You may have picked up on the claim by a couple of Dutch professors that European Union laws prevent cat owners allowing their cats to go outside except on a leash. The scientists’ argument is that free-roaming outside cats damage wildlife, particularly birds – the old, classic argument that we hear a lot. Incidentally, I don’t understand why birds are given priority over other wild animals.
As soon as the discussion surfaced I wrote an article saying the professors’ arguments were incorrect. I was proved correct but I wasn’t being particularly clever. I was applying common sense, something the academics in this instance lacked. Or were they the voice of ornithologists? It seems the war of words between cat lovers and bird lovers has entered the highest echelons of European government.
A discussion was started over whether the EU laws (directives and regulations) could be construed to banish domestic cats to the indoors. It was soon reported online that the EU Commission (the EU executive body which formulates law):
“The Commission is a strong defender of free movement rights — including of cats…The commission is not aware of the study in question…The information that we have is that the disturbance and killing of birds and other wild species by cats is not among the main pressures and threats to biodiversity…” – Enrico Brivo, the executive’s environment spokesman.
For cat lovers this is quite a nice statement coming from someone in such an elevated place of influence in the EU. It is a statement which protects the status quo of free-roaming domestic cats rather than protecting wildlife. What do Americans think about it?
SOME MORE ON FREE-ROAMING DOMESTIC CATS..
Nice response to my request. And one I totally agree with as you know. Hope u are okay.
Primates [humans] are rampantly out of control. Until we get our own act together, we have no right to complain about animals.