Yes, it is illegal to kill a feral cat in Texas unless it is done in a humane way which can only mean in the conventional way that a domestic cat is euthanised i.e. by veterinarian or veterinary technician. There are some rare exceptions and a defense (see base of page). You’ll also have to distinguish between feral and stray (a stray might be someone’s pet). This last point is important as killing someone’s pet is criminal damage (a crime under a different law). Also feral cats are not (and cannot be) listed as game items to be hunted.
The law is stated under Texas’ Animal Anti-Cruelty Law: Texas Penal Code 42.09 and 42.092.
To quote: “It is a crime to intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly: torture, cruelly kill, or cause serious injury to any dog or cat, including strays and ferals;
Kill, poison, or cause bodily injury to any animal without the owner’s consent;
Abandon or fail to provide food, water, care, or shelter to any animal in your custody; or
Transport or confine an animal in a cruel manner.”
The law is very clear as you can see. This statute does not list any exceptions, such as exceptions regarding invasive species or pests or nuisance animals.
In point of fact, the feral cat is not listed as an invasive species in Texas. Neither is the feral cat listed as a nuisance animal in Texas.
Neither is the feral cat listed as an animal that can be trapped in Texas. The furbearing animals which can be trapped in Texas are: badgers, beavers, fox, mink, muskrat, nutria, opossum, otter, raccoon, ring-tailed cat, skunk and civet cat.
There would appear to be some rare exceptions:
A landowner or his agent may kill a nuisance fur-bearing animal on his land. The animal can be killed in any way. Clearly this must happen on the landowner’s property. And the animal must be a nuisance. I don’t see a definition of “nuisance” in this instance. Obviously a feral cat doing nothing on someone’s land would not be a nuisance and therefore a landowner’s actions could be challenged if he/she killed a feral cat on his land without complying with the rules of this exception.
It is a defense to kill an animal on a person’s property that has injured or is injuring livestock.
My conclusion is quite clear, which is that it is illegal to kill a feral cat in Texas unless it is done in an entirely humane way. This must exclude by shooting unless it occurs under a law regarding the destruction of a ‘dangerous animal’ in which case the health authority or police officer may destroy such an animal if a police officer believes that the animal presents a threat to a person’s life or the health official regards the animal’s capture to be hazardous due to the nature, disposition or diseased condition of the animal (Source: 1992 Code Section 3-1-3(C); Ord. 031009-9; Ord. 031211-11.)
Clearly a feral cat might be considered to be a dangerous animal but I am not sure if it falls under this description. But note that the only person who could kill a feral animal under these circumstances would be someone in authority and not a member of the general public.
To the person who said all cats should have a collar and tags . . . Cats cannot bark like a dog, so when their collar gets hung up on something, usually a fence, they can’t attract attention to themselves and they usually die a cruel death. It would actually be a death sentence to put a collar on a feral cat, which is what we are talking about here. Feral cats are protected in Texas and must be treated humanely. If a cat has been living in a given area for a time, it may NOT be removed from its home. Doing so would likely cause it to die a cruel death as cats are territorial. As I have already posted here, if you have ever had mice strip the wiring out from under the hood of your car, you will likely learn to appreciate the job feral cats do for a community. A recent change in ownership of our apartment complex led to the removal of all feral cats from the area. They came crying to me for help “please bring us some feral cats to help with this mice and snakes.” I had to tell them I can’t do it. It is illegal to move feral cats from one area to the next. But I assured them that if they keep feeding them, the feral cats will return. Feral cats do NOT stay in an area where there is no food for them.
Thanks for sharing, Wilbert. Much appreciated.
I have been caring for feral cats for over 25 years. I take donations and use the money to TNR feral cats in San Antonio Texas. We have reduced the number of feral cats by neutering and finding homes for the ones that can be tamed enough to do so, i.e. yard cats, barn cats, or house pets. It is not easy but it can be done. The problem for me is people tossing unwrapped food in their dumpsters. Apartment complexes especially here are littered with food that attracts feral cat populations. When I ask people to stop tossing their unwrapped food in the dumpsters, they look at me like I am asking them to be cruel to the cats they are feeding. But what they are doing is not helping. Feral cats keep mice and snakes from getting out of hand. If we feed them, they do not do this and soon there will be more cats AND more mice. If you have ever had mice eat the wiring from under the hood of your car, you might care about this sort of thing. If not, you probably won’t, but a small feral cat population is a good thing to have around for this reason. I ask you to NOT harm feral cats, but I also ask you to NOT feed them irresponsibly. And if you do feed them, have them TNRed no you are not causing the problem.
Thanks Wilbert. Nice comment and much appreciated. Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts. And well done for caring for feral cats for 25 years. Fantastic.
My husband fed a stray cat and kept feeding her although I told him it was a mistake. He kept feeding them and their babies and their babies and we now have over 20 cats that we are feeding. It is costing a lot and we are too old to keep this up. I am 80 and he is 95. The have ruined our back door scratching on it. They are totally wild and can not be caught. My granddaughter wanted one and actually caught one… In no time she developed ringworms. We can not afford to continue to feed them and don’t know what to do with them.
Bonnie, I am so sorry to hear this. I don’t “hate” cats, but any cat that is 1. not tagged 2. on my property pooping 3. tearing up my property will be treated just as i would a human doing the samethings. How some people don’t get this is beyond me. If you love your cats, treat them like you would your children. You would know where and what your children are doing. You would put boundaries on them. This is why Bonnie is forced to deal with this issue. People allow their cats to wonder and to be destructive and neighbors are expected to just put up with it.
Why does a dog need a license and proof of shots yet people think they can just let their cats roam? They are very good hunters and destroy other native species. Stray cats with no collars and licenses should be killed. They are no different than the feral hog situation in many states. The problem isnt cats, it’s stupid people.
I understand your argument however isn’t killing a bit dramatic perhaps simply taking the cat too a shelter would be a better idea that way you would still be humane and not a wreck-less hot head.
Do you know who pays for that shelter and for the person to euthanize the cat? *I’ll let you in a on a cheat secret. It’s not the person bringing the cat to the “technician”* 😉
There is a cat that I know has no owner because it lives underneath my house,mind you this is not the mother or my cat I have one male cat raising two kittens.This cat continually attacks my cat and kittens for the food I give them and leaves my to treat the wounds on my hungry cats.My wife is allergic to cats but loves ours with all her heart as do I but I’m wondering if what I want to do is legal or not before burying the problem.
Feral cats have wiped out much of the songbird population in my neighborhood. I have observed broods of Blue Jays killed on the same day they fledged and were not able to fly to safety. The local game warden, how hates feral cats as id, told me to place poison in food items near where the feral cats range. Feral / stray cats must be managed by lethal means to ensure that songbird populations don’t shrink an further. Since the 1960’s songbirds have declined by 20% based on studies performed by Cornell University
How do you know for sure that feral cats killed the Blue Jays and have wiped out the songbird population?
Since the 60’s songbird habitat has declined by more than 20%!
Thanks for your input.