Council vows to ban cats from roaming outside
<p>A Sydney council has created the purrfect storm, dividing public opinion with its proposal to force cats inside and penalise cat owners who let their beloved pets roam outside.</p>
<p>Newly minted mayor Kathy Neilson, of the south-eastern Sydney suburb of Randwick, introduced a motion that could force cat owners to keep their pets inside, particularly at night. Otherwise they could face fines if cats "run free and defecate in public places,” as dog owners are already subject to, reports <a rel="noopener" href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-03/randwick-councils-cat-ban-idea-stirs-debate/10331946" target="_blank">ABC NEWS</a>.</p>
<p>It has been put forward “in the interest of protecting native habitat and fauna," with the council planning to form a committee to investigate the proposal further, including raising registration fees for cat owners.</p>
<p>"We're losing a lot of natural wildlife around parks, because of what the cats are doing,” Independent Councillor for Randwick <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlos-da-rocha-b9450041/?originalSubdomain=au" target="_blank">Carlos Da Rocha</a>, who has over 30 years of experience as a senior ranger, told <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/2018/10/02/18/24/randwick-council-sydney-trying-to-ban-cats" target="_blank">9News</a>. “There's no responsible ownership and care factor.”</p>
<p>The council’s <a rel="noopener" href="http://www.randwick.nsw.gov.au/services/animals-and-pets/dogs-and-cats" target="_blank">guidelines</a> currently state that “curfews, desexing and bells alone are not effective in protecting our native animals.”</p>
<p>But how on earth do you police pooping cats? Liberal Councillor for Randwick Harry Stavrinos told 9News the idea is “laughable and absolutely ridiculous to think we're going to have our rangers jumping over back fences chasing people’s defecating cats.”</p>
<p>Stavrinos, a longtime cat lover, said it was unfair to target cat owners, and that the proposed increased registration fee would put considerable strain on seniors and the disabled who may live on fixed incomes.</p>
<p>“Increasing the fee just makes life more difficult for these people who rely on [cats] for therapy, love and relaxation,” he told <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/home/pets/sydneys-randwick-council-wants-to-stop-cats-going-outside/news-story/ecbbf0c619b179d850d297ff4aa1f5ef" target="_blank">news.com.au</a>.</p>
<p>ABC News reports that some of their viewers also think the planned restrictions are unreasonable.</p>
<p>“Responsible cat owners know how to give their cat outdoor time, which is important for overall health and wellbeing, whilst keeping limits on them, i.e. not letting them out at night or when you're not home,” said Cathryn. “My cat would be miserable without any outside time.”</p>
<p>But others were all for banning wandering felines.</p>
<p>“We have strict rules put in place for dogs so why should cats be any different?” said Kelly. “I'm sick and tired of cats in my local neighbourhood coming inside and pooing and weeing all over our front and backyard.”</p>
<p>Viewer Loraine took a pragmatic approach, saying that while cats are natural hunters, they need to be contained to protect wildlife.</p>
<p>“I love cats and also our wonderful native animals,” she said. “As such, I understand cats' natural instinct to hunt and our role in keeping our wildlife safe. So I firmly believe there are no such things as "bad cats" but bad owners who do not have their animals desexed and allow them to stray around the neighbourhood.”</p>
<p>Various restrictions are in place around Australia, including cat curfews at night, and “cat containment” suburbs in the ACT. As news.com.au reports, the federal government looked at implementing a similar ban to that of the Randwick council proposal in 2015.</p>
<p>Dr Sally Box, who became Australia’s Threatened Species Commissioner last year, told the <em>Weekend Australian</em> that such measures aren’t designed to be punitive to cat owners, who may not realise how far their furry friends roam, but to protect large numbers of threatened species in urban areas.</p>
<p>“Roaming domestic cats kill about 60 million birds a year,” she said.</p>
<p>“We’re encouraging people to have their pets microchipped, desexed and contained at night.</p>
<p>“It’s not about preventing people from having cats – they are important companions for a lot of people. We’re just trying to encourage responsible pet ownership.”</p>
<p>Do you think banning cats from roaming outside is fair? Let us know in the comments below.</p>
