If cats are free to roam, can i treat them as vermin?

Question

If cats are free to roam like rats/mice, etc can I treat them as vermin and if they enter my garden, could i let my jack russell have a go?

I know if you hit one in a car you don't have to stop or report it, but you do if you hit a dog.

I am not Anti all cats, just the ones that people let roam and burry their poo under my plants and kill them. i just want to know if i will be in trouble with the fuzz if i let my dog attack a cat in my garden?

If its ok to set my dog on rats in my garden as part of virmin controll, then why not cats?

Free puppet show, why? my dog is just keeping her garden clear of virmin!!

I don't let my dog ruin other peoples property, i have asked the cats owners to controll them, but they said they are free to raom, so i think my dog should be free to attack if she wants

If i was in the garden 24 hours a day i might be able to shake tin cans with things in them, but as i am not i can't, why should i train other peoples vermin?

all i am asking is if my dog came accross a cat (vermin) can it attack it on my propery??

If it does i am only going to stop it if my dog is loosing, i will not stop my dog from attacking cats/rats/etc but i will not go hunting for them.

Answer 1

Sounds right to me. My former neighbor put food out for strays and at one time I counted 22 in her yard. The problem was that they used my yard as a litter box, got on my cars in my garage and peed in my friends car. After shooting them with a bb gun, hitting one with a football and putting pepper in my bushes to no avail, I caught 15 one night in a live animal trap in my yard. Mr. Kitty and I took a road trip (no I did not kill them) but I dropped them off 10 miles from the subdivision I live in. They must have lost their map but I never saw them again. We took pictures of the remaining ones and called animal control and the neigbors were fined $1500 each for 2 cats they admitted to. I feel your frustration. All the above happened after my dog killed 5 in our back yard and I ran over 2 with my car in my driveway.

Answer 2

I have a neighbour who thinks every piece of dog crap is my dogs and will report me and as I have a dog that is classed as a dangerous breed Ill be at fault and as you said there are more than my dog out walking. As for cats I have cats all my life and yes they do mess in other peoples gardens but in Ireland we dont have a law on how may cats you can keep or need a license for them. I find that my cats do most of their business in my flowerbeds and not the neighbours. You cant keep a cat tied or locked in so hard luck on your neighbours and threaten him back if he touches your cats or inform the police he has a gun as he may not have it registered

Answer 3

Are Cats Classed As Vermin

Answer 4

The law depends on what state you are in. Being a person who works with homeless animals, cats & dogs, I would have to warn you against this.

You need to call animal control (find out who is in control of animals & laws in your area) & file a complaint. They, then can either catch the roaming cat(s) or charge the owners for letting them roam.

When you think about harming a cat, just think about these two things:

1. The humans who own or abandoned the cats need to be held accountable, not the cats themselves.

2. Think how you would feel if a neighbor poisoned your dog, and I have seen it happen. The cat may be loved by someone just the way you love your dog.

Also, put mothballs around your plants. Cats hate them!

ALL PETS HAVE FEELINGS. ALL PETS ARE WHERE THEY ARE BECAUSE OF HUMAN BEINGS!!!!

Answer 5

Laws vary alot from city to city, state to state. Where I live now, it's ok to let your cat roam as long as it is neutered. However, other places I've lived, cats were supposed to stay on their property and you could complain to animal control and/or trap the cats and turn them in to animal control if they were on your property. Also, many places require cats to be licensed just like dogs.
I'd check your local laws.
Also, check your laws about what they consider a dangerous dog. Many times it is a dog that kills another domestic animal. Now, usually, it must be off the owner's property, but before you let your JRT go after a cat, I'd really be sure of the law.

Answer 6

you can get rid of the cats by putting nails or pennys in a metal coffee can and everytime you see them shake the can and they will run away. After you do this so many times the cats will be conditioned to knowing that if they go into your yard they will hear the noise and so they won't come in the first place.

Why is violence always the first thing people resort to when trying to solve a problem?
Thats my question for the day.

Answer 7

Cats are no more vermin than your dog, as they dont carry disease like rats.

It is natural instinct for a cat to roam.

What about the damage a cat could do to your dogs eyes before your dog tears it apart, and how is the owner of the cat going to feel, it may be a child.

If you allow this to happen, and actively encourage it, you will be in trouble with the police, and your dog could be taken away from you.

Answer 8

Can't you just scare them so they leave? I'm sure that it won't take long for them to realize there's a dog in the yard, and they won't come in anymore. They never come into my backyard.
If you let your dog out, and there happens to be a cat in your yard, I don't think you'd get in trouble. If you purposely set your dog loose to attack cats, that would be a different story. You know, they (most, anyway) are someone's pet, just as your dog is yours...

Answer 9

If you have a dog that will chase it out, it's most likely not going to keep coming back. If it doesn't run...pray for your Jack Russell. I have seen cats that can whip bigger dogs than that.

Answer 10

To be honest cats used to cause my mum the same problem by pooping in her flowerbeds. She tried everything- curry plants, one of those ultrasonic things and everything to no avail. Then we got a dog and just his prescence seemed to keep the cats away after a while (shame the same wasn't true for the neighbourhood rats). My dog is 2 now and we haven't had a cat in the garden for about 18 months. He's too big and soppy to hurt the cats so we dont worry about it, but letting your dog out just to get the cats could get you in trouble if your dog hurt the cat. I guess you could argue that if your dog was already in the garden when the cat came along, then it serves the cat right.

Answer 11

Yes and you COULD go to prison. OK the cat should not use your garden as a bog, but you could do something about that with a spray or so forth. To encourage animals to fight is illegal.
Anyway my old cat would have killed your dog.
Are you the sort that shoots birds for pooping on your washing, or do you chase them with a bit of toilet paper.