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Why felines must have nine lives

By LaVERNE HAMMOND
Published July 26, 2005

Recently America's Dairyland made the nation's headlines. It had nothing to do with our Green Bay Packers or our famous Door County fishboils. Wisconsinites were in the news because of our overpopulation of cats - feral ones.

Wisconsin's wild felines have a taste for our songbirds and consume 7.8-million to 219-million birds a year, according to state researchers. Alarmed by this massacre, some Wisconsinites had suggested that the state declare open season on these critters.

Naturally, cat lovers were up in arms.

And even though Wisconsin's governor, Jim Doyle, quickly reassured them that the state would never allow people to go around shooting stray felines, our state got the reputation for being anti-cat. Now wherever I go, people ask, "Are you in favor of shooting kitties?"

So here's my answer: I am an animal lover, and I believe that both cats and birds have a right to live.

But that said, I must admit: Cats have a terrible image problem.

Remember the TV series about that noble dog Lassie? But where are the cats running around saving Timmy? We have Garfield in a comic strip and plenty of felines in Cats, the Broadway musical.

Cats are not the most humble creatures.

Whereas dogs are referred to as "man's best friend," cats are described as "beady-eyed." Dogs catch Frisbees. Cats cough up furballs.

Cats need to hire a good public relations firm that could promote their many virtues. Have you ever sat with a cat purring on your lap? It is one of the most peaceful and soothing moments you can experience. Cats are more useful than dogs: What dog can be an exterminator that rids homes of mice? Cats also don't demand as much attention as a dog. You don't have to walk them, and they can stay in the house for hours on end and use a litter box.

Sure, they eat birds, but can we blame them for doing what cats do naturally?

It seems that the bird massacre has more to do with the cat owners than the cats.

Evidently, dog owners are much more responsible when it comes to controlling their pets. They are less inclined to dump their pup on a farm road, as disenchanted cat owners do when they want to get rid of unwanted kitties. These cat owners assume that their castoffs will be eagerly accepted by farmers whose barns are filled with mice.

It doesn't always work that way, but thinking it does eases their conscience.

People with unwanted kitty cats (or any animal) should put an ad in the newspaper to sell them, give them away to a good home or take them to the Humane Society.

We can all do our part, though. Why not put out some food for those hungry strays? Or better yet, raise our birdfeeders.

LaVerne Hammond, who divides her time between Wisconsin and Florida, is at work on her memoirs. Write her in care of Seniority, St. Petersburg Times, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731.

[Last modified July 22, 2005, 11:36:01]