What has the American Bird Conservancy’s Cats Indoors! program accomplished since they initiated their campaign “for safer birds and cats”?

-In 2003, Cats Indoors director, Linda Winter and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) declared war on outdoor cats- accusing “non-native” felines of threatening endangered species of birds and mice. Part of the plan to eradicate the cats was to initiate a state wide ban on trap-neuter-return. Instead of humanely reducing homeless free-roaming populations; these animals were to be captured and sent to shelters where the majority would be killed.

When the public learned of this proposal they rose up and fought back. Ultimately, a lot of time, money and human resources were spent as the two sides battled. Trap-neuter-return ultimately was not outlawed on a state wide level, but the attack on outdoor cats continued. Some of the most effective TNR groups like Space Coast Feline Network lost county funding due to lawsuits initiated by supporters of Cats Indoors.

The FWC continues to subsidize the American Bird Conservancy for the use of their information which they display on the state agency’s web site. The fact that the Cats Indoors Campaign is based on a discredited study by Stanley Temple and John Coleman doesn’t seem to concern them. Actually, this is not surprising when you’re dealing with an administration that distorts science to support their political objectives.

Ironically, while the FWC was so concerned with getting rid of “non-native” free-roaming felines, Florida’s parks and refuges were being over-run by Burmese pythons – exotic snakes that can grow more than 20 feet long and weigh over 200 pounds. These invasive reptiles have no natural predators in Florida and feed on birds and mice, among many other species.

Add to the mix: Nile monitor lizards- seven feet long, dagger-clawed and voracious. Their diet includes the eggs of endangered BurrowingOwls. Wildlife officials have no idea how to stop them from decimating fragile ecosystems.

Today, the southern end of Florida is teeming with alien invaders wreaking havoc on native wildlife. But back in 2003, influenced by the American Bird Conservancy, the FWC was primarily concerned about wandering felines.

What else has the Cats Indoors Campaign accomplished since its inception in 1997?

-In 2005, hunters in Wisconsin issued a proposal that would have made it legal to shoot outdoor cats. Their rationale? “Statistics” from a flawed study which reported:

“Recent research suggests that rural free-ranging domestic cats in Wisconsin may be killing between 8 and 217 million birds each year. The most reasonable estimates indicate that 39 million birds are killed in the state each year. Nationwide, rural cats probably kill over a billion small mammals and hundreds of millions of birds each year. Urban and suburban cats add to this toll.” The source? Cats Indoors advisors Stanley Temple and John Coleman who themselves admitted this was just “a guess.” Under pressure from the media and cat organizations to defend their “research” Temple stated: “Those figures were from our proposal. They aren’t actual data; that was just our projection to show how bad it might be.”

Thanks to the nationally publicized Don’t Shoot the Cat campaign which among other things exposed the Temple/Coleman study; the governor of Wisconsin gave free-roaming felines a reprieve. Once again, a waste of resources.

The American Bird Conservancy raises millions of dollars every year. Why do they continue to funnel cash into a simplistic anti-cat campaign that does not address the real issue?

Just “keep your cats indoors”? There are millions of homeless felines who don’t have anyone to take them inside. How does director Linda Winter respond to this fact? First, she professes her love for cats and then promotes a policy of rounding up all feral felines to be placed in shelters knowing full well most will be euthanized. Trap-neuter-return is simply not an option for her. In response to the criticism of this policy Ms. Winter now also recommends placing homeless cats in sanctuaries, almost all of which are already overcrowded and underfunded.

Meanwhile, Ms. Winter continues to supply the press with information that is inaccurate. Even more disingenuous are her reports to Cats Indoors supporters, one of which contained a dire warning about the suspected link between toxoplasmosis in cats and schizophrenia in humans.

The irresponsible dissemination of unsubstantiated charges like this could result in fewer cats being adopted as well as more indoor felines being thrown out of their homes.

If Linda Winter and her colleagues at the American Bird Conservancy were intellectually honest, they would attempt to address the problem of feline overpopulation in a meaningful way. Since they reject trap-neuter-return, here are some other ideas on how they could help:

-subsidize spay/neuter clinics

-fund research for feline oral contraceptives

-start a fleet of spay/neuter mobile units

-urge bird lovers to adopt shelter cats

-donate money to existing cat sanctuaries

-stop distributing false information

If the American Bird Conservancy is serious about addressing the issue of feline overpopulation in a humane way; they should prove it. They should stop wasting money on propaganda and do something effective to solve the problem.

Prepared by The Feline Resistance staff: June 27, 2006