Wild Cat?

[WJT]

I am an animal lover so this sounds quite shocking to me. We have friends that say they are going to take on a few kittens from a neighbour. They travel a lot so they expect these cats to be totally wild and fend for themselves, they do not intend to provide food or water. They assume that these cats will feed on vermin around their barns and drink from nearby water sources. I have never heard of anything like this before, is this possible?

[Deimos]

I don’t know a great deal about cats except that unless they

have a “visit to the vets” to get “sorted” then there will soon be more cats

which then results in more cats, etc.

Seems little point in “taking” the cats if they are not

going to look after them.  In fact

sounds like they are not so much “taking” them as “releasing them” – which does

not sound a particularly good idea (but then I don’t know about cats).

Ian

[The Riff-Raff Element]

This is was once a common practice in rural areas, both in the UK and

elsewhere, though is less common now that fewer people are involved in

farming and have fewer outbuildings to police.

The logic runs that hungry cats will be better at taking vermin than pampered pets.

While it is quite true that cats are well able to look after

themselves, "keeping" cats like this is neither a particularly

effective way of controlling vermin nor (in my opinion) satisfactory

from a welfare standpoint.

Cats left feral will breed up to the available level of food and when

that supply exhausts (which if they do their job well, it will at some

point) will either move on or stave. If they move on, it is pot luck

that one will move back once the vermin return. They will rapidly

acquire a parasite burden (fleas, ticks and worms) that will sap their

vitality and make them more prone to disease. From my own obeservation,

I would put kitten mortality of feral cats at around 40% and life

expectency of those surviving at around 18 months. In exterme

situations, feral packs (cats will form packs - or perhaps "prides"

might be a better word) can form reservoirs of diseases transmittable

to humans.

Healthy, well fed cats of the right disposition (physcotic) will do a

very good job at keeping vermin under control. I'm not a great cat fan

by any means, but I'm happy to give them house room and to look after

them well (even to the extent of extending pension rights to them when

they become old, blind and baffled) for this reason. The grey great

lump currently filling the position of Ratchatcher Pursuivant in this ménage

scores about 10 hits per week, despite being grossly spoilt by my wife

and children. I maintain a haughty distain when doling out the

"friskies" biscuits, limiting displays of affection to the odd pat on

the head, but other members of this household are happy to have old

peanut brain on their laps and tickle his stupid fat furry tummy.

Jealous? Moi?[8o|]

[Opalienne]

It still happens on farms round us.   There is one only a couple of kilometres away where there are at least 30 cats living wild.   But what the attrition rate is I don't know, and besides, I think they are fed from time to time.  It sounds pretty cruel to me - supposing there is a heatwave and there is no water for them to drink?

[Christine Animal]

WJT your friends seem to be a little ignorant and irresponsible, not to say old-fashioned....  Maybe they could come on here and we could advise them!  Totally agree with Ian and Jond (both big softies and excellent human beings at heart)   [;)]

 

                                                                              

[WJT]

Just sent them an e-mail with some information I learned from a friend with a link to this post. They are a lovely couple and perhaps they have been given bad advice from a local farmer that would like to get rid of some kittens.