Off topic, but I need some help regarding my rights.

[ARC]

Who said anything about "aggressive" dogs ? ? ?

First off... it was a joke.... and since you are new here and you obviously aren't familiar with my antics... Its safe to say... you were not on the lookout for it.
I do not condone anything aggressive in this matter... or any other matter... for that matter. heh

Furthermore....

You would be hard pressed to find more of an animal lover than I.

 

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[ARC]

My joke simply was a basic natural funny rational to cats and dogs not getting long.

AND... this interaction as a whole... AND the OPS interaction with the guy...
reminds me...

The more people I meet...
The more i love my dogs.

 

[Bucket Lister]

Who said anything about "aggressive" dogs ? ? ?

First off... it was a joke....

OK, then for the sake of others--like myself--who might read this without knowing that.

First off, I said, "aggressive toward cats". It's a common behavior. Dogs can have all sorts of aggressive behaviors & tendencies; some may be fear-based.

I do not condone anything aggressive in this matter... or any other matter... for that matter. heh

Second, aggressive is not the same as vicious.
A dog isn't going to keep cats away just by making an appearance and smiling; may as well post a sign for the cats to read. There usually has to be some behavior or action; barking, chasing, lunging, whining... all behaviors of aggression in dogs.

Aggression

Aggression is the most common and most serious behavior problem in dogs. It's also the number-one reason why pet parents seek professional help from behaviorists, trainers and veterinarians.

www.aspca.org

Many years ago, we had a border collie and a cat at the same time. They were the best of besties, and play-fought constantly (aggressive but not vicious), but the cat was indoor-only (de-clawed all 4), so the dog grew up never knowing that cats had (or could have) claws.

A while later, the dog met a neighbor's cat in the back yard. Dog wanted to play (like he did with his bestie) so charged the cat. The cat took a defensive position, exposing claws... and the dog ran right over her. Cat had no idea this dog wouldn't back down from claws.

The cat ran away with no damage except to his/her cat dignity. Our dog got a new nostril out of it, and learned that (other) cats have claws.

 

[ARC]

You know what will usually keep cats away ? ? ?

Dogs.
(not serious... this is a joke)

...
There.

 

[SeabeeRon]

😼😼😼😼😼😼

 

[newnan man]

Say what?!

 

[ARC]

 

[DizzyDigger]

Trap them and tame them? Exactly how would I do that? Lock them in my home until they magically become tame? You have no clue regarding feral cats. I've been able to tame feral kittens over the years, but feral cats are usually feral for life.

I'm not saying "completely tame", but to socialize an adult feral cat can be done, however it takes a great deal of time and patience, with no guaranteed outcome.

I am surprised no one has mentioned the group I recommended. That is your best solution.

 

[ARC]

 

[ARC]

And just to be fair...

 

[FreeBirdTim]

I'm sorry, but that's not what you said before.
You said...

We started to feed them AFTER some jerk dumped them off. They didn't just come out of nowhere, they were abandoned by someone. We tried to do the decent thing and we paid the price for that action.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

As one or more other pointed out, and regarding the specific circumstances, there's nothing wrong with the cat cop showing on his own time, and in civies.

Wrong. He has no right to bang on my door at 9 PM when he's off the clock. He also has no right to check the traps at night since I told him NO trapping after dark. When he's off the clock, he's a private citizen and not working for the town. The next time he pulls that, I'm tossing him off the property.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

What about setting the traps at dusk/end of day, and checking them (near) first thing in the morning? Feral cats (I've read) are primarily nocturnal. If caught, they're not in there more than 8-12 hrs. and likely less.

The problem with trapping after dark are all the other critters in my yard. The few times I did agree to set the traps at night, I caught three different possums and never caught a cat. The other issue is there's a mother raccoon with three small babies that come every night to eat any leftover cat food. There's no way I want one of those baby raccoons to end up in a trap and separated from their mother. Even worse would be catching the mother raccoon. What would the three babies do?

And eight to twelve hours stuck in a trap is way too long. I trapped one on a Saturday afternoon a couple of months ago and couldn't reach the ACO guy. After four hours, he was flipping out, urinating on himself and biting the metal trap. Bothered me so much that I let him go.

The fact that my shelter is only open 7-11 AM five days a week is a big problem here. If they were open from 7 AM to 9 PM seven days a week, for example, I could take any trapped cats to the shelter during that time period. Add to that the fact that the ACO guy only works 7-3 five days a week, so that limits when I can call him for help. To make matters even worse, Scituate handles animal control for Foster, the next town over! That makes him even less available than he should be around here. Why our town agreed to that is beyond me. Back door politics on that one, I guess.

 

[Whynotme]

Because I've fed some of them for years and I want them to have a better life. Not feeding them might get them to move on and get out of my hair, but that's a cowardly thing to do. I'm trying to do the right thing here. Starving them out or dumping them off on a neighbor isn't the right thing to do.

Many areas do catch, neuter/spay and then release the feral cats back to where they were originally trapped. Feral cats don't rehome easily unless they are trapped as a small kitten. This allows them to live out their lives but not multiply. Do they do that or have they considered that? Our area has vets that will work with the no kill shelter for a small fee to cover costs a certain number of days a month.

On another sad note - our big wonderful and loveable cat had to be put down on Saturday morning. It was unexpected and we'll miss him tremendously. 😢

 

[FreeBirdTim]

So sorry for your loss. The hardest thing is to put down a pet. You want just one more day with your pet, but in the end, you know you have to let it go.

We do have an organization around here that traps, neuters and releases feral cats. I don't think that would be acceptable to the ACO, since we have the "three cats per residence" law in RI. I already have three indoor cats, so I'm technically at my limit.

 

[Back-of-the-boat]

The Animal control officer might be mad you are not helping to fill his quota for the local taco wagon. LOL JK.🙀🙀🙀🍽️























t

 

[ARC]

FBT i think you are on the correct right track with things.
I think the guy is taking advantage of you.
You gave an inch... he took a foot.
So you gave a yard... now he wants a mile.

Too pushy is worthy of 2 words....
"beat it".

 

[newnan man]

It sounds like you are trying to do your best for all concerned. Your kindness will pay off.

 

[Bucket Lister]

We started to feed them AFTER some jerk dumped them off. They didn't just come out of nowhere, they were abandoned by someone. We tried to do the decent thing and we paid the price for that action.

The problem with trapping after dark are all the other critters in my yard. The few times I did agree to set the traps at night, I caught three different possums and never caught a cat. The other issue is there's a mother raccoon with three small babies that come every night to eat any leftover cat food. There's no way I want one of those baby raccoons to end up in a trap and separated from their mother. Even worse would be catching the mother raccoon. What would the three babies do?

And eight to twelve hours stuck in a trap is way too long. I trapped one on a Saturday afternoon a couple of months ago and couldn't reach the ACO guy. After four hours, he was flipping out, urinating on himself and biting the metal trap. Bothered me so much that I let him go.

The fact that my shelter is only open 7-11 AM five days a week is a big problem here. If they were open from 7 AM to 9 PM seven days a week, for example, I could take any trapped cats to the shelter during that time period. Add to that the fact that the ACO guy only works 7-3 five days a week, so that limits when I can call him for help. To make matters even worse, Scituate handles animal control for Foster, the next town over! That makes him even less available than he should be around here. Why our town agreed to that is beyond me. Back door politics on that one, I guess.

Uh-huh. Stick a fork in me...

 

[AlabamaRelic]

An estimated 60 million unowned cats roam the United States, along with another 60 to 88 million owned cats. A 2013 study determined that free-ranging cats account for 1.3 to 4 billion bird deaths and 6.3 to 22.3 billion mammal deaths every year. Since the year 1500, free-roaming cats have contributed to the extinction of 63 species worldwide, according to a separate 2016 study.
I hate house cats.