No Cat Zone is about conservation

No Cat Zone is about conservation of Australian wildlife. Most of Australia's fauna lives in sparsely populated areas across the vast continent. Through education and government legislation, cat containment is gaining support across Australia. Currently, cat containment is an option presented to councils through legislation. It is for individual councils to pass laws for cat containment. With public awareness, people can support local councils as they implement local cat containment laws.  

Feral Cat

Feral cats

No Cat Zone has focused on feral cats (Felis catus). This animal was introduced into Australia in the 1800s. Some have postulated they may have arrived in the 1650s on ships fishing for cucumber from Makassar in southern Sulawesi, Indonesia sailing past Timor-Leste onto the coastline of Arnhem Land, the most Northern tip of Australia.

DNA examination of 269 feral cats

DNA examination of 269 feral cats from six different locations in mainland Australia and seven surrounding islands were conducted. The conclusion supports that cats were introduced in the 1800s, coinciding with the time of European settlement.
As a house cat, they were useful to catch rodents. But cats do not need humans to survive. As domestic cats moved away from populated areas, their hunting skill were sufficient for cats to survive and thrive.

Driven to extinction

It's unknown how many feral cats are in Australia, The estimated number ranges between 2.1 and 6.3 million. The number is not as important as the known effects. Small mammals, reptiles, and birds are being driven to extinction.

Australian small mammal populations are poorly equipped to cope with the introduction of cats (Felis catus). The breeding patterns of cats without a natural predator means they will breed without biological controls apart from climate and ecological changes.

A bridge to far

The eradication of feral cats in Australia is a bridge to far. The strategy is to reduce the population down where indigenous species are not threatened with extinction. Often people, confronted with lethal control of feral animals, recoil as though this was an inhumane cruel treatment of animals and will leap to the defence of the animal.

This is understandable it is hoped that with this site information can be distributed that will help to contribute to the conversation about how to best protect indigenous creatures, whilst remaining humane.

Let's keep talking

Feral cats cause great harm to wildlife. The chain linking domestic cats to Feral cats needs to be broken.

Community discussion and agreement on the valuable contribution cats make to family life, with a realistic approach to controlling abandoned and feral cat clowder.

Whilst euthanasia is an unpleasant solution for captured cats that cannot be adopted back into family's, there is no other responsible solution. 

TNR just perpetuates the problem. Returning neutered cats back to the clowder is not an effective control and is no more than a failed experiment by misguided animal rights advocates.

 If cats were a little less amusing and not such attractive cute creatures there maybe a different public attitude

 Rats and mice do not have an animal rights advocate group. They are described as vermin. 

Vermin = wild animals which are believed to be harmful to crops, farm animals, or game, or which carry disease, e.g., rodents. 



Vermin (colloquially varmint or varmint) are pests or nuisance animals, … Examples of vermin include goats on the Galápagos Islands, rabbits in Australia or cats.

A community discussion/debate is overdue. Step up and educate yourself to the issues and join the debate.