Keep Kitty Indoors to Protect Wildlife

Cute and cuddly, but deadly to birds.

Cute and cuddly, but deadly to birds.

This is Passport to Texas

As cute and as cuddly as they are, cats are born killers.

Some people estimate that cats will take a total of 39-million prey animals per year.

Prey animals include invertebrates, small mammals, reptiles and birds. Kelly Simon is an Urban Wildlife Biologist with Texas Parks and Wildlife.

From a wildlife management standpoint, we really should be keeping our cats indoors…
Indoor cats are safer, healthier and live longer than outdoor cats.

If your cats roam free, place bird feeders and baths in open areas away from places where they can hide and ambush birds.

 …and realize that by not spaying or neutering our cats, we are producing an awful lot of predators each and every year.

Finally, do not release your unwanted cats in rural areas. It is NOT more humane than taking them to a shelter where they will be housed, fed and with luck—rehomed.

Released in an unfamiliar setting, former housecats are confused, terrified and vulnerable. If they survive, that’s when they become a threat to wildlife…and it’s not their fault.

That’s our show…For Texas Parks and Wildlife, Cecilia Nasti.

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