Domestic cat caught up in predator control work at Whangārei Heads

He supported killing feral cats, but not in a way that allowed these kinds of mistakes to be made, Nairn said. It was inexcusable and could have easily been prevented.

“This fiasco clearly demonstrates the trust’s intentions to fail to inform pet owners and rid the area of ​​domestic cats.”

“This animal was microchipped, desexed and was a healthy, cherished pet.”

He rejected the trust’s excuse that it could not afford any money microchip scanner because it cost $900. There were much cheaper models available, Nairn said.

“I think this would be a priority tool, especially if trust in residential areas is going to be shaken,” he said.

The trust said cheaper scanners would not allow staff to check a cat remotely and it would be a health and safety risk to handle the cats.

Cat control in New Zealand has long been a divisive issue. Despite cats being a major predator in the wild, New Zealand has no legislation to manage them. TErritorial authorities can impose statutes but these are usually aimed at reducing the nuisance caused by cats in the home environment.

Cats were considered too controversial to be on a hit list of listed pest species The government’s Predator Free 2050 strategylaunched in 2016. However, this may change following public consultation and a review next year.

Conservationists generally believed in eradicating feral cats. In recent years, however, these efforts have been opposed by a growing number of well-meaning community groups “fall-neuter-return and feed” programs for feral cats and dumped pets – an approach that many conservationists condemned because they believed it would not reduce the risk of cat predation in the wild.

The trust said it had no previous cat policy. The number of cats in the reserve was relatively low due to current and past trapping activities. However, since the Rambo incident, it had formulated a policy that it was close to signing.

According to the draft, the trust is “committed to managing the tension between conservation and cats”.

“Domestic cats are not our target, and we understand that people have cats that are loved and cherished. We believe that domestic cats should be well cared for and kept at home,” the policy states.

“We must find a balance between the benefits of pet ownership and the impact of those pets on nature.”

The trust said that, like many conservation projects in New Zealand, it used humane killing traps to control rodents, possums and mustelids, as well as feral cats.

Traps would only be used within the reserve and Ocean Beach recreational area, which the trust was also responsible for.

Owners of domestic cats killed or captured alive in these traps will be contacted if possible.

As another part of its policy, the trust was also establishing a register of domestic cats. There were 105 mailboxed homes bordering the reserve Urquharts Bay to Bream Headasking cat owners to submit electronic images of their pets.

“This allows us to warn the owner when his cat shows up cameras in the reserveor if it was captured on the reserve,” the trust said.

It was said that there had been a good response to the initiative. However, Nairn said it was “more unnecessary bureaucracy”; there were other, simpler precautions the trust had to take.

Sarah curtis is a news reporter for the Northern lawyerfocusing on a wide range of issues. She has almost twenty years of experience in journalism, much of which she spent on legal reporting. She is passionate about telling stories that make a difference