PETA letter to Ulster County, NY on cat control

1. March 30, 2017
James E. Quigley III, Supervisor
Members of the Town of Ulster Board
Via e-
mail: ulstersupervisor@townofulster.org; kitchenej@msn.com; rsecreto@townofulster.org; town
clerk@townofulster.org
Dear Mr. Quigley and Members of the Board,
We hope you are well. PETA is the world's largest animal rights organization, with more than 5
million members and supporters worldwide, including nearly 250,000 in New York. We've been
contacted by Ulster-area residents who support the proposed ordinance to control cats, and we
share their hope that it will be passed. The information herein may prove useful as you move
forward, and we hope additional requirements will also be considered.
As an animal-protection organization, PETA strongly supports legislation that encourages
responsible animal guardianship, including ordinances that require cat owners to have their
companions spayed and neutered and keep them indoors unless closely supervised or securely
confined to an outdoor enclosure. Such laws protect cats as well as native wildlife who are
terrorized, injured, and killed by them—regardless whether the cats are adequately fed—when
they're allowed to roam outdoors without supervision. A 2013 New York Times article reported
that roaming cats account for the majority of human-caused wildlife deaths in the U.S., killing an
astounding "2.4 billion birds and 12.3 billion mammals a year, most of them native mammals
like shrews, chipmunks and voles,"[1]
and according to the American Bird Conservancy, "[c]at
predation is one of the reasons why one in three American bird species are in decline."[2]
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cats are the main domestic animal
linked to human exposure to rabies.[3]
In New York last summer, two humans and a dog were
attacked by a rabid cat in Oswego County; a woman walking her dog was bitten five times, and
her dog was also attacked by a rabid cat in Niagara County; a cat who'd been fed by a resident
in Jefferson County died of rabies; and residents were exposed to rabies by cats in Oneida, Erie,
and Sullivan counties.
To protect the public, the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians stresses that
"[s]tray dogs, cats, and ferrets should be removed from the community, and mechanisms should
be put in place to facilitate voluntary surrender of animals to prevent abandonment."[4]
Communities with cat-restraint laws in New York include Clarkstown, Gloversville,
Lackawanna, and the Village of Williamsville. Citing concerns for the welfare of cats and
wildlife, Peterborough, Ontario, recently passed a sensible bylaw that prohibits guardians from
allowing their cats to roam outdoors without supervision and requires them to clean up cat waste
and have the animals licensed and vaccinated against rabies.[5]
Cat-licensing requirements can also help reduce cat homelessness and the need for euthanasia.
Calgary, Alberta, implemented acat-licensing bylaw in 2006 and has reported that the number of
lost cats reunited with their guardians in the community has drastically increased since it went

2. into effect. As of 2013, the city reported that 45,421 cats had been licensed and that nearly half
of all cats admitted to the community's animal shelter had been reunited with their owners—
which is well above average—because of this law.[6]
The city also set up a system whereby cat-
licensing revenue can be used to pay for spay/neuter programs, which help reduce the number of
cats breeding and roaming in the community.
Requiring responsible animal ownership is critical to preventing costly problems for the town
and its taxpayers—just as laws that require citizens to control and protect their canine
companions, carry automobile insurance, wear seat belts, keep their yards within certain
standards of sanitation, and enroll their children in school are intended to do. Preventing animal
overpopulation, homelessness, and neglectful, irresponsible ownership is far more effective and
less costly than addressing their damaging results.
I can be reached at 443-320-1277 or TeresaC@peta.org, and I hope you'll let me know if we can
be of assistance. Meanwhile, thank you for all your hard work for the citizens of Ulster.
Respectfully,
Teresa Chagrin
Animal Care and Control Specialist
Cruelty Investigations Department
[1]
Natalie Angier, "That Cuddly Kitty Is Deadlier Than You Think," The New York Times, 29 Jan. 2013
<http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/30/science/that-cuddly-kitty-of-yours-is-a-killer.html?_r=4&>.
2
Elizabeth Weise, "House Cats Kill More Critters Than Thought," USA Today, 7 Aug. 2012
<http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-08-06/house-cats-kill/56831262/1>.
3
A.D. Roebling et al., "Rabies Prevention and Management of Cats in the Context of Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-
Release Programmes," Zoonoses and Public Health, 2013
<http://www.coloradonativebird.org/uploads/3/3/7/5/3375180/catsrabiestnvr-article.pdf>.
4
National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians, "Compendium of Animal Rabies Prevention and
Control, 2016," JAVMA, Vol. 248, No. 5, 1 Mar. 2016, NASPHV.org
<http://www.nasphv.org/Documents/NASPHVRabiesCompendium.pdf>.
5
Taylor Clysdale, "Committee Approves Bylaw Requiring Cats in Peterborough to Be Leashed and Licensed," 20
June 2016, MyKawartha.com <http://www.mykawartha.com/news-story/6732618-committee-approves-bylaw-
requiring-cats-in-peterborough-to-be-leashed-and-licensed/>.
6
Stephen Burns, "Cat Licence Aims to Cut Euthanization," 9 Dec. 2014, WinnipegFreePress.com
<http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/cat-licence-aims-to-cut-euthanization-285181221.html>.
[1]
Natalie Angier, "That Cuddly Kitty Is Deadlier Than You Think," The New York Times, 29 Jan. 2013
<http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/30/science/that-cuddly-kitty-of-yours-is-a-killer.html?_r=4&>.
[2]
Elizabeth Weise, "House Cats Kill More Critters Than Thought," USA Today, 7 Aug. 2012
<http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-08-06/house-cats-kill/56831262/1>.
[3]
A.D. Roebling et al., "Rabies Prevention and Management of Cats in the Context of Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-
Release Programmes," Zoonoses and Public Health, 2013
<http://www.coloradonativebird.org/uploads/3/3/7/5/3375180/catsrabiestnvr-article.pdf>.
[4]
National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians, "Compendium of Animal Rabies Prevention and
Control, 2016," JAVMA, Vol. 248, No. 5, 1 Mar. 2016, NASPHV.org
<http://www.nasphv.org/Documents/NASPHVRabiesCompendium.pdf>.

3. [5]
Taylor Clysdale, "Committee Approves Bylaw Requiring Cats in Peterborough to Be Leashed and Licensed," 20
June 2016, MyKawartha.com <http://www.mykawartha.com/news-story/6732618-committee-approves-bylaw-
requiring-cats-in-peterborough-to-be-leashed-and-licensed/>.
[6]
Stephen Burns, "Cat Licence Aims to Cut Euthanization," 9 Dec. 2014, WinnipegFreePress.com
<http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/cat-licence-aims-to-cut-euthanization-285181221.html>.