Domestic cats take the rap for injuries to wildlife

The Blue Ridge Wildlife Center (BRWC) at Boyce took a record-breaking 2,195 animals into its hospital facility last year, some 300 of which were victims of domestic cat attacks, according to Dr. Jennifer Riley, DVM, the center’s director of veterinary services.

In separate articles in “The Ridgeline,” BRWC’s newsletter, Riley and Cara Masullo, a Licensed Veterinary Technician (LTV), cited domestic cats as a danger “to our ecosystem,” both recommending cats be kept indoors or, at least, confined outside, like a dog, on leashes.

Said Masullo: “Though they may (resist) wearing a leash at first… (once) comfortable wearing a harness around the house… you can introduce your cat to the great outdoors in their new attire!” Masullo also encouraged building an outdoor enclosure or utilizing an existing screened-in porch to allow for less supervised, contained, outdoor time for the cats.

Quoting Smithsonian Institution statistics, she said an estimated average of 2.4 billion birds and 12.3 billion small animals are killed by domestic cats each year in the United States alone.

A cat-and-mouse game played out some 30 years ago in a U.K. kitchen when indoor cat Flossie, right, was caught studying her tiny prey at left center of photo. End of story: the mouse escaped and later was caught by the photographer who released it unharmed in his garden. Photo by Neville Barr, Derby, England

Riley, whose day-to-day responsibility is the treatment of injured local wildlife – most of her patients come from Frederick County (25%) followed by Loudoun, Clarke, Fauquier, Warren and Shenandoah – said: “As a veterinarian, I would never recommend that a domestic cat be allowed to roam unsupervised, even part time. I am a cat-lover AND a wildlife lover – the two are not mutually exclusive!”

She also warned that each time a cat attacks a wild animal, there is potential exposure to diseases that could hurt you and your family… or injure or kill your pets.

She said that the best way to prevent this is keeping domestic predators (cats) indoors and not putting you or a beloved pet in that situation.

About three years ago, BRWC opened a new, million-dollar wildlife hospital at Boyce (it was operating from an old, rundown house for a dozen years before that) and each year since has seen an increase in patient intake. Dr. Riley has been in place most all of that time and last year performed 120 surgeries, mostly on birds (42%) and mammals (48%). Also, she reported orthopedic procedures on raptors (large birds of the hawk/eagle variety), numerous turtle fractures, and a multitude of laceration repairs.

Apart from raptors, birds treated included songbirds, doves, water and game birds. Mammals treated included rabbits, opossums, squirrels, foxes, bats and raccoons. Reptiles treated included turtles by the score, snakes and frogs.

While reviewing the past year for BRWC supporters, Riley said: “It should be noted that an estimated 95% of our patients come into care for human-caused reasons… most people would agree that vehicle collisions, traps in fencing or netting, gun shots, glue traps, lead and rodenticide toxicities etc. would not be a problem if humans were not in the picture…

“The domestic cat is an introduced, non-native species whether living in the home, outdoors, or as part of a feral colony.

To pounce or not to pounce – ‘If he hits me in the head with that thing one more time, I’m going to smack the heck out of it – but hey, it’s instinct!’ – Photo/Roger Bianchini

These cats are a single species, just as all domestic dogs are of one species. Humans have spread domestic cats across our continent creating feral populations, and humans continue to allow cats unsupervised outdoor access, or abandon their pets outside when they are no longer able to care for them. No one blames domestic cats for acting on their natural instincts in this situation. For these reasons, we firmly believe that cat attacks on wildlife are a human-caused problem…

“All too often, people choose cats because they are ‘low maintenance pets’, but this commonly believed myth is far from the truth – ‘Cats are hunters and they will not be satisfied being ignored in the home all day.’ This is the most common excuse for letting them out. Though a life outdoors can be a form of enrichment, safer enrichment can be provided indoors by dedicated owners and supervised outdoor time can be provided by using leashes… if you care about animal welfare, keep your cats safe indoors and keep wildlife safe outside!”

(Neville Barr, the writer’s brother, 80, is a dedicated cat lover, working for a half century in the animals’ behalf, notably with the National Cats’ Protection League. His doted upon cats, usually a pair but currently just a single kitty, have never seen the outside of his Derby, England, home. He provided one of the photographs used in this article).