A Ferral Cat Problem

[auscab]

I have a Ferral Cat that has to go .

Any one here solved that problem with a bow and arrow ?

I'm wondering if the arrows used for target practice will do the job . Just the turned sharp point same width as the arrow shaft type.

Or, I have those three sided razor blade hunting heads . I just haven't practiced with them . I thought they may be over the top for a Cat .

The last thing I want is to see the thing running off with an arrow sticking out of it .

The ferral Cat has been getting the birds but I didn't know for sure if it was that or the foxes.
The other day it took a whole nest of baby Eastern Rosella chicks we had been watching.
Cat seen up the tree and the birds are gone .
Now I cant wait to say good bye cat. Should have done it months ago :((.

Rob

[China]

No you need to use a broad head of some type to avoid wounding, if you are not experienced find someone who is

[auscab]

No you need to use a broad head of some type to avoid wounding, if you are not experienced find someone who is

No. I'm doing it myself.

Find someone ? The only person I'm going to find around here is someone with a rifle or shotgun.
And this Cat is to be found at times in and around my Hay sheds or chicken coup.
Ill just have to use the Razor tipped broad head on some targets first then.

[groverwa]

Ask your local shire for the loan of a cat trap.

Advertising that you are going to use a bow and arrows for the job may get you a visit from the RSPCA and/or PETA or worse.

[BobL]

I suggest making your own trap because once a feral cat has been in an area it will often be followed by others and you will spend an awful lot of time chasing cats.

[Kidbee]

Stay away from Chinese made traps. I have purchased Australian made traps from these people. They are more expensive but as they say ‘you get what you pay for’.
Cat Trap (http://www.wiretainers.com.au/index.php/products/animal-traps/item/121-cat-trap)

[HUON]

Yep, I'd go with a possum/cat trap. I've caught quite a few over the years using traps. Bullets and arrows aren't always accurate, cat's really do have nine lives.
Most produce stores stock the quality ones.

[justonething]

If a cat has to go it has to go, but it doesnt have to suffer. The trap is the best way.

[auscab]

If a cat has to go it has to go, but it doesnt have to suffer. The trap is the best way.

The trap does sound better. Specially if more will be comeing in to take its place .

Once I get it in a trap I suppose I can ask it what it thinks of going for a swim .

[Ubernoob]

Ask your local shire for the loan of a cat trap.

Advertising that you are going to use a bow and arrows for the job may get you a visit from the RSPCA and/or PETA or worse.


Why? He's on a rural property, he has identified that the animal has killed multiple native animals and it appears to be feral.
Shooting it with a bow should not be an issue as long as it is a fairly clean kill, people hunt pigs and deer with bows, there is at least one Australian magazine based around bow hunting.

From the RSPCA's site-
Does the issue actually justify wildlife control?

Whatever the scenario, it’s important to have real evidence of the need for wildlife control. Is considerable harm being caused to people and their livelihoods, property, ecosystems and/or other animals?
Do we know what the desired outcome is and how to monitor it?
Before undertaking wildlife control, we need to know what needs to be achieved. Are we looking to reduce crop loss? Increase the population of a particular type of endangered animal? It can’t just be about reducing the population of the species that has been targeted. The objectives or outcomes of this population reduction have to be measurable.

A cow slaughtered for our consumption will no doubt suffer more than the cat that the OP plans to shoot, not everyone lives in the city.

[BobL]

Some info on Feral Cat Traps here
https://www.pestsmart.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/171215-SOP_CAT002_web.pdf
There's also a more cat specific bait available called Curiosity that might be worth looking.

[Newboy]

Around my house I use a Ruger 10/22 with an integral suppressor, with a thermal scope.
No one is aware.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[crowie]

A number of years ago in outback NSW the local's also had a feral cat along with others; the local district Army Reserve were asked to help with a controlled night shoot with each soldier bagging 20 plus feral cats and other ferals in the allotted 4 hours. I believe the issue is a national issue especially with the drought but too many "do gooders" won't let it be properly sorted.

[woodPixel]

I know of an internal debate within the RSPCA about feral cats. What I'm saying is not their "position" (I don't know what is).

The logic of their thinking is to capture feral male cats, neuter and release. Killing a feral male just leaves a territorial vacuum that lasts about 30 seconds (as demonstrated by Crowies post on the Ninja Assassins bag-o-cats). The neutered males are no less territorial and this drives out/away the others. The result is a single longer living known-cat rather than an influx of new ones. I recall them saying that killing the cat brings in even MORE cats.... not less.

Personally, I dont know what the answer is, but I lean towards the "it aint native, so it dies" side... but the logic of the above argument is strongly supported by scientific evidence (Ill ask them and see if they can provide me some info).

On a humane kill, the local Indian Mynah bird population is problematic. Their suggested method of euthanasia is to simply put the trap to the end of a cold cars exhaust pipe (sealed with plastic of course). The CO2 has the beastie unconscious in 20 seconds and dead in 40.

Please do the job humanely. As a species we are far too destructive. If one must kill, it should be done properly.

Edit: Good old Google found it almost instantly: https://kb.rspca.org.au/afile/462/80/1/

[tony_A]

Cant see how neutering cats will save local wildlife, the cats are eating them not f#*&ing them.

[rjtwin501]

I live on acres. With national park scrub on one side.
I have a foxy cross that just loves ferral cats, the last one he got was almost as big as him.
We have a lot of small birds and parrots breeding in the tree and nest boxes.
No ferral cats around here, guess they don't like the place.:U

[Chief Tiff]

If only we could genetically engineer cats that only preyed upon Indian Mynah birds, rats, rabbits and cane toads! Until such a time we just need to keep culling the buggers but it is a very long term activity. I have many many cane toads on my property that are attracted to my bug zapper, I find that a couple of weeks worth of night time golf knocks them down to only one or two a week, but if I stop the population recovers within a few weeks as new ones move in.

To me the biggest issue is poor cat ownership. I have two desexed rescue cats and they are curfewed at night and only have access to a small area of the yard where nothing bigger than lizards roam yet there are at least two neighbourhood moggies that are left out all night. I approached one of the owners and requested that they kept theirs in at night because it strays onto my property and drive my two berserk when they see it out of the window; the response was “oh, we can’t do that; she hates being kept in at night”. That mentality drives me up the fornicating wall.

[Pagie]

A 222 is the best thing for cats.

[artful bodger]

If you can hit the cat with a bow and arrow, that sounds great!
Or a shotgun, rifle, hammer, big lump of wood even. Not always that easy though.
Where I live in Tassie we saw a feral cat walk down our pathway one summers evening. We borrowed a possum trap off some friends and caught the cat on the first night.
A lead injection into the head disposed of it with minimal fuss.
Next night out of curiosity I set the trap again, and got another one.
And the next night.....for SIX NIGHTS IN A ROW.
Seventh night nothing.
Eighth night,another one.
We were horrified how many of the damn things were out there.
The compost heap swelled enormously and the local barred bandicoots, wrens etc breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
Have nothing against responsible cat ownership, however that is a rare thing.

[Ubernoob]

A couple of weeks ago I spotted some baby Banded Rail birds on my Landcare site, a few days later I saw a cat that had a bell and a name tag running along where the birds would normally walk. I have not seen the babies or parents since seeing the cat, hopefully they are hiding somewhere safe as they were the first of their type that I had seen in the creek.

We had cats when I was a kid but they all become horrible animals when they are out in the wild, one of ours bought a snake home one day. Dr Karl suggests fitting a bell to all cats, he said to start at 5kg and work from there.
446157

[groverwa]

Dr Karl suggests fitting a bell to all cats, he said to start at 5kg and work from there.

Years ago we had a naturalist in the west who was going to introduce cat flu to get rid of the feral cats and if you had a pet cat then you would have immunize against the disease. He got crapped on from great heights.

[Ubernoob]

Dr Karl suggests fitting a bell to all cats, he said to start at 5kg and work from there.

Years ago we had a naturalist in the west who was going to introduce cat flu to get rid of the feral cats and if you had a pet cat then you would have immunize against the disease. He got crapped on from great heights.




I think there is one that would do the job and it is currently on the rise, we just need it to hit the feral ones.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feline_panleukopenia

[auscab]

I had a couple of opportunities to get the cat since we have been here but let them slip because the Bow which is a compound bow hasn't been used for ten years and I needed to touch up on the distances I'm seeing the cat at and the heavier broad head tip if I was going to use that.

I got the bow out yesterday and found I need new arrows as well . But worse than that is my strength has dropped in the last ten years from 45 to 55 Years old. I did get off two shots but couldn't get off a third ! The bldy thing is so hard to draw back ! A bit more practice for that is needed.

Ten years back I was hitting the bulls eye at 50 meters.
I have seen this cat a few times in the last year at around 20 meters and a couple of times the dogs have it stuck up a tree at 3 or 4 meters away. I just wasn't ready for it.

I have inquired about the Aussie made traps that Kidbee recommended in post 6 and will order one tomorrow. They are $150.

What Ive got to do is get a shooters license. And start off with one trap. And have a go at the cats and Foxes around here .

Think Ill start building some bird boxes as well . I burn off cuts that would probably make good nesting boxes . Ill go look up some info on that now.

Build a Nest Box (http://www.backyardbuddies.org.au/habitats/build-a-nest-box?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-OnFirfv3gIVjoiPCh2dGATqEAAYASAAEgITPPD_BwE)

Rob

[dusteater]

Dr Karl suggests fitting a bell to all cats, he said to start at 5kg and work from there.

Years ago we had a naturalist in the west who was going to introduce cat flu to get rid of the feral cats and if you had a pet cat then you would have immunize against the disease. He got crapped on from great heights.



Way to go !!!! release the KRAKEN !!!

[BobL]

https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2018-11-26/last-feral-cat-on-west-island-due-to-indigenous-ranger-program/10511880

[HUON]

Rob, a couple of nest box books you might like are "Nest boxes for wildlife" by Alan and Stacey Franks, also "The Nestbox book" compiled by the Gould group

[ian]

Cant see how neutering cats will save local wildlife, the cats are eating them not f#*&ing them.if there are enough neutered males the female cats have trouble finding a fertile male to mate with.
Over time the cat population declines as a result of reduced reproduction.

I know the "neutered" male strategy works for mosquitoes, haven't seen any research for mammals like cats

[BobL]

if there are enough neutered males the female cats have trouble finding a male to fertile mate with.
Over time the cat population declines as a result of reduced reproduction.

I know the "neutered" male strategy works for mosquitoes, haven't seen any research for mammals like cats

Not neutered males but neutering female cats has been modelled and they found that unless 70% are neutered the population will not fall.
see Modelling the population control of the domestic cat: an example from an island in Brazil (http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1519-69842012000300005)

When my vet BIL lived in a small country town he provided male cat neutering for free.
He often did procedure on his kitchen table and got quick enough to be able to do the procedure in a couple of minutes
He also had a cat trap and neutered every male cat he caught over a period of about 7 years and over that period the number of cats he caught did reduce.
Interesting that he never re-caught any neutered males.

[HUON]

I've never heard anyone call a cat stupid. I've got a feral that I'm still trying to catch, it's mastered the art of tipping the trap upside down so that the trapdoor opens. It's done this twice now. So you can call me stupid but not the cat. Anyway I'll peg the trap down next time.

[tony_A]

if there are enough neutered males the female cats have trouble finding a fertile male to mate with.
Over time the cat population declines as a result of reduced reproduction.

I know the "neutered" male strategy works for mosquitoes, haven't seen any research for mammals like cats

Believe its referred to as the Sterile Insect Technique and it works through a mass release of sterile males to the extent that they inundate the numbers of fertile males in the population. As many female insects generally only mate once, most end up not reproducing. This technique has not been successful in all cases
Cats are long lived and mate multiple times. Putting a few neutered cats into a large population of fertile cats is unlikely to have any measurable impact. Male cats potentially live for a number of years after being neutered and continue to eat wildlife for that time.
It appears to me that the whole argument is driven by well meaning people who cant bring themselves to kill feral cats while at the same time ignoring the potential hundreds of native animals that the cat will kill.

[Beardy]

The neutering is also done to control fox populations

[HUON]

A lot of feral tom cats have " F I V " A cat's version of H I V. I think nature has a way eventually of controlling population explosions. Too late though for some species lower on the food chain.

[bsrlee]

Coming in a bit late here, but DO NOT use 'sharps' or normal pointed arrows for shooting at ANY animal. Even broadheads can be problematic, they are supposed to eventually fall out if they don't kill the target but if they hit bone they seem to stay in. For smaller animals such as cats, foxes and pest birds, use 'blunts'. They used to make them from expended rifle cartridges such as .303 and .38 but these are harder to come by these days, so most people use rubber chair leg caps if they don't want to get purpose make blunts from a supplier. You ould even turn your own if that is your thing. Blunts kill by blunt trauma, the arrow does not penetrate and it does not result in a media frenzy when someone gets a picture of something hopping around with a stick through it.

[woodPixel]

nasty.

[auscab]

My favorite Feral Cat video .

Thwack !

A little strange about the shot description near the end. It was hit on the right side and he is saying he hit it on its left ?
Even with an arrow like that the cat made it 40 meters after the arrow went straight through it !
Maybe it missed the vital organs ?



<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPSpgHE7Ymc" target="_blank">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPSpgHE7Ymc
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPSpgHE7Ymc)

[Mr Brush]

I prefer 0.22 rifle, subsonics, hollow point, to the head. Seems to work on the ferals around here, but I swear they are getting bigger year on year.

[Tonyz]

Feral cats close to being eradicated by Indigenous rangers on remote West Island ABC rural

this is a fantastic story. https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2018-11-26/last-feral-cat-on-west-island-due-to-indigenous-ranger-program/10511880#lightbox-content-lightbox-6

[Tonyz]

Feral cats close to being eradicated by Indigenous rangers on remote West Island ABC rural

this is a fantastic story. https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2018-11-26/last-feral-cat-on-west-island-due-to-indigenous-ranger-program/10511880#lightbox-content-lightbox-6

[auscab]

Got a great trap that Kidbee recommended in post 6 . Nice solid piece of well made trap .

Cat Trap (http://www.wiretainers.com.au/index.php/products/animal-traps/item/121-cat-trap)

Three days later cat gone . One nasty piece of cat it was too . Wouldnt want to get my hand anywhere near that thing !
Agro growling and a bit on the dirty looking once I could see into its wet spread fur. All black spotty looking in deep with dirt or something . Cant blame it being agro being all trapped like that . Felt sorry for it . Just kept thinking of the nest of Beautiful Eastern Rosella chicks it ate .

Any one aware of what sort of area one wild cat may stick to ? 1 sq KM ?
I reckon its roughly about 1 Km out that Ive seen two others in separate directions .

[Beardy]

Got a great trap that Kidbee recommended in post 6 . Nice solid piece of well made trap .

Cat Trap (http://www.wiretainers.com.au/index.php/products/animal-traps/item/121-cat-trap)

Three days later cat gone . One nasty piece of cat it was too . Wouldnt want to get my hand anywhere near that thing !
Agro growling and a bit on the dirty looking once I could see into its wet spread fur. All black spotty looking in deep with dirt or something . Cant blame it being agro being all trapped like that . Felt sorry for it . Just kept thinking of the nest of Beautiful Eastern Rosella chicks it ate .

Any one aware of what sort of area one wild cat may stick to ? 1 sq KM ?
I reckon its roughly about 1 Km out that Ive seen two others in separate directions .

Nice one, it is good to get rid of them. I think you will find that another cat will move in now that one isn’t there to defend its territory

On another note, we stayed at a B&B recently and the owner was a mad bird watcher with a particular fondness for rare parrots
They had a Cat that was free ranging with no bell on its neck which I thought was odd. The next morning I go out the back and it had a wren in its mouth :?

[KBs PensNmore]

"But my cat doesn't do that type of thing!!!!"
Pigs might fly according to the cat owner.
Unless the cat is kept inside ALL the time, it will hunt anything as that's it's nature.
Kryn

[malb]

Nice one, it is good to get rid of them. I think you will find that another cat will move in now that one isn’t there to defend its territory

On another note, we stayed at a B&B recently and the owner was a mad bird watcher with a particular fondness for rare parrots
They had a Cat that was free ranging with no bell on its neck which I thought was odd. The next morning I go out the back and it had a wren in its mouth :?

Used to have cats, hunting can be trained out of them if they are fed well enough, but it does take a fair bit of time, and I wouldn't guarantee that it is effective if they are outside and free. We also feed a fair population of bushy tailed possums that the neighbours developed a hate for because they raided their gardens till we started to feed them, and a variety of native birds. Cat could be laying on the doormat in the sun beside an open sliding door and allow magpies to wander in past it to collect some cat bics from it's bowl just inside the door, then wander back out with it's score. Possums would come to the door and wait a foot away from the cat to get some bread or fruit, no issues. But we would still find the occasional dead bird or animal on the back half of the block occasionally, and were never sure whether it was one of our 'trained' moggies going back to nature or one of the variety of neighbourhood or feral cats in the area that was guilty.

Our vets thought we had a 'big suckers live' here sign over the house and visible only to animals, most of the cats we had came to live with us from houses within about 50m because they worked out that our cats had it to easy and didn't have to hunt, they would start calling and slowly move in over six or more months, generally totally ignoring their original homes.

Haven't tried a 5 kg bell on a cat, but all of our 'domesticated' had their collar and bell, but learned very quickly how to move so that the bell was silent and didn't annoy them, so the bell would hardly be a good danger warning for natives or birds.

Lost all of our moggies within 18 months of moving to Alex due to complications of old age and haven't replaced them as I want the freedom to be able to travel in retirement without needing cat sitters all the time.

[dai sensei]

WARNING, Cat lovers do not read

Way way back when I was in uni I took a shooting trip with a mate around Taree (heaps of relations down there). After dealing with various foxes/rabbits on the farms I called in on Tuncurry Police station as I heard they had a feral cat issue. They advised various campers used to drop their pet cats at the local tip intending to pick them up after their holiday but if course they disappeared. The police told me the feral cats were such a problem there that they had started attacking kids going to the tip (wanting to pat them).

Two of us were hired to shoot them with our 222's. We initially used a spotlight and got quite a few, but then set up bottles/TV's as targets (this was back in the late 70's), and found their curiosity drew them out. At the end of the night we'd got 80 and most were diseased in the eye or skin. I remember the biggest Tom we head shot, but even with only 1/2 head left, he was still hissing at me as I approached to finish him. Can't remember how much we got paid, something like 50c a cat, fox's at the time were $1.50 a scalp but you also got good money from the skins too.