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U.S. Fish & Wildlife Plan to Eradicate Feral Colony on St. Nicolas Island in Channel Islands

June 11, 2008, 12:55PM MT

By Sandi Cain

Animal Welfare Groups Call on Animal Advocates to Help Save Feral Cats

Animal Welfare Groups Call on Animal Advocates to Help Save Feral Cats

To protect a long list of endangered species, the federal wildlife biologists are proposing to kill all the wild cats now living on Navy-owned San Nicolas Island. The plan, spearheaded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, entails the use of padded leg traps and hunters to eradicate what are believed to be between 100 and 200 feral cats. Dogs would be used to flush out some of the harder to catch cats in the plan that could take about a year to complete. "On San Nicolas Island, feral cats are known to kill seabirds, including Brandt's cormorants and western gulls; other birds, including the federally threatened western snowy plover; the federally threatened island night lizard; and the endemic deer mouse," according to an Environmental Assessment done on the planned eradication.

"This is not humane," said Nancy Peterson, who heads the feral cat program for the U.S. Humane Society. "I would not say shooting cats or leaving them in leg-hold traps for up to 14 hours is humane. This is a proposal by wildlife biologists who are treating the cats as wildlife. I think it was really inexcusable that no animal welfare groups or cat groups were consulted for the plan."

How you can help:

The public has until June 17 to comment by e-mailing fw8cfwocomments@fws.gov or sending mail to:

Jane Hendron,
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
6010 Hidden Valley Road
Carlsbad, CA 92011.

For More Information:

Copies of the environmental assessment are available at libraries in Santa Barbara, Ventura and Oxnard. For more details, go to http://www.montroserestoration.gov

So far, two independent rescuers have contact BF Animal Help saying they are willing to out on the island and trap but need more traps, volunteers, and veterinary buy-in to do the project. There is no mention of relocation options already available, so it is not clear where the cats would go if rescued.

Best Friends will be providing more information about the situation and what is needed as more information becomes available. Please check back for updates!

Posted by Corissa Babbitt, Best Friends Network
Photo retrieved from wikimedia.com

Comments

Posted June 12, 2008, 5:22PM by mimi

I'm not a Californian, but you can't stand by while they plan to kill 200 cats. I emailed my thanks for their work on behalf of wildlife, but suggested that there were more progressive approaches than extermination. As a U.S. taxpayer, I asked that they work with BF to come up with a program that helped both wildlife and cats.

Posted June 20, 2008, 2:35PM by Joy

I have removed a number of comments. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but it must be stated politely. Name calling will not be tolerated.

I apologize for removing some harmless comments, but they no longer made sense as they were in response to offending comments.

Joy Moffat
Network Member Services Manager
Best Friends Animal Society

Posted June 12, 2008, 4:28PM by corinnem

Please everyone, e-mail Ms. Hendron and voice your protest. This is an absolutley horrible situation and we mus do all we can to stop it.

Posted August 08, 2008, 11:31AM by Joy

Once again I have had to remove comments. If any further comments warrant removal, the poster of those comments will have their membership privileges suspended.

Joy Moffat
Network Member Services Manager
Best Friends Animal Society
joy@bestfriends.org