The three cats that reside in our home are warm, cuddly creatures that snuggle, purr and carefully groom themselves to demonstrate that they are lovable and well-behaved domestic sweethearts.
Let them outside, however, and they immediately turn into vicious serial killers that get perverse pleasure out of maiming more vulnerable animals—then proudly leaving the mangled leftovers of mice, chipmunks, birds, rabbits and squirrels on our doorstep.
We don’t like it—although we appreciate the general absence of trouble-making mice around our home—but we’re not sure what to do about the slaughter. Like us, our cats are outdoor-lovers and would go stir-crazy if we imprisoned them in the house.
According to a Smithsonian Institute study, free-ranging cats like ours are the top threat to wildlife in the United States, killing up to 3.7 billion birds and 20.7 billion mammals each year. Yet there is no real concensus about whether this is acceptable.
Cat lovers say their pets are simply part of nature’s sometimes unpleasant eat-or-be-eaten network and are hard-wired to do what they do. Those less enamored with prowling renegades, however, say something must be done about these mass murderers and have even proposed the hunting of feral and stray cats—those once adorable human companions that have returned to the wild.
That may be OK for often unhealthy felines that are truly undomesticated—living outdoors without any human contact or care—but how would hunters tell the difference between one of those and a free-ranging domestic cat?
Would they be allowed to profile, or ask for a government-approved identification card, before aiming and firing?
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