Feral Cats

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I'm more of a cat person than a dog person BUT feral cats breeding indiscriminately are one of the major causes of the nation's bird population decline (along with small amphibians, lizards, etc necessary to a healthy ecosystem)

As long as you do not run afowl if some legal issue, better to kill them.

HOWEVER - DO CHECK LOCAL LAWS OUT!

A friend here in my city is now a felon because he shot and killed a stray, emaciated dog (with a .30 air rifle) that was tearing into trash for weeks and had been aggressive towards his toddler child. He had reported to local animal control twice in the proceeding weeks and they did nothing.... BUT when he killed it the county arrested him and he was convicted of animal cruelty.

FIFTEEN YEARS PROBATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LOST HIS PROFESSION AS LOAN OFFICER AS NO FELONIES ALLOWED IN BANKING 

LOST HIS FIREARMS RIGHTS!!!!

Be warned.
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How did they know/prove who shot the dog?
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He told them when asked...

Honestly was NOT the best policy.

The Animal control finally showed up a week after he killed it. He said not needed and explained. They actually dug it up and found he'd killed it with one shot to the head (he says from 40 yards). They said 'fine and no problem' but then went back and filed charges and had him arrested to the county jail.
 
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Take proper steps first, and I need to stress this for anyone who is shooting "pest animals" of any kind. ALLWAYS call the game warden if you have any questions of legality. No offense to anyone on the forum but people are answering your questions as to yes shoot them or no don't and no one asked what state you live in or any other questions that needs answered to even come close to know if you are in your rights. Further if your questioning yourself then you most likely have good reason NOT to shoot them without calling the professionals 



Game Wardens are both Federal and State and Feral Animals that can pose a threat as a rabies carrier can fall under the Wardens responsibility. Many times they will supply traps and or even set traps for problem animals. Keep your vids of the cats coming onto your property, and if the warden gives you the go ahead and labels the cats as a "Pest" animal then you have done due diligence and can take care of the issue.

Just remember to make sure that you shoot the animal on your property never before it enters or after it leaves your property, 

Insure you follow State and Federal laws pertaining to the discharge of a hunting device around habitats (Some states have a minimum distance from the habitat) 

If you are given the go ahead and record your shots don't make them public, but keep them to show ethical kill shots in case the question comes up
 
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Law enforcement is getting out of hand. If there were no extenuating circumstances your friend got screwed. He'd of gotten off easier embezzling money from his workplace. Sounds like he was guilty of the heinous crime of doing a bureaucrat's job for them. Had a friend here shoot an Oryx in a group. The shot passed through and killed 2. He turned it in thinking honesty would be the best policy but he got a $2500 fine and lost his rifle. The guy he was hunting with and witnessed the incident was a cop from another jurisdiction and tried to talk him out of it to no avail.




















 
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He means that dogs get attached to us and cats don't and are Independent.

Dogs crave our love and affection and act/behave to belong to our human "pack" and it is somewhat slave/property like. Easy to train and be obedient.

Cats don't do that, remaining somewhat aloft and not 'belonging' to the owner. Hard(er) to train and don't obay much at all and less likable.
 
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Dogs are property cats aren't. If they are being destructive you should be able to kill them but your local laws may protect them? Don't know?
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Never heard of that one 

Any animal can be "property"
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Just like most states define your ownership of the game you kill by calling it possession which is defined as "owning". I owned the last cat I killed when I pull the trigger and took him into my possession. But not for very long thankfully!

And we have tried to humanely trap and relocate sometimes only to have them return from as far a 22 miles in about 30 hrs time. County animal control won't take them so the choice is live with a potential threat or eliminate it.
 
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Yeah, how'd they know who shot the dog? I love dogs, as long as they stay in their own yards and don't bother my dogs! In our last neighborhood in VA, we had 2 high $$$ dolla doctors at the end of the cul-de-sac that let their 2 medium size dogs run the neighborhood, contrary to the leash and neighborhood regs prohibiting that. They came down and attacked my dog 3 times, with me leaving messages on their voicemail. The next time it happened, I called animal control. They came out but the dogs had gone home and were in their own yard. This happened 3 more times, and the last time it happened, the animal control officer told me "the next time it happens, just shoot the dogs as long as they're on your property! You're on record regarding the problem, and we can't catch them, so just shoot them and they won't be able to do a thing about it! I told their next door neighbors (who were friends of ours) what he'd said, and wouldn't you know it, they bought a dog fence and the problem stopped.

They ended up putting one of them down themselves, as he was attacking their guests. Good riddance!
 
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Feral cats are a documented nuisance and threat to native wildlife. Ask Australia about feral cats:

There is clear evidence that feral cats have had a heavy impact on island fauna. On Macquarie Island, for example, feral cats are implicated in the sharp decline of a subspecies of the red-fronted parakeet in the 1880s and its extinction by 1891. On the mainland, they are identified as a threat to 35 species of birds, 36 mammals, 7 reptiles and 3 amphibians. Cats have probably contributed to the extinction of many small to medium-sized mammals and ground-nesting birds in the arid zone, and seriously affected bilby, mala and numbat populations. In some instances, feral cats have directly threatened the success of recovery programs for endangered species. Feral cats can carry infectious diseases such as toxoplasmosis and sarcosporidiosis, which can be transmitted to native animals, domestic livestock and humans. If rabies were to be accidentally introduced into Australia, there is a high risk that feral cats would act as carriers of the disease. There is clear evidence that feral cats have had a heavy impact on island fauna. 
 
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I agree that feral cats are out of control & are eradicating a large portion of indigenous wildlife but something in my gut will not allow me to pull the trigger on them. I haven't figured out why but that inner voice of mine keeps talking to me, so I listen to it when it says NO. Not saying it's right or wrong for anyone else. It's just how I, personally, perceive it. That's the long & short of it for me. If "the voice " says no, I don't. Doesn't really matter if anyone else feels differently. I don't live with them but I have to live with myself & be comfortable with it. 
 
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I agree that feral cats are out of control & are eradicating a large portion of indigenous wildlife but something in my gut will not allow me to pull the trigger on them. I haven't figured out why but that inner voice of mine keeps talking to me, so I listen to it when it says NO. Not saying it's right or wrong for anyone else. It's just how I, personally, perceive it. That's the long & short of it for me. If "the voice " says no, I don't. Doesn't really matter if anyone else feels differently. I don't live with them but I have to live with myself & be comfortable with it.
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Being a veterinarian I agree with you here. But if people want a pet, they should either keep it indoors, or risk myriad tragedies and be ok with little kitty not coming back home. The vet who said they live 1 year outside is flat out wrong. But their lives are truncated by tragedy when outdoors. Hit by car, devoured by dog, killed by raccoon, disease, severe life threatening fights, falling from trees, poisoning, pellet guns......list goes on and on...
 
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I agree that feral cats are out of control & are eradicating a large portion of indigenous wildlife but something in my gut will not allow me to pull the trigger on them. I haven't figured out why but that inner voice of mine keeps talking to me, so I listen to it when it says NO. Not saying it's right or wrong for anyone else. It's just how I, personally, perceive it. That's the long & short of it for me. If "the voice " says no, I don't. Doesn't really matter if anyone else feels differently. I don't live with them but I have to live with myself & be comfortable with it.
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As long as it's not your ox getting gored, so what.
 
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Not much to add, to what’s already been said, but as a ranch owner, I’m trying to maintain wildlife habitat, ergo, I shoot them.

Don’t much enjoy it (they’re just out being cats, and somewhere there’s an irresponsible human who’s the real culprit).

Nonetheless, they don’t belong in the ecosystem, they predate native birds, squirrels, young rabbits etc. and at least in Texas, they are considered exotic/invasive and no game warden would tell you to let ferals walk.
 
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