Not far enough: anger at cat law

A HOWRAH resident fed up with a neighbourhood cat damaging his property and keeping him awake says he is disappointed in the government’s new feline management bill.

Robin O’Byrne has lived at Howrah for 55 years, but has only recently experienced issues with his neighbour’s cat.

He said the ginger cat had defecated under his house, scratched his vehicles and broken two protective tarps worth $240.

“The cat gets in and sinks their claws in and rips it up,” he said. “I’ve got paw prints on the car.”

Amendments passed in parliament this month for the

Cat Management Amendment Bill 2019 include compulsory desexing and microchipping from four months old, a limit of four cats per household where breeders are exempt, improvements to help landholders control cats, replacing government registration for breeders with a permit system, and requiring cats to be microchipped and

desexed before being reclaimed from a cat management facility.

Primary Industries and Water Minister Guy Barnett said the government encouraged confinement, but would not make it compulsory.

“Compulsory confinement requires the support of the broader community, including owners and local government,” he said.

“A focused education campaign is needed to increase awareness and understanding of responsible cat management principles and to highlight actions that owners can take.

“The Greens would penalise owners more than $3000 for putting their cat out, as well as burden owners with enclosure costs.”

He said the government had funded a responsible cat ownership campaign and launched the TassieCat website for owners.

But Mr O’Byrne said the bill did not protect him and the Howrah wildlife. He said the cat’s owner “went off” at him when he raised the problem. “If you’ve got any other animal, you’ve got to contain it to your property,” he said.

Greens MP Rosalie Woodruff said failing to enforce compulsory confinement went against “overwhelming submissions from experts”.

She said 82 per cent of stray and feral cats carried toxoplasmosis, which can harm the health of people.

“Instead of tackling the actual issue, Minister Barnett’s bill included a provision for any person to trap another person’s cat,” she said.

“All the responsibility for protecting property and wildlife is passed from the cat owner to neighbours, vets and cat shelters.”

A FOCUSED EDUCATION CAMPAIGN IS NEEDED TO INCREASE AWARENESS AND UNDERSTANDING OF RESPONSIBLE CAT MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES AND TO HIGHLIGHT ACTIONS THAT OWNERS CAN TAKE. PRIMARY INDUSTRIES MINISTER GUY BARNETT