Suburb of Canberra Australia is a Cat Containment Area

A suburb of Canberra Australia is a cat containment area. The Threatened Species Commissioner of Australia declared on Facebook that Lawson in Canberra will be a 24-hour cat containment area. The Commissioner, Dr Sally Box, states that there is a growing momentum in the capital of Australia towards what she describes as “best practice responsible pet ownership”.

Suburb of Canberra Australia Is a Cat Containment Area

In other words, the government wants to ensure that all domestic cat owners keep their cats confined to their properties. I suspect that the idea is to start the concept of cat confinement areas in a suburb of the capital of Australia and grow the idea from there.

You can see the large sign outside Lawson declaring that it is a cat containment area. There is apparently a community spirit and commitment to responsible pet ownership in Australia according to the Commissioner. She states that it is everybody’s business to keep cats indoors to protect native species and the keep cats healthy and happy.

To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time that I have encountered an ordinance (regulation of law) which specifies an entire suburb as a place where cats must be confined to their owner’s property.

You can see how it is going to go. You can look into the future. There has been a long campaign by the Australian government to minimise the impact of roaming domestic cats and feral cats on native Australian wildlife. I feel sure that this concept is a part of that program.

Americans can look to Australia to lead the way on measures to regulate cat ownership to protect wildlife.

I am not hostile to it to be honest. I have developed a attitude towards cat ownership which is very different to the way it was 20 years ago. My cat is confined (90% of UK citizens will disagree with this!). However, it is a very pleasant confinement. A nice garden and home. He is safe and he can be involved in nature. He can even catch the odd prey item in the garden although I have taken them off him to avoid him acquiring worms. He is in great health. Another advantage of cat confinement.

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Comments

Suburb of Canberra Australia is a Cat Containment Area — 6 Comments

M E King on May 22, 2018 at 4:15 pm said:
To be frank if they included a picture of a dog on that sign and it said pet containment area I wouldn’t have an issue with it. Once again this is a slap in the face to cat owners and an implication that they are somehow to blame for all the dead birds even though there doesn’t seem to be any real science just a mess of screaming birdwatchers who themselves can be an issue with wild bird populations.
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- Michael Broad on May 22, 2018 at 6:28 pm said:
  That’s a point I missed and a good point. Thanks ME.
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Frances A Danna on May 21, 2018 at 2:59 pm said:
Are they thinking that this act will also help to reduce the feral cat population in the long run? I definitely agree with your view, Michael, regarding responsible cat ownership.
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- Michael Broad on May 21, 2018 at 5:24 pm said:
  Yes, they want to remove all feral and domestic cats from the wider environment. They want to kill all feral cats but realize that it won’t be acceptable to the public so they are trying alternatives such as confinement by law.
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  - Croc_Walkin' on January 29, 2019 at 6:46 am said:
    Actually, they’re attempting both–and more. The cat cull is into its third year, and is scheduled to continue for two more. Fortunately decision-makers at the national level disregarded the shrieking and flailing cat lobbyists who prioritize proliferating their “pets” in the Australian environment over public health and biodiversity.
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    - Michael Broad on January 29, 2019 at 7:17 am said:
      Cat lobbyists are actually concerned about humans behaving decently and humanely which is clearly difficult to achieve in Australia. You have lost your moral compass as illustrated in your cricketers cheating! Aussie would do better to look themselves in the mirror and ask, “What can we do as humans to reduce the negative impact we have on native species?” Humans are far more damaging to Australian native species than cats. And you shot millions of kangaroos annually. You’re gun crazy you guys. Horrible place.
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