Management of domestic cats is vital to curbing their impact on biodiversity and wildlife, according to the Victorian Government's Inquiry into Ecosystem Decline report tabled in Parliament yesterday.
RSPCA Victoria CEO, Dr Liz Walker, said she was pleased to see effective approaches to domestic cat management and standardisation of cat definitions included as a recommendation in the report.
"The findings and recommendations from the Inquiry illustrate support for improving animal welfare for native and introduced species, including cats," said Dr Walker.
In August 2020 RSPCA Victoria contributed to the Inquiry into Ecosystem Decline in Victoria, providing a submission, and presenting at the Inquiry to advocate for humane management techniques for cats, as well as other introduced species.
"Cats are very popular pets and important companions for many people. However, they can have significant impacts on Australia's native wildlife. Research has suggested that collectively, cats kill more than three billion animals per year. For this reason, responsible cat ownership and humane and effective cat management is necessary to protect wildlife.
"We are pleased the recommendation outlined in the report supports a coordinated approach for cat management including desexing, microchipping and rehoming," said Dr Walker.
Dr Walker said that RSPCA Victoria recently announced desexing all owned and semi-owned cats in Victoria as an advocacy goal and key focus going forward.
"This year we set ourselves an ambitious goal of desexing all owned and semi-owned cats in Victoria to improve cat welfare, and importantly to reduce the cat population and the pressure on pounds, shelters, the broader community and the environment," stated Dr Walker.
Presently 30% of the estimated 3.3 million cats in Australia are not desexed. Cats can breed quickly and from just four months old, resulting in unplanned litters, causing a cat overpopulation that impacts the welfare of cats and wildlife.
View the RSPCA's Identifying Best Practice Domestic Cat Management in Australia (2018) here.
Visit Safe Cat, Safe Wildlife, a joint initiative between Zoos Victoria and RSPCA Victoria, to learn about the benefits of keeping cats contained.
Visit RSPCA Victoria's website to learn more about our advocacy goals.
