If the former is bad so is the latter. Looking at the situation totally logically it is sad that we have to sterilise all the cats.
Another reason for not sterilising a cat is financial. However, many places offer discounts on the operation. Perhaps there is a need to extend discounted spay and neuter operations across the nation. There is an argument that says it should be obligatory.
Why People Relinquish Their Cats to Shelters
Why are cats given up to shelters? I don't think the scientific community can provide a complete answer to the question.
However there have been several studies. In one 50% of the owners who relinquished did not have plans to adopt a cat. Comment: most cats are given up when they are young indicating a lack of preparation, knowledge and proper expectations. The figures in this study (Miller and other in 1996) and others are as follows:
Without wishing to generalise and over simplify, the studies indicate that cat relinquishment is in part or substantially due to:
inexperience
ignorance
incorrect expectations (my comment)
poor education
low income
lack of role models on cat caretaking
lack of access to veterinary care
An added complexity is the diversity of cultures of the American people (heterogeneity). People should seek help. Here are some resources:
What does Felis catus mean? It's the scientific name for the domestic cat.
Felis is a Latin word derived from an older Latin word "felix" which in English means "happy". However, it means 'cat' in Latin while catus means intelligent, sly or cunning. It seems that felis is interchangeable with feles. Both mean 'cat' in Latin.
Skulls of a wildcat (top left), a housecat (top right), and a hybrid between the two. (bottom-center)
The taxonomic classification of the domestic cat until 2017 was: Felis silvestris catus as in 2007, it was considered a subspecies of the European wildcat (F. silvestris). The word "silvestris" is Latin for "wooded" or "wild".
Domestic cat doing what they do best. Photo: Pixabay.
However, following results of phylogenetic research in 2017, the IUCN Cat Classification Taskforce followed the recommendation of the ICZN in regarding the domestic cat as a distinct species, and the scientific name Felis catus adopted. As at 2022, this is the correct scientific name of the domestic cat.
The process of classification is called taxonomy. It remains in flux to a certain extent. DNA testing changed things considerably whereas in the past the species were classified by their appearance, a far less precise method.
Domestic cat prevents cobra from entering a home. Photo: Twitter.
Below is the tweet which says it all. It has to be said, by the way, that the wildcat ancestor of the domestic cat is very capable of dealing with a snake. Therefore, this domestic cat has inherited that skill. Although cats will recognise snakes as dangerous, they are able to confront them. Perhaps the most capable of all cat species in confronting and killing a snake is the diminutive sand cat. They feed on snakes in the desert. No problem, no fuss, they are quicker than snakes and they have a very cute face to boot!
Odisha | A pet cat stood guard to prevent a cobra from entering a house in Bhubaneswar
Cat has prevented Cobra from entering inside for nearly 30 min till the Snake Helpline reached the spot. Our cat is around 1.5 years old & live with us like a family member: Sampad K Parida pic.twitter.com/dWZXTMf9V5
Yes, domestic cats are related to lions and tigers and all the other cats because they all started off at the same source. This is about evolution and taxonomy. But you have to go back about 40 million years to Miacoids (miacids) which appear to be the first cats on the planet although they did not look like modern day cats.
Tiger and domestic cat. Collage: PoC.
It is currently believed that from that start all the cat species evolved in different places and at different times. Miacids evolved into the Proailurus (a civet/cat creature) and that creature evolved into prehistoric cats which walked on their toes like modern day cats.
An example was a species called Pseudaelurus. This creature was the size of a modern-day cat. It evolved into two main groups one of which was Schizailurus which in turn evolved into the Felidae (the family of cats). Martelli's cat was a species which inhabited Europe about 2.4 million years ago and which is believed to be the ancestor of today's wildcat, a species of cat which is still present in Europe. Apparently the first modern day cats were cheetahs.
Cat history from the start to modern day. Cat History For Kids. Credits: Landscape of N.America 10m years ago Wikimedia Commons author Jay Matternes. In public domain USA. Fair use pleaded. Pseudaelurus in public domain USA and fair use pleaded. USA 1945 by army.arch creative commons. Snowshoe cat copyright Helmi Flick. Note: there is one small deliberate mistake in the picture. Can you spot it and leave a comment?
You have to believe in evolution to believe that domestic cats are related to lions and tigers. But science supports evolution. It is through evolution that domestic cats are related to lions and tigers. Domestic cats are very, very similar in every respect to lions and tigers. There is not much difference which is apparent because they both look like cats! There's a massive size difference but the domestic cat, in its mind, thinks just like a tiger or lion. And their behaviour is incredibly similar. That alone tells you that they are related.
If you want to know a bit more about big cat history you can click on this link. And I cover the evolution of the cat species in a simplified way on this page (click link please). The science of taxonomy which is the classification of the species is evolving itself. It was enhanced through scientific knowledge of DNA. Before DNA scientists simply observed an animal undecided whether it was similar to another animal and therefore classified it as part of a species or subspecies. That proved to be imprecise whereas DNA testing is very precise because it gets to the core of the issue.
PLUM, WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA, USA-NEWS AND COMMENT: Plum is a borough in Allegheny County in the US state of Pennsylvania. The administrators have taken that big step in interfering in cat ownership and feral cat care. They want to manage cats and until now pretty well anywhere on the planet, domestic and feral cats are generally unmanaged. They have extraordinary freedom of movement. Domestic cats can't trespass. This is in contrast to dogs but dogs are more dangerous than cats.
TNR volunteer, File photo.
I sense, reading the cat news as I do on a daily basis, that local authorities are enacting bylaws i.e. local ordinances to manage both feral and domestic cats within their jurisdiction. This indicates a general trend towards tightening up domestic cat ownership to improve standards in conjunction with attempts to reduce the number of feral cats in a community.
The local authority has created a new law which stops residents from taking care of feral cats on their property. The underlined words are very important because they protect TNR programs. And cat hoarding is strictly prohibited. And they going to make it illegal for any cat owner to allow their cat to run free outside the boundary of their property unless they've been sterilised. And the cat must be inoculated against rabies. Interestingly, my reading of this new law indicates that domestic cats must be ear tipped if they are allowed outside to indicate that they have been sterilised and immunised.
Ear tipping which is the cutting off of the tip of the left ear is exclusively carried out on feral cats when they are part of a TNR program and they have been sterilised and sometimes vaccinated and then return to where they came from.
The council voted 6-0 to make it illegal for anyone to provide food and water or any other form of sustenance to stray, feral, free-roaming or homeless cats or dogs. And it will be illegal to allow any other person to engage in such activities on their property. Well, my reading of that seems to state that it does not forbid TNR programs on public property. This seems to be correct because I think this council wants to be involved in TNR programs, which by the way is the best way to do things. When the local authority is involved in TNR it gives those programs a status and a moral authority which encourages others to leave them alone and let volunteers get on with the work.
This law would seem to protect the regular TNR programs on public land which are very popular among many people in America because they actually work to stabilise the feral cat population in many communities. There is currently nothing better in terms of stabilising feral cat numbers. Although, detractors will always criticise TNR arguing that it is too slow and it puts feral cat back on the street where they came from to do what they been doing before which is spread disease and be a nuisance to residents. They forget that the citizens of America put them there in the first place but that is another story.
Anybody in violation of this new ordinance could face a fine between $100 and $1000 and may even be sentenced to a jail term.
There has been a general resistance to this law. There was an attempt to bring it into action in 2018 but there were objections on the basis that it would be unfair.
Tigers, lions, domestic cats and all the other cat species (about 36) have the same nutritional needs and therefore at a fundamental level, in terms of nutrients, they eat the same food. What is different is the way the food is packaged. We know that domestic cats eat mice (primary prey) and commercial cat food together with the odd treat of human food.
We know that tigers will kill any animal that puts itself in a vulnerable position. Few animals appear to be immune to tiger predation. Few animals are off the tiger menu. The same can be said about the lion. However, there will be differences in the prey animals that they eat because of availability.
The lion and tiger live in different places on the planet and the availability of prey animals differs in these places. Also, both these big cats require large animals to successfully feed adequately. The tiger, for instance, will hunt chital in the Royal Badia National Park, Nepal as a primary prey animal. Across their distribution, primarily in India, they will hunt barking deer, sambar, gaur, hog deer, chital, wild pig to name some animals but there will also attack and eat small mammals, primates, badgers and porcupines for example.
The lion will eat fish sometimes and impala, waterbuck, springbok, zebra, eland, warthog, giraffe, buffalo, bushbuck, ostrich to name some examples including the porcupine and other small animals. It's a huge range of animals. It has to be because they take what's available and the same goes for tigers.
To recap, the lion and tiger prey on different animals but there is an overlap and at heart these big cats have exactly the same nutrients in their make up and so, yes, tigers and lions eat the same food.
The answer to the question depends upon the species of feline that you are referring to and the circumstances under which they are living. There is no simple black-and-white answer to the question. For example, the domestic cat tends to be nocturnal or a better description is crepuscular which means active at dawn and dusk when prey is about.
Tiger at night. This is not real because there are no white tigers in the wild. Photo: Pixabay.
But domestic cats are also active during the daytime sometimes. They just tend to be more active when daylight is subdued or it is dark. But the domestic cat is only one species of about 36 (the number of cat species is still contentious). I'm not going to go through every single wild cat species to tell you whether they are nocturnal or not but I'll mention one or two to give you an idea about what I'm talking about.
The American bobcat is distributed across America except for a 'hole' in the middle of it near the Great Lakes so it is a very well known wild cat. Bobcats are primarily crepuscular like the domestic cat. They are most active in the few hours before and after sunset and sunrise. There are exceptions
Some studies have found that bobcats are mainly nocturnal while other reports have found that they may be active at any time of the day or that they are arrhythmic (without any pattern or rhythm). In some places bobcats are more active during the daytime in winter because they must spend more time searching for food. In essence it would seem that a bobcat's activity coincides with the activity of the animals that it hunts. That makes sense. As I said the answer to the question the title has to be nuanced.
Canada lynx. Photo: Pixabay.
Taking another well-known medium-sized wild cat species living in North America, the Canada lynx, this cat is primarily nocturnal although they may be seen moving about at any time of the day. The animals that they mainly prey upon, snowshoe hares, are basically nocturnal which is why the Canada lynx is also mainly nocturnal. Once again you can see that the activity of the cat is dependent upon the activity of the prey.
The ocelot is a very well known small to medium-sized wildcat. Its coat has made the coats of many rich and famous people in the past. They are primarily nocturnal but they also hunt during the daytime especially when the weather is cloudy and rainy. They may be entirely nocturnal in areas where they are hunted by people. That sentence would apply to the past in America because as far as I'm aware they are no longer hunted by people because they are protected in North America if they are still extant on that continent.
The mountain lion lives in both North America and South America. They have a huge range in terms of distribution. These cats can be found hunting at any time of the day or night. In most areas the peak activity is reported to be around dawn and dusk i.e. crepuscular. They rest during the middle of the day. Once again their activity levels coincide with that of their major prey animals. Therefore it is seasonal and it depends upon where they live. For example, in the Idaho Primitive Area they are active during daytime to hunt ground squirrels. Where humans are more active such as where they are logging timber, mountain lions avoid them by being more active at night.
The concept of wild cats being more active at night to avoid people is also apparent with leopards. And you will find that lions also behave like this when necessary. They tend to avoid people by becoming nocturnal. Lions are apparently primarily nocturnal but there are no hard and fast rules as mentioned. It depends on the availability of prey animals to kill to eat and the type of habitat where they live which provides cover when stalking. Activity levels also depend upon the seasons and temperatures. And lastly it depends upon whether they are disturbed by people.
There have been reports of lions becoming nocturnal to avoid trophy hunters killing them. In the Serengeti there are two major peaks of activity, one of which is just after dark and the other between two and four in the morning.
Lastly, as I'm just giving you an idea as to whether cats are nocturnal or not, I will mention the tiger. Once again, in response to the activity of people, in certain parts of the world they have become totally nocturnal. If they are undisturbed by people they can be seen to hunt at any time of the day or night. Once again, also, their activity levels depend upon the activity of their prey animals. In other words it mirrors the activity patterns of the animals that they kill to eat. For example, in Chitwan National Park both male and female tigers mainly travelled at night for about 10 to 12 hours.
If you want to read more about the wild cat species and whether they are nocturnal or not then I would suggest that you search for those details on the main website which you can access by clicking here.
Because they are descended from the North African wildcat, a cat of similar proportions and appearance even after about 10,000 years of domestication. I suppose you might ask why was the North African (African-Asian) wildcat domesticated?
Comparison domestic and wildcat ancestor.
It is because the place where they were first domesticated - the Fertile Crescent (in the area of Syria) was suited to farming and it so happened that this wildcat was present in that landscape. The cat and farmer met to mutual benefit and the rest is history as they say.
The North African wildcat has a relatively nice temperament suited to domestication. They kept the rodents down and the farmer had a working cat and some company and fun. This happened around 9,500-12,000 years ago it is believed.
There are other small wild cats who are also suited to domestication to various extents e.g. the margay, but it just happened that the North African wildcat got their first perhaps because 10,000 years ago the Middle East was a developing and active area for farming.
Farmers would have encroached onto the wildcat's territory forcing them together. There may have been conflict between human and cat but some farmers liked their presence for their rodent killing habits.
There must have been the very first domestic cat. At that time there was a single domestic cat in the world. Now there are around half a billion domestic and feral cats.
It is worth arguing that the question is incorrectly formulated as what is 'small'? There are smaller animals than the domestic cat and there are larger ones. They are small compared to us. It might be argued that the domestic cat is somewhere in the middle range of animal size.
Therefore it could also be argued that they are not small. I think perhaps the reason why the question has been formulated is because the questioner is comparing the cat to the size of humans. Therefore relative to humans the domestic cat is small. That is not a good reason to ask, "Why our domestic cat so small?"
The law should protect wild and domestic animals equally and by-and-large it does in the UK under the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
I think that a lot of people might see wild animals are deserving less protection and less respect than pets for instance. This is not the case and it should not be the case.
Of course it depends on where you live and the biggest factor which undermines equality between wild and domestic animals (other than livestock) is hunting. Even in the UK people are allowed to hunt certain species under certain restrictions and conditions. Hunting, almost automatically causes uneccessary suffering to the animal. The sport is an anomaly in the 21st century, I submit.
But the primary law which protects animals, the Animal Welfare Act 2006, does not distinguish between wild and domestic. Two cases highlight this.
In one case a man drowned a neighbour's cat who came onto his property. He caught the cat and put him into a plastic bag with a stone and then threw the bag into a river. He was convicted of causing an animal uneccessary suffering and his punishment included an eight week jail term.
As for wild animals, a couple of brothers kicked a hedgehog like a football and killed him. They were convicted and punished under the same clause of the same UK statute. They had tortured the wee animal before he died. Their punishment included six weeks in jail. They were also fined.
We should regard all animals as equal in the eyes of the law. Some animals are described as "pests". Sometimes this label is, perhaps, justified (rats for example). On other ocassions it is not. Foxes and pigeons are seen as pests by many or as vermin. This makes killing them legitimate. Personally I regard this as wrong. Humans can often be pests if one steps back and honestly observes their behavior.
