On Sunday morning, I had the unfortunate experience of witnessing a domestic cat catching, killing and tearing apart a young wild rabbit on the lawn of St. George Catholic School. The City of Ottawa does allow cats to roam, but this cat (pictured above) was not wearing a collar and tag as required.

I appreciate the wildlife in our neighbourhood. Most of it, anyway. I enjoy seeing the wild rabbits munching on grass in my backyard and laugh at the antics of the chipmunks and squirrels. I have seen raccoons and skunks foraging in my yard, too, and even the occasional fox. I have also seen many species of birds in our neighbourhood. All of these play a role in maintaining the health of our local ecosystem and many of them are threatened by domestic cats “hunting”. The bird feeders that many of us have in our yards attract birds and other wildlife, which in turn attract free-roaming cats. I have chased a number of local cats out of my yard many times, including the cat pictured above.

Peter Blancher, a scientist with Environment Canada, estimates that house cats kill 38 to 133 million birds in Canada per year. Ted Chesky of Nature Canada reported a similar number of birds killed by pet cats in Canada. That’s an astounding number!

If you currently have a pet cat that you allow to go outdoors, please consider keeping it inside. There are creative indoor options for indoor cats including a “catio”. If you allow your cat to go outdoors, please equip it with a noise device (like a bell) on its collar. Cats are not easily seen by birds because they blend in well with our natural environment. Equipping your cat with a Birdsbesafe collar (available at several online sources), which is a comfortable but colourful collar, will help birds see the cat and make it more difficult for the cat to ambush birds and other wildlife.

Brian T.