Thursday, July 9, 2015

Musings: Here Kitty, Kitty Part II

Kauai has an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 feral (wild) cats, according to the Kauai Feral Cat Task Force report.

While that figure is daunting in and of itself, consider this: A female cat may have 10 to 15 kittens per year, and more than 20 litters in lifetime.

So let's do a little conservative math. It's reasonable to assume that half the wild cats are females, so let's start with a low estimate of 7,500 and multiple that by 10 kittens per year. That's 75,000 cats in a single year.

State wildlife officials estimate there are at least 30 cat colonies on the island, and Kauai Ferals reports supporting 15 colonies with food.

So let's further assume that Kauai Ferals is managing colonies appropriately and has spayed all the females under its care. Even that generous allowance, which is not borne out in reality, leaves 3,750 wild females capable of producing 37,500 new cats per year.

Now consider this figure: Kauai has 10 species of endangered birds, some of which already number fewer than 1,000 individuals. And while wild cats aren't the sole cause of their decline, wildlife officials consider them “a significant contributor,” according to the Task Force report.

Which do you think is most likely to emerge victorious? Wild cats or endangered native birds? I'll let you do the math.

Yet even in the face of these figures, some Task Force members cling doggedly to the belief that the island's feral cat problem can be resolved through trap-neuter-release (TNR) programs alone — with the Kauai Humane Society picking up the tab for spaying all the feral cats.

And that leads us to the recent vitriolic attacks on KHS Director Penny Cistaro, which have been championed in large part by the TNR folks.

The TNR supporters want KHS to offer free spay-neuter for all cats, with owners paying just a $10 microchip fee, according to a statement by Judy Dalton in the Task Force report. Dog owners, however, would receive no such subsidy. They also want the spay-neuter van, which KHS only now reactivated after securing funds for its operation, to be available for ferals, too, an approach that could quickly overwhelm its capacity to serve the general public.

It's clear that spay-neuter must be accessible and cheap to encourage wide participation. But many people fail to realize that most Kauai vets have vigorously fought free spay-neuter, as that procedure is a significant source of income for them.

So if all the feral cats are allowed to live, as the cat people desire, who should pay the cost of trapping and fixing 15,000 cats, or just the 7,500 females? At a bargain rate of $30 a pop, that's still $225,000. And stray animals are the county's responsibility, under its contract with KHS, which means taxpayers would foot the bill.

It's not fair to blast Penny or KHS for the feral cat problem when the organization simply does not have the money or personnel to resolve it. Iif all the island's vets were working solely on cat spay-neuter, they wouldn't be able to fix all the cats before new litters were born. The population is simply out of control. Yet ignorant people like Sonja Kass leave comments like this on media websites:

Cistaro raised spay and neuter prices to be unaffordable for some, and caused the recent feral cat population explosion.

Costs and logistics aren't the only issue. Even if the feral cat population was frozen at its current 15,000 to 20,000, which would be a miraculous feat, that doesn't stop the problem of predation. Well-fed cats hunt and kill, and ground-nesting native forest birds and seabirds are easy pickings for hungry ferals.

Yet the TNR folks aren't paying to protect the birds. KIUC is picking up nearly the entire tab for Kauai seabird protection — spending $2.5 million annually, an amount that has risen 125% in three years — even though cats, rats, dogs and pigs kill far more seabirds than its utility wires.

Wildlife experts contend that TNR is not sufficient to control the feral cat population on Kauai, and “other, site-specific controls must be utilized including trapping and euthanasia,” according to the Task Force's report.

This bit of reality was totally unacceptable to the TNR folks on the Task Force, with Moksha McClure, president of Whisker's Resort, writing in the report:

Currently the Task Force recommendations propose an unreasonable time frame in which to reduce the feral cat population and ultimately advocate the mass murder of Kauai’s feral cats. For an island that is so dependent on tourism, trap/neuter/euthanize is a bad idea.

It is not a fairy tale; we could live on an island where both cats and birds are protected and cared for.

Yes, perhaps we could. Just as we could live in a world where every child is wanted, fed, protected and cared for, and there's peace and prosperity for all. But we don't. Which is why both birds and cats keep dying in the wild as people attack Penny and KHS.

One of Penny's loudest critics has been Basil Scott, president of Kauai Ferals. In a June 14 letter to the editor, he went on and on about two kittens from Salt Pond being euthanized, and wrote:

These management problems have been ongoing since Cistaro arrived over two years ago. Since then, about 70 percent of the staff has been fired or has resigned!

Yet in a Aug. 23, 2014 email to the Kauai County Council distancing his group from Cheryl Martin, whom he describes as “a well-known problem for us,” he wrote, emphasis added:

Please know that Cheryl’s note does not reflect our attitude toward Kauai Humane nor does it reflect how spay/neuter activities at KHS are working. They are working well. This year feral cat spay/neuter surgeries performed at KHS have increased by approximately 40% compared to last year. Given this, it is necessary for KHS and us to jointly organize the workload to accommodate available resources. 

This is good news for Kauai as it shows continued progress on the feral cat issue. It is simply not true that there is some kind of disaster here. In fact, we are making better progress than ever.

So perhaps the most recent “disaster” was drummed up by disgruntled employees and feral cat/“no-kill” people who weren't getting their way? 

The “no-kill” movement is well-organized and relentless. A Facebook page offers free guides for shelters that want to “embrace life.” It goes on to state, “For those that don't, we have free guides for activists to force them to.”

Force? As in viciously attack a director who is faced with the ugly reality of too many animals, too few homes on an isolated island and insufficient revenue?

The no-kill “resource” page claims:

Shelter killing is the leading cause of death for healthy dogs and cats in the United States. And yet, statistics reveal that there are over seven times as many people looking to bring an animal into their home every year as there are animals being killed in shelters because they lack one. Almost half of all animals who enter our nation’s shelters go out the back door in garbage bags rather than out the front door in the loving arms of adopters despite the fact that there are plenty of homes available.

So tell me, do you think there are homes on Kauai for the 15,000 to 20,000 feral cats, or even sufficient people willing to pay for their lifelong care and fenced confinement in managed colonies? 

Or do you think the no-kill people are just peddling a bunch of feel good bullshit that must portray shelter managers as the bad guys in order to advance its cause?

36 comments:

Anonymous said...

Joan - Thank you for these words on KHS. You may be the only voice of reason that will help donations flowing to this organization. The Garden Island is a joke. You are telling the truth.

So, all of Kauai gets penalized to having Football played in the day, to protect the birds. One of the most cherished pastimes, in the heat of the day. Gone are the fun nights under the lights.
And on the other hand, we have people feeding thousands of predators of these same protected birds.
Outlaw ALL feral cat feeding. Trap, neuter and release or trap and eliminate.
Kauai continues to be run by outliers. I love cats and have many of these furry fuzzballs as pets. But the hard reality is what the f*ck do we do?
I would prefer the Feral Cat Feeders go to the homeless areas and give out plate lunches. Or go to Wailua Homesteads and trap and save Tim Bynum's Million Dollar Rice Cooker.
Also, bring back night time football.
Support the KHS, this good organization needs money NOW. Once again the whiners are winning. Let's get together and bring KHS to all it can be. PENNY may be strict. But she is honest and a straight-shooter. Support Penny and the KHS. Get the Council to give more dough...they will be raising GET by 20 percent soon anyway..(Millions and Millions of dollars to be squandered on the real fat cats and friends in the Government offices) ....at least earmark some dough for the animals. Otherwise it will be spent on Mt Yukimura and JoAnn's Failed Bus System...the two most expensive fiscal disasters in Kauai's history. Both at the feet of one small likable, but misguided Lady.

Anonymous said...

The state legislature including senate president kouchi, representatives morikawa, tokioka, and mayor hopeful kawakami cut the county's portion of the tat by 13 million per year for the past 5 years. The 1/2 percent increase to the GET tax would raise 8 million. Now do you see why the county is faced with this decision? If the state gave the county it's normal share, easy to so no way. So blame the state too, they have the nerve to blame the county. They are soo greedy, they get TAT, GET, and INCOME taxes? The fund things like the Filipino cultural center? Yet they gotta steal the county's portion too? Hold them accountable too for the stupid GET, they all live here, vote them out if not!

Anonymous said...

How is it possible to allow both feral cats and their prey to live? And what solution do proponents of the save the cat crowd have to offer? Kitty condoms and abstinence lectures? Get real.

Anonymous said...

Sustainable food source...hmmmmm

Anonymous said...

2 Cents. Talk, talk, talk. Put up or shut up. Put up the money to save the cats. I would rather take care of the homeless that cats. Those of you who want to take care of the cats build a cat shelter solely for cats. I once read a book long ago about thousands and thousands of cats, they ate all the food and drank all the water from the pond. Darndest thing is i forgot how it ended. Does any one know where the TAT money that the County receives go? State has lot more worries than Kauai's beef with the cat population. I don't see anyone chasing down cats to do the TNR thing. Oh, time to play follow the leader.

Anonymous said...

Every "local" cat should get an abandoned TVR :).

Anonymous said...

God bless you Joan. How about exposing Mark Hurt and his wife? They live their private gated community in Kilauea while proclaiming that they "speak for the community?"

Anonymous said...

"KIUC is picking up nearly the entire tab for Kauai seabird protection — spending $2.5 million annually, an amount that has risen 125% in three years — even though cats, rats, dogs and pigs kill far more seabirds than its utility wires."

The primary cause of the seabirds decline is starvation at sea. All these efforts are puttung a bandaid on a sucking chest wound. Why are birds starving at sea? Habitat destruction by over fishing,polution,etc to feed an out of control human population. But I oppose using Joan's endorsed solutions for cats on the homeless human population.

Nature Advocate said...

To all the cat-lickers:

When you vote to have the government subsidize the costs of my aquariums and terrariums and any other pets I might want to enjoy, pay for my stamp-collections and coin-collections, then I'll vote to pay for the cost of one of your hobbies too. Owning a cat is not a right, it is not a requirement of being alive, IT'S A HOBBY. If YOU can't pay for all the costs incurred in that hobby then FIND A DIFFERENT HOBBY. I'm not about to pay for your own irresponsibility and then your manipulating everyone else into paying for it for you. "If you don't pay us to get our cats fixed, we're going to unleash this destructive invasive species onto all your lands to destroy everything in their wake and make your lives even more miserable forever!" Nice sales-tactic of yours.

(Aside: Like their other "sales tactic" where they cry we're all going to die of the plague if we don't let their vermin roam free. They've since shut-up about that since I proved that the exact opposite could come to pass, from all the deadly cases of cats transmitting the plague to humans in the USA today.)

I used my legal rights to destroy any nuisance animal on my own lands. AS IS THE LEGAL RIGHT OF EVERY LAND-OWNER. I bought 5,000 rounds of .22s on a close-out sale for $15, with about 4,000 left-over in case someone in the area wants to start up their vermin cat-hobby ever again. 3 cats per penny! Each cat vaccinated against ALL of their 3dozen+ deadly diseases (for which some don't even have vaccines for them and are listed as bio-terrorism agents), each cat sterilized so they can no-longer reproduce, and each cat also given a permanent "loving furever home" (2-3 ft. under). A TOTAL solution affordable to anyone, any size of community! With no further costs incurred by ANYONE EVER AGAIN.

Though I haven't seen even one cat in OVER FIVE YEARS now, the extirpation of cats in my area using this method was that complete and effective. So much for their deceptive lie about some mystical "missing-cats vacuum-effect" too, eh? Local cat-lickers now know if they let their invasive-species vermin outside it means certain death for their cats, within hours of doing so. You'd think everyone could learn from this simple lesson. The quickest way to solve an unwanted animal and criminally-negligent pet-owner problem is to quickly and humanely destroy every last one of their unwanted, uncared-for, and unsupervised vermin pets for them. They either grow-up fast, or far more plausible, dump their animals elsewhere to become someone else's problem.

Even $0.003 spent on any one cat is too much as far as I'm concerned, but that's all that I'm willing to pay to "fix" YOUR vermin cat for you. I have plenty of .22s left-over after shooting and burying HUNDREDS of your vermin on my lands. I only used one 1/3-cent bullet per cat. I shouldn't be forced to pay even that much, but since you won't pay to "fix" your vermin cats, then I will "fix" them for you in the most humane and cost-effective method on earth. And not one 1/3rd of a cent more than that -- unless I miss, which is not likely. Everyone's free-roaming cats taught to me and proved to me that I had a hidden skill as an expert-marksman. I never knew that, having never hunted anything before being forced to eradicate every last one of hundreds of your cats in my area. (Thanks cat-lickers for teaching me of this hidden skill!) Out of hundreds of cats that I had to shoot and bury I didn't waste even one 1/3-cent bullet. Except one time when people advised that I use a fatal head-shot instead of a fatal chest-shot. It took 3 more precision point-blank shots to the head before it would die. I now surmise that cats survive more by their reptilian brain-stems than any of their unused gray-matter above it (just like cat-advocates do). An experiment I never repeated, because even one 1/3-cent bullet is worth more than any cat's life is worth today.

Anonymous said...

Finally...someone else that understands and gets it. Everyone blames the county for mismanagement of money and other things. What people have forgotten is how much the state has taken from this county causing such budget shortfalls. The county cannot take care of alot of projects this island needs, or give more to the KHS because there is no money. Thank our state reps. For that.

Anonymous said...

10:55, Expose the Hurt's as what, generous people who have donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Kauai Humane Society over the years?

Anonymous said...

Aloha 10:55 am........
Just like the "PORTERS" who do everything" for the community", a mini golf, bike rentals, trail access, ........ a "local" farmers market, building a SUPER obtrusive amphitheater, where it will be heard everywhere, 4 the community, [ WHO asked for it???] ALL THE WHILE, conspiring 2 raising "R" minuscule famers market rates way over100%!!!! in ONE year.... , {Do they really NEED 2 make money off the sweat of farmers, while claiming non-profit status???????? while looking fora VOLUNTEER 2 help with parking ???, After numerous complaints from BIG BANANA JOES WIFE, who didn't want lowly farmers market vendors to park in their parking lot for a mere stopover at the market,..... THIS is what is wrong with KAUAI today....... way too many special interests, with no public sentiment, I got mine, U CANNOT GET NO attitude........... PUH LEEZE........ E NUFF ALL READY...........
,

Anonymous said...

5:25 you sound like a real tough guy. Post your name, I like meet up with you .

Dawson said...


Nature Advocate said...
"...Even $0.003 spent on any one cat is too much as far as I'm concerned, but that's all that I'm willing to pay to "fix" YOUR vermin cat for you. I have plenty of .22s left-over after shooting and burying HUNDREDS of your vermin on my lands. I only used one 1/3-cent bullet per cat. I shouldn't be forced to pay even that much, but since you won't pay to "fix" your vermin cats, then I will "fix" them for you in the most humane and cost-effective method on earth..."

May I have your permission to autopsy your brain when you die?

How about before you die?

Anonymous said...

Hahahahaha good one. Hahahahaha I'm sure they have Hahahahaha

Nature Advocate said...

(part 1)

"Anonymous", the blatantly moronic cat-licker, posting at July 9, 2015 at 8:03 PM, oxymoronically spewed, "you sound like a real tough guy. Post your name, I like meet up with you."

NO sane person in the world wants to get a bunch of psychotic and sociopathic cyber-stalking & cyber-bullying cat-lickers invading their personal lives. All that do learn this lesson learn it far far too late. :-)

These psychotic cat-lickers post any and all anti-cat news events on their web-sites, blogs, email-chains, etc. (I keep track of these to watch how they operate), then within 1 hour of the news up-to 50,000 of them from all over the world (that's only 0.0007% of the world's population that are manipulating you with their lies and deceptions, to put their "powerful" cat-lobby numbers in true real-world perspective) will descend on any site that is about some controversial cat issue, start up at least 3 international petitions, and then fire-off addresses (business and home), phone numbers (business and home), names, and even photos of everyone involved so they can then cyber-bully everyone into submission. They even post any and all 800 phone numbers of local authorities and agencies near the cats so they can then launch a phone-calling DoS (denial of service) attack on those agencies or any businesses involved. (I have archived all their cyber-attacks and methods for 3 years now, but this has been going on for decades.) The more dedicated cat-lickers from organizations like Alley-Cat-ALL-LIES (who risk losing their multimillion-dollar con-artist and deception-artist empire) will then even fly cross-country or internationally to attend any protests and meetings to scream their warped, ecologically-illegal, and inhumane views. They even send off death-threats to everyone involved, even lawmakers and congressmen. There's no limit to their cyber-bullying. Don't believe me? Google for: Oda Lawmakers Shun Security Threats.

In FACT, this is PRECISELY how they managed to get these insanely illegal invasive-species vermin-cat TNR programs into every location that they exist in the very first place. TNR is nothing more than a psychotic Cyber-Stalker & Cyber-Bullying $multimillionaire animal-torturing con-artist business campaign. (Check out "Better Business Bureau"'s findings of "Alley Cat All-Lies" for one example of how to become a $multimillionaire by torturing stray cats to death by letting them roam free. http://web.archive.Org/web/20131013073823/http://www.bbb.Org/charity-reviews/national/animal-protection/alley-cat-allies-in-bethesda-md-107/financial They can't become millionaires if they euthanize them first! No, they need dead and suffering cats in all the streets of the world so when they find them dying of TNR "attrition" they can further exploit dead and injured cats for massive donations to their own bank-accounts. An animal-torturing money-making scam that is further promoted by intimidation, guess what that is called? Racketeering. These TNR groups are ripe for picking by The Feds. :-) )

A measly and insignificant 0.0007% of the world's population that do nothing but cause problems (and death) for every other living thing on earth by using their expendable, man-made, invasive-species, vermin cats as animal sacrifices for their self-victimization game they play to try to manipulate everyone around them.

Take this example, a loving veterinarian who only tried to save the life of a sick cat from one of their outdoor hoarded TNR colonies. These sociopathic and psychopathic wastes-of-flesh cyber-bullied this caring and loving veterinarian to suicide. http://banvetabuse.blogspot.Co.Uk/2014_03_01_archive.html

Nature Advocate said...

(part 2 of 2)

Here too is a good example of what will happen should even one of their TNR cats get ran-over by a car (or dies from any other form of "loving and humane TNR attrition") near someone's place of business or your home: http://facebook.Com/photo.php?fbid=747875778604304 And here's what really happened: http://www.wtov9.Com/news/features/top-stories/stories/alleged-animal-abuse-investigated-weirton-5308.shtml Someone not even associated with this business ran-over one of their free-roaming cats by accident. The fun part of this cyber-bullying attack (which, luckily the business-owners had excellent lawyers and were able to get most of their cyber-attack sites shut-down fast in one day, as well as sue the piśś out of anyone involved), is that the group behind it all and supported by Alley-Cat-All-Lies (where I found the above facebook link still available) even admitted that those photos were from Europe over two years ago and another from China 5 years ago: http://www.chinasmack.Com/2009/pictures/kittens-found-abused-dead-mother-kunming.html . They just paste dead-cat photos around whatever businesses they want to destroy where any of their TNR cats get ran-over. Isn't TNR GREAT!! LOL

Google for: LOEWS HOTELS FERAL CATS, if people still don't believe what these psychotic cat-licking TNR whack-jobs do to everyone on the planet.

Another replay of what these cat-licking cyber-bullying sociopaths do, Google for: CATS VENICE COMPLEX REPRIEVE. A $150 million renovation project for low-income housing, put on hold, jobs lost, money lost, homeless still homeless, court costs and lawyers, just to save a few of their feral vermin c-Rats. And the saddest part of all, the vast majority of these TNR'ed cats had already died heinous inhumane deaths from TNR-practitioners' "humane death by attrition" re-abandonment philosophy. (Road-kill, diseases, parasites, injuries, environmental poisons, cat & animal attacks, exposure, etc.)

Similar scenarios can be found daily and weekly by Googling for feral cats and churches, universities, hospitals, shopping centers, malls, apartment complexes, etc. Cat-lickers delusionally believe that any land on which a cat has stepped-foot is their own property and they can manipulate and control the owners and all laws on it.

This is precisely why everyone is learning to destroy all cats on their properties as quickly and quietly as possible. Telling nobody beforehand about any cats even being there. Long before these psychotic cyber-bullying cat-licker sociopaths and psychopaths get wind of the cats. Shoot (or trap & drown) cats first -- tell no-one later. The only thing worse than feral cats are feral cat-lickers. You can legally shoot the former, not the latter. You need to pay lawyers and courts to get rid of the latter. THEN you can get rid of their vermin cats. And the sad part is, that's EXACTLY what happens, each and every time.

People are wising-up. If ANY cats are around they destroy every last one of them first, before they make any other move. Before these cyber-bullying cat-lickers can do anything about it to try to destroy and waste everyone's lives even more than they already have with their disease-infested invasive-species vermin cats. Not quite the results that these sociopathic cat-lickers had intended, but that's what they're getting! :-)

Anonymous said...

Nature advocate talks like a sociopath. Please seek help.

Joan Conrow said...

While Nature Advocate employs language and eradication techniques that no doubt many find offensive, I do appreciate him/her pointing out that these TNR groups frequently engage in cyber-bullying, as they currently are against Penny Cistaro, and there's big money to be made in soliciting funds from animal lovers who don't realize the doomed nature of so many of these "rescue" efforts.

Nature Advocate said...

(part 1 of 3)

The 100% effective and PERMANENT SOLUTION. Guaranteed. Tested and approved.

You will find that it is 100% ineffective to try to discuss this with any cat-advocate. Do what I did after 15 years of trying to reason-with and educate the ineducable (at the loss of THOUSANDS of native animals that their cats tortured to death on my lands). Ignore every last thing that every last cat-advocate might ever say and you too will solve a centuries' old problem PERMANENTLY in less than 2 seasons of your time, for a cost of only $0.003 (1/3-penny) to $0.04 per cat. Cat-advocates ARE the problem, they can't be any part of the solution. If you include them in the solution then YOU WILL FAIL. They now deserve and require the EXACT same amount of respect and consideration as they have shown and given to every other life on this planet, animal and human included, that being -- ABSOLUTELY NONE. Then and only then will you solve this global ecological disaster that they created and are hellbent on perpetuating.

No trapping program in the world has been able to catch-up to cats' breeding rates, this is precisely why Trap & Kill failed as well as Trap, Neuter, Re-abandon (TNR) is an even bigger failure. Actively and aggressively hunting them down, employing "Hunted to Extinction" methods, is the ONLY way to get ahead of and stay ahead of cats' breeding rates, their ability to out-adapt to any trapping method used, and also the rates at which criminally-irresponsible cat-lickers let more invasive-species vermin cats be born and dumped illegally outdoors.

Licensing and laws do nothing to curb the problem. If cats are required to be licensed then these lying, deceitful, manipulative, and conniving cat-lickers just stop putting collars on their cats; as they did by me. And they won't even bother getting them micro-chipped, especially not that. They want absolutely nothing that can hold them legally accountable for their actions and the actions of their cats. We're not talking about the topmost responsible citizens of the world, you know. They don't want that responsibility of what they and their cats have done coming back on them. If they had even one iota of a sense of responsibility and respect for all other lives on this planet we wouldn't even be having these discussions.

Any non-native cat that is allowed to illegally hunt our native wildlife where I live then in turn gets hunted until dead. No delays, no excuses, NO EXCEPTIONS. That's the very best way to keep these invasive species vermin from destroying any more native wildlife or spreading any more of their 3dozen+ deadly diseases to all other animals and humans. They had annihilated all the wildlife on my lands for 15 years, until on advice of the Sheriff I shot and buried every last one of hundreds of their vermin cats for them (AS-IS THE LEGAL RIGHT OF EVERY LAND-OWNER). Collared or not -- for you MUST destroy ALL stray collared cats as well, they are the very source of every last feral cat. If you don't destroy them too then you have done NOTHING to solve the feral cat problem. Guaranteed. All the cat-lickers by me told me for over a decade that all their "pet" cats were sterilized. But upon inspection during shooting and burying hundreds of them, NOT ONE of their cats was sterilized. Cat-advocates and cat-owners who let cats roam free are manipulative and deceptive LIARS -- one and all.

Nature Advocate said...

(part 2 of 3)

If you live where its not legal to use firearms (areas zoned as "residential") then check into 700-1200fps air-rifles and round-nosed vermin-pellets. Many of the new ones come with their own sound-suppressor designs built-in, specifically designed for shooting vermin cats in urban areas, the demand is that great. Just remember, shoot-to-kill is a perfectly legal way to rid your homes and lands of these diseased vermin cats. Shoot-to-maim is animal cruelty, and rightly so, all hunters know this. Don't let them parade another illegal shoot-to-maim case in the media to exploit yet another suffering cat for donations for themselves. They torture enough cats to death with their TNR programs for that and make $millions by doing so.

Then there's always the "SSS and TDSS Cat Management Programs" that are exploding in popularity worldwide: Shoot, Shovel, & Shut-Up; or Trap, Drown, Shovel, & Shut-Up. Both methods are legal on every square foot of this earth. No local ordinances were violated if it never happened. In fact, most law-enforcement agencies prefer that you use either of those two methods so that these criminally-negligent cat-lickers don't cause even more problems for you and your community than they already have with their disease-infested vermin.

Where cats have already learned to evade all trapping methods for trapping & drowning (and you aren't confident with firearms or air-rifles (local ordinances permitting)), then inexpensive generic acetaminophen (overseas paracetamol) pain-relievers are a more species-specific vermin poison (though harmful to most reptiles, which won't be dining on the cat-bait-foods that you'll be using) -- a method condoned by even Audubon, Smithsonian, and National Geographic today. Stray cats have been listed as "vermin" since the early 1900's. (I learned this from a cat-licker. Thanks cat-lickers!) This is why it is even legal to use any and all vermin-poisons on them. For an even more species-specific vermin poison check into the toxicity of "Lilium" species of flowers too. Be certain the plant contains the word "Lilium" in the scientific-name (other plants with the word "Lily" in the common-name may be toxic to other species besides cats). Common N. American "Day Lilies" also work, they are the one exception to the rule that the name "Lilium" needs to be in the scientific name. Lilium species of flowers are 100% fatal to cats ONLY, even a bit of pollen on their fur that they lick-off will do. If they even drink a bit of water in which a bunch of Lilium flowers have been kept -- that too is fatal, but totally harmless to all other species of animals (including dogs). Much safer for the environment and all other animals than the rat-poisons and antifreeze that cat-lickers have forced everyone into using on their cats. These plants when harvested and dried for year-round cat-eradication use is even better, as the unknown toxin is concentrated during the drying process (the blossoms and pollen being most toxic), and the dried plants are even more palatable to cats. An excellent mulch for anyone's garden or a ground-up additive for any tins of food left lying around.

However, you really need to dispose of that cat safely and hygienically so that wildlife won't die from the deadly diseases cats spread even after their death. Leaving ANY cat out in nature, alive OR dead, is no better than intentionally poisoning your native wildlife to death. I know this. I fed one of the hundreds of shot-dead cats on my lands to some wildlife under my care, those animals and their offspring that they had while under my care then died from some disease in that cat-meat. Cats truly are complete and total wastes-of-flesh. They can't even be used to feed wildlife safely.

Nature Advocate said...

(part 3 of 3)

(While some of this is repetitive to what I posted previously, I left it intact as I had originally authored it for a cohesive guaranteed solution to the problem, and why it works -- for anyone living anywhere on earth.)

I don't see anyone dumping cats where I live anymore. They don't even adopt more than can be kept under lock & key 24/7/52. When driving through the area I don't see even one cat on anyone's doorsteps anymore. I always keep an eye-out to see if there are more free-roaming cats that will have to be shot. And if I'll have to leave fish-oil trails on all the roadsides again, leading right to my IR surveillance system and laser-sighted rifle. The eradication of these vermin was so complete and effective that cats are non-existent from my area for over FIVE years now. Not seen nor heard a single one. So much for that cat-lickers' oft-spewed and manipulative "vacuum effect" deception and lie too, eh?

Leaving ANY of their invasive species cats outside in my area means certain death for their cat, its further existence can be counted in hours. You'd think everyone else could learn from this simple lesson. The quickest way to solve an unwanted animal and irresponsible pet-owner problem is to let everyone know that you will quickly and humanely destroy every last one of their unwanted, uncared-for, or unsupervised animals for them. They either grow up fast or, far more plausible, dump their animals elsewhere to become someone else's problem.

You just can't be an enabler of criminally irresponsible spineless and heartless idiots -- or they remain that way. (At least where you live, anyway.)

IF THERE ARE NOT DIRECT AND IMMEDIATE IRREVERSIBLE CONSEQUENCES TO PET-OWNERS' CRIMINALLY-NEGLIGENT AND CRIMINALLY-IRRESPONSIBLE BEHAVIORS AND VALUES THEN THEY LEARN ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. You can bet the future of your whole world on that!

Anonymous said...

Can't help but notice the similarity between cats and people here - those most responsible for screwing up the place are well taken care of...the rest of us hard-working folks are left to pick up the scraps and forego the safety nets (drug treatment/counseling facilities, education, health care, pensions, etc) that should be provided in a civil society...

Anonymous said...

Kauai has to get this CAT KILLER behind BARS. There's no need for people like you on Kauai or elsewhere.

Anonymous said...

Hmmm wonder if we can apply Nature Advocate's methods to the hordes of invasive people moving here?

Gayla McCarthy said...

The best lie has within it a kernel of truth. Although I doubt the Hurt's have contributed "hundreds of thousands of dollars" to KHS over the years. (And I wouldn't want them to dictate policy, even if they had.) I do believe they are probably well meaning and generous people.

But bullying is cowardly and mean-spirited. And the Hurts should be publicly exposed as one of the major players in this shameful drama.

Player #1. The Veterinarians: They don't like the shelter doing low cost spay and neuter. They won't like the KHS van being back on the road. And they oppose Cistaro's low cost vaccination clinics. They have their own set of priorities.

Player #2. The Feral Cat People: This is more than adequately covered in Joan's article and the comments above. They have their agenda.

Player #3: The Disgruntled Employees: Some of these same people played their part in getting Dr. Becky fired, were dissatisfied with the leadership of Shannon Blizzard, and worked there during the entire 5 years KHS used a faulty formula for calculating the euthanasia rates! Where were the voices of these "brave whistle blowers" during all those years the euthanasia rates were underreported, they worked there, and Cistaro didn't even know Kauai existed?
They have, and continue to, hurt the organization itself. And their willingness to "burn the house down" in an effort to remove one of its occupants, belies their assertion they are doing it for the animals.

And finally, Player #4: The maestros of this fully orchestrated campaign, The Hurts: Who have a personal animosity towards Penny and have vowed not to relent until she is fired. They have used their home as a gathering place to strategize with the other players, and have used their wealth and
affiliations to influence and intimidate. Mr. Hurt publicly stated on the radio, "If the animals suffer because of it, so be it."
Sadly, the Hurts may well "win" in the end and get Cistaro fired. The powerful usually do. But the reality of our unwanted animal numbers will remain unchanged. There will not be a single landlord suddenly willing to rent to someone with a pet. There will not be one less back-yard breeder. There will not be one poor family that magically has the ability to afford veterinary care. The feral cat debate will continue to rage while their numbers continue to expand.

So as to the question of, "expose the Hurts as what?" I believe the answer is; "as major players in the damage being done to the Kauai Humane Society." They should not use hate as a tool to try to do good...

Anonymous said...

Nature Advocate said "Any non-native cat that is allowed to illegally hunt our native wildlife where I live then in turn gets hunted until dead."

If "Nature Advocate" lives somewhere with native cat population, then it's pretty obvious that they don't live in Hawaii.

Regardless of where they live, putting out poison in the form of "inexpensive generic acetaminophen" is irresponsible and dangerous for both wild and domestic animals.

Sonja said...

Thanks for calling me "ignorant" and mentioning me by name on your formerly read-worthy publication.

Shaming, intimidating and name-calling always works. My comment indicates lynch-mob mentality? Wow. Really?

Explosions are not something that happen over a few years, per definition an explosion is something that gets out of hand fast. When spay and neuter rates drop more people dump unneutered and often pregnant pets which multiply fast - while the relatively stable maintained, spayed and neutered with volunteers money contribute to overpopulation but not explosion. Stopping the neighborhood the spay and neuter programs, tripling the rates, not using the spay and neuter van - yes I think that's all on Cistaro's account. I could now start citing mainland statistics on TNR, but if you wanted to read them I'm sure you would have done the research yourself.

Great loss, of a formerly great journalist for Kauai.

Joan Conrow said...

Oh, I see. It's OK for you to go on a public web site, join a very ugly comment thread (that was the lynch-mob mentality) and opine critically about Penny, but no one should say anything about you?

You want to blame Penny, but where, exactly, do you expect her to get the money to do everything the cat people want her to do?

At any rate, it looks like you have now joined the ranks of those who loved what I wrote — until I wrote about them. Bye.

Sonja said...

I really hope people on your site are intelligent enough to go, read the article on HawaiiNewsNow, which is on firing whistleblowers, and not on feral cats and also read the comment thread mentioned and gauge the "lynch-mob" mentality (specially when compared to the comments on this article).

Maybe readers can also read the rest of my comment maybe the whole thing makes more sense than the one sentence in the middle.

P.S. In my previous comment a word disappeared, it should have been "while the relatively stable colonies, maintained"

Anonymous said...

Intelligent people would like to know, who waits over a year to whistle blow such neglect of animals? Maybe someone who was unhappy and had a job lined up on the mainland and decided to wreak havoc before she left with lies and unsubtantiated innuendos? Strange there weren't outcries from all the thousands of people who visit the Kauai Humane Society each year. Who here has a job where they think they can go on a radio show and refer to their boss or laugh while someone else is referring to their boss as "Cruella Deville, Bad Penny or the Unhumane Society and not expect to be fired? Maybe someone who has a job lined up on the mainland and wants to wreak havoc on a boss she didn't like? I don't think the rest of us intelligent people have jobs like that. Who is this "Un"Jay guy anyway? Clearly not his real name. As he would say "Try Google." Nothing there. Hmmmm must be a conspiracy there. What animal loving organizations would stand by and allow such atrocities without coming out sooner? Maybe organizations who would like to further their cause and gain financially from a scandal. Now there's some intelligence, too bad they are lacking in ethics. I think many of us are intelligent enough to know that this is a witch hunt and the problem with the animal population on this island lyes with the residents. People need to spay and neuter, stop breeding for a quick buck, care for your animals in a humane way and stop thinking the Kauai Humane Society is there to clean up your irresponsibility. Getting rid of Penny is going to solve what? Oh yeah, maybe the new person will be more of a push over and leave in a couple of years so the cycle of failure to take responsibility, change behavior for the better of all animals dogs, cats, and endangered birds and address the real issues can start anew.

Anonymous said...

Whole Foods coming to the old Long's site in Kapaa!!!

Anonymous said...

They already have a living foods in Poipu and It's pricey and will compete with Papayas.

Anonymous said...

And maybe YOU can look up the meaning of the word "whistleblower", which doesn't actually equate in any way shape or form to what these people are doing.

Anonymous said...

Living Foods makes Papayas seem quaint and affordable. That place is ridiculous.

Ms humane said...

Fuck you yes there is a cat problem. And yes euthanizing may be the solution but you and your hillbilly shotgun will just get people like me ready to blow your ass away if you want to be heard at least be decent about it if anyone is to blame it's the irresponsible owners of cats who don't spay neuter get the cats shots etc if you "own" an animal it is your responsibility to care for them and if you can't don't adopt it is a lifelong commitment and unfortunately it's the cats who lose I love cats but I also realize that euthanasia may be the most humane way to deal with this over population problem