Hunting Cats

I was watching the news this morning and to my surprise I heard about this new proposal in Wisonsin. Supposedly, Wisconsin residents have backed a controversial proposal to allow hunters to stalk and kill feral cats.

The issue of whether to make feral cats an unprotected species, meaning they could be hunted and killed, was put Monday night before the Wisconsin Conservation Congress, an independent organization created by the state 70 years ago to take public input on conservation issues.

The vote doesn't make it open season on cats in Wisconsin, but it does mean the Conservation Congress will consider the proposal at its annual meeting in May. The congress will send its recommendations to its board and the DNR, but any further action would have to be carried out by the Legislature.

The proposal, which was raised five years ago and voted down by the Conservation Congress, was revived after a 2004 University of Wisconsin study that found non-native feral cats were a threat to native animals such as lovebirds.

My take on this would be, why not? Now I'm not a big cat fan, so I may not be the best judge on this subject. But feral and stray cats can be a nuisance to a neighborhood and dangerous to be around. I'm not saying that stray cats shouldn't be trapped and taken to pet shelters, but when the population in the shelter is too overwhelming and stray cats are still dominant in the neighborhoods, then I say, have at it.