A scientist is suggesting that cats should be selectively bred to lose their hunting instinct in order to preserve wildlife such as birds, reptiles and rodents.
A veterinarian scientist named John Bradshaw at Bristol University suggests that this idea is possible and would end the whole “bringing dead animals home to my human” thing with cats or at least diminish it.
It’s no secret that people love their cats and more and more people are getting cats as pets since they are easy to care for, but more cats also means more threats to the wildlife where these cats live. Some breeds of birds, reptiles and rodents are actually in danger of extinction due to growing cat populations and scientists are trying to find ways to solve this problem.
According to statistics from the Mammal Society in the UK approximately “10 million cats catch up to 275 million animals a year as prey – of which 55 million are birds, with reptiles and amphibians such as frogs also victims of the feline slaughter.”
Since most domestic cats are not really needed to catch mice, there’s no reason for most of them to need to know how to hunt. We humans give them all the food, water and toys they could ever want.
Some domestic cats have very little to no prey drive and those are the cats that should be breeding according to some scientists. It would be a combination to breeding and training to help stop the “feline slaughter” but over time it would help save the lives of many wild animals.
You can find out more on The Daily Mail.
Does your cat like to hunt? Do you think this is a good idea? Does your cat bring you home dead animals? Would you be sad if your cat lost some of his or her “catness”?
