FAQs
What is this campaign about?
There is a serious cat overpopulation problem in Victoria.
One factor contributing to this problem is people feeding unowned cats but not taking full ownership or responsibility for them (eg they don’t desex or identify them, or keep them on their property).
Feeding unowned cats helps regenerate cat colonies by keeping cats alive and strong enough to reproduce.
This campaign aims to educate the community about the consequences of feeding unowned cats, and the impact it is having on the cat overpopulation problem.
It asks people to make a decision – to either be a responsible owner and take the cat in, or to call their local council to arrange to have the cat collected.
What does this campaign aim to achieve?
The campaign aims to:
- Educate the community about the consequences of feeding unowned cats, and the impact it is having on the cat overpopulation problem.
- Get people to make a decision – to either be a responsible owner and take the cat in, or to call their local council to arrange to have the cat impounded.
- Increase the number of responsibly owned cats in Victoria.
- Decrease the number of cats having to be euthanased in pounds and shelters in Victoria.
Why do we need to do something about stray cats?
Research shows that there are currently around half a million unowned (stray and feral) cats in Victoria. Annually, 50,000 cats are impounded and 35,000 of these have to be euthanased (at a cost of around $5 million per annum).
Thousands of these are healthy, sociable kittens which have to be euthansed because not enough homes can be found for them. Other cats and kittens have to be euthanased because of poor health or because they are wild or feral.
This situation is unacceptable on ethical and animal welfare grounds, and also causes enormous emotional stress for pound and shelter staff.
In addition, unowned cats are a significant source of nuisance in the community (preying on wildlife, spraying strong smelling urine around houses and cars, fighting with owned cats and spreading disease, yowling at night, defecating in gardens and sandpits etc).
Why can’t we just leave the stray cats alone to look after themselves?
Unowned cats often suffer from very poor health, and live in a state of starvation and disease. The average life expectancy of an unowned cat is 3 years, compared to 12-15 years for an owned desexed cat.
Unowned cats coming into shelters and pounds can be underweight, sick with cat flu, or have heavy flea and worm infestations. They may have injuries from fights or from being hit by cars. They may also have developed skin cancers, or contracted fatal diseases such as feline AIDS.
Aside from the animal welfare problems suffered by many stray cats, there are other reasons to remove them from the community. Stray cats cause of a lot of nuisance problems in the community, such as spraying strong smelling urine around houses and cars, fighting with owned cats and spreading disease, yowling at night, defecating in gardens and sandpits etc. They also cause environmental damage by killing native wildlife.
Cats breed extremely quickly, and if left alone, the stray cat population would just continue to breed and cause more and more animal welfare, community nuisance and environmental problems.
Can’t the stray cats just be desexed?
There are a number of problems with just desexing, and then returning, the stray cats to the streets (this idea is commonly referred to as ‘trap, neuter and release’).
Firstly, these cats can still suffer terrible health and animal welfare problems when living as strays. Experience has also shown that after stray cats have been trapped for desexing, they can then become ‘trap shy’ and difficult to catch again in future. There have been instances of such cats getting injuries like broken legs, and then having to endure a slow and agonising death because they could not be caught again for treatment.
Returning the stray cats would not resolve the nuisance problems, or stop them from preying on wildlife.
It would also never be possible to trap and desex enough of the cats to adequately control the stray cat population in Victoria.
What about compulsory desexing of all cats – wouldn’t that solve the problem?
There are differing opinions about the effectiveness of introducing compulsory desexing. Each of the organisations involved in implementing the “Who’s for cats?” campaign have their own views on compulsory desexing – some support the idea, others don’t, for a range of reasons. If you want more information about their views, it is best to contact the different organisations directly. The “Who’s for cats?” campaign does not cover the topic of compulsory desexing.
At the moment in Victoria, there is no Statewide requirement for compulsory desexing of cats or dogs. However individual councils do have the power to introduce compulsory desexing in their municipalities.
Isn’t it cruel to ask people to stop feeding the stray cats? Won’t they starve?
We are not asking people to just stop feeding stray cats – that would be cruel. We are asking them to make a decision:
- either take ownership of the cat (ie not only feeding, but also desexing and identifying the cat etc)
- or call the local council to have the cat taken to the pound or shelter.
What will happen to the cat at the pound or shelter?
Cats taken to the pound or shelter will be scanned for a microchip, and if one is found, the owner will be contacted. If the cat is unidentified, as long as it is not wild, feral or diseased, it will be held for 8 days, to give an owner (if there is one) the chance to reclaim it. After the 8 day holding period, the council or shelter may rehouse or euthanase the cat.
I heard that the cat will probably just be killed at the pound or shelter?
Staff at shelters and pounds do their best to rehouse cats, and do find homes for many of them. Sadly, however, the reality is that there are simply not enough homes available for all the cats. Even though they love animals, the staff have no choice but to euthanase the cats that can’t be rehoused – there is not enough room in the pounds or shelters to hold these cats forever. Although this is a heartbreaking task, it is kinder option for the cats than leaving them to suffer a life of disease and neglect in the wild.
This is why we are asking people to stop just feeding unowned cats, and either take responsible ownership of them, or take them to the pound to stop the breeding cycle, and help bring this terrible problem to an end.
Why are you focusing on people who feed stray cats - aren’t there other causes of the cat overpopulation problem?
The cat overpopulation problem is due to a number of factors, such as supply exceeding demand, the high reproductive capacity of cats, and general attitudes towards the species, which manifest in irresponsible cat ownership.
However, research conducted by Monash University has found that one major contributing factor to this problem is people feeding unowned cats but not taking full ownership or responsibility for them (eg they don’t desex or identify them, or keep them on their property). Feeding unowned cats helps regenerate cat colonies by keeping cats alive and strong enough to reproduce.
From a random phone survey of 424 Victorian residents, Monash University found 22% of respondents in the sample said they fed stray cats. Therefore, this is the issue that we have decided to target first.
How long will the campaign run for?
It will take a long time to change attitudes and behaviours towards stray cats, so this campaign will run for at least 12 months, if not longer.
Who is involved in the campaign?
In order to address this problem, the following organisations have come together to implement this campaign: the Animal Welfare Science Centre, Australian Veterinary Association, Cat Protection Society, Department of Primary Industries, Lort Smith Animal Hospital, Lost Dogs’ Home, Monash University, Municipal Association of Victoria, RSPCA and Victorian Animal Aid.
What activities are involved in this campaign?
The campaign involves TV, radio and print advertisements, a dedicated website (www.whosforcats.com.au), posters, flyers, billboard advertising, promotion at events, information in the various magazines and newsletters produced by participating groups, education activities in primary schools etc. New ideas for promoting campaign messages will continue to be developed over time.