Bird Banter: Take wildlife protection into your own hands: take your cat for a walk

Yahoo

14-06-2025

Maybe you, too, have been writing to Wyoming's congressional delegation, asking them to preserve protections for birds and other wildlife and all you get back, if anything, is a friendly form letter sort of related to your specific concern. Maybe aides put a tally mark in their pro-wildlife column.
Meanwhile, all the federal agencies addressing wildlife and habitat concerns, including the Environmental Protection Agency, Fish and Wildlife Service, National Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, Geological Survey, are being disabled.
But there are actions you can take that will make a difference for birds.
Take a cat outdoors. I know, you've heard me over the years talk about the American Bird Conservancy's program, Cats Indoors. I don't mean 'let your cat outdoors,' but keeping a cat indoors when it's nice out seems heartless, and ABC agrees. You can take a cat out to a catio (more about that later) or take them for a walk.
I've tried various poorly designed harnesses, but there is now a plethora of easy-to-use designs. I found a cloth one that closes quickly with two large Velcro patches, one at the neck and one around the belly, the Kitty Holster Cat Harness.
Mark and I have two cats that have a short tolerance for being petted before they lash out, but they let me put the harnesses on and take them off without bloodshed.
Lark and Lewis are brother and sister, from a litter found seven years ago along Crow Creek by the mother of a friend. We'd been without a cat and these kittens were adorable, maybe some Maine Coon, with the classic tabby 'M' on their foreheads. Lewis is now 15 pounds and Lark 10, but her hair is longer and bushier.
My friend took the other three kittens, keeping them indoors so all five kittens were saved from a life of murder and mayhem — the life of a loose cat that catches and kills birds and small mammals even when it isn't hungry. Domestic cats are the No. 1 source of human-caused bird mortality, killing 2.4 billion birds per year in the U.S., according to ABC.
According to Jonathan Losos in his book, 'Cat's Meow: How Cats Evolved from the Savanna to Your Sofa,' who spoke on an Environment for the Americas webinar last month, domestic cats have not lost the drive they inherited from their wildcat ancestors to kill prey. And it's easy for them to go feral.
Cats are also the top carrier of rabies, said Grant Sizemore, from ABC. Free-roaming cats also spread toxoplasmosis, a serious disease for people as well as wildlife. Trap, neuter, vaccinate and release programs are not adequate for stopping the carnage. 'It's time to treat cats like we treat dogs,' he said, meaning they shouldn't be allowed to roam loose anymore.
Mark and I had our friend Dave enclose our covered patio with pet-resistant screening so that we could picnic without yellow jackets and the cats could spend nice days out there, watching the nearby bird feeder. A true catio allows the cats to let themselves in and out (only if you've opened the cat door), but ours doesn't so we carry them in and out. Lewis, especially, will stand by the back door and give me a look. He'll even obligingly leap onto the kitchen table to make it easier to pick him up.
The introduction to the cloth harnesses went well, but then we got a puppy and next thing, I realized this spring it's been more than two years since I had either cat out on the leash for a stroll around the backyard. As soon as I pulled out the harnesses, Lewis leapt onto the table and let me wrap him up in the larger one. I opened the back door, and he jumped down and strolled out with me on the other end of the leash.
It is relaxing following a cat around. The goldfinches were soon assured and back at the bird feeder. I had time to look for bees in the garden.
The third webinar speaker was Albert (and his cat, Mia) who has the website OutdoorBengal.com, 'Take Your Cat Outdoors—Travel, Hike and Go on Adventures with Your Cat' (Mia is a Bengal.). He thinks every cat is trainable and he has many training tips.
It's still important to nag our congressional delegation as often as possible about safeguarding wildlife and habitat — Wyomingites across the political spectrum are concerned — so be sure to write or call: Rep. Harriet Hageman, hageman.house.gov; Sen. Cynthia Lummis, lummis.senate.gov; and/or Sen. John Barrasso, barrasso.senate.gov.