Pets
The cat is the wildlife problem.
A free-roaming cat is among the most significant human-linked causes of wild bird and small mammal mortality, and every animal it touches needs a clinic.
Domestic cats hunt whether or not they are fed, and are efficient at it. The scale is documented and large. The specific danger is bacteriological: a cat’s mouth carries Pasteurella multocida, so a puncture too small to see will produce a fatal infection within a day or two.
What you are hearing
A cat bringing animals to the door is a normal, well-fed cat. Fledglings and young rabbits are the usual victims in late spring, because both spend time on the ground while learning. Most of what a cat catches is never seen by anyone.
What to do
- 01Take any cat-caught animal to a rehabilitator today, whether or not you can see a wound.
- 02Keep cats indoors, or outdoors only in a run or on a harness.
- 03If indoor confinement is not possible, fit a bright collar cover, which cuts predation on birds substantially.
- 04Keep cats in entirely for the fortnight when local fledglings are on the ground.
What not to do
- Do not wait to see whether a cat-caught animal recovers overnight.
- Do not treat a wound yourself or apply antiseptic.
- Do not bell the collar and consider it solved; bells are much less effective than colour.
Stopping it happening again
- A cat kept in from dusk to mid-morning misses most hunting opportunity.
- Move feeders away from cover a cat can use as an ambush point.
- Neuter, and support local trap-neuter programmes for unowned cats.
When to call someone licensed
A licensed rehabilitator, immediately, for any animal a cat has touched.
Find a rehabilitatorUnderstand the animal
This is the one wildlife conflict in which the intervention is entirely within the household, and the effect is measurable.