Comments on: Feed the Wild Birds, Feed your Soul http://www.improveyourhomeandgarden.com/feed-the-wild-birds-feed-your-soul Improve Your Home and Garden Tue, 24 Jan 2012 18:35:52 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.2 By: Lisa http://www.improveyourhomeandgarden.com/feed-the-wild-birds-feed-your-soul/comment-page-1#comment-13401 Lisa Thu, 23 Jun 2011 19:47:27 +0000 http://www.improveyourhomeandgarden.com/?p=1825#comment-13401 I've fed and maintained a feral cat colony for years (trapped, neutered, and returned to their environment). Cats do not kill many birds. I can count the number of heads I've seen around my feed station on my two hands - and that's ten years of feeding the colony. Cats get baby birds that have fallen out of their nests or are injured or on the ground too long (which is rare). I agree that the ABC has a cat bias. There is no scientific data to back up their extraordinarily exaggerated numbers. On the other hand, proper care for any animal that keeps them safe and healthy is, of course, the responsibility of every owner. I wouldn't be feeding wild cats if people properly neutered and cared for their pets! But, to associate them with large numbers of bird deaths is ridiculous. I’ve fed and maintained a feral cat colony for years (trapped, neutered, and returned to their environment). Cats do not kill many birds. I can count the number of heads I’ve seen around my feed station on my two hands – and that’s ten years of feeding the colony. Cats get baby birds that have fallen out of their nests or are injured or on the ground too long (which is rare). I agree that the ABC has a cat bias. There is no scientific data to back up their extraordinarily exaggerated numbers.

On the other hand, proper care for any animal that keeps them safe and healthy is, of course, the responsibility of every owner. I wouldn’t be feeding wild cats if people properly neutered and cared for their pets!

But, to associate them with large numbers of bird deaths is ridiculous.

]]> By: Lisbeth Tanz http://www.improveyourhomeandgarden.com/feed-the-wild-birds-feed-your-soul/comment-page-1#comment-2314 Lisbeth Tanz Wed, 19 Aug 2009 15:26:30 +0000 http://www.improveyourhomeandgarden.com/?p=1825#comment-2314 Hi there - I don't disagree with your comments about reflective glass and habitat loss. Global climate change has also impacted the migratory (and therefore lives) of songbirds, too. Perhaps my own bias is showing - I don't believe cats should be allowed outside. I've seen way too many cats suffer because of being hit by cars, mauled by dogs and hurt by humans. Birds outside - cats inside. If we eliminate this predator from the bird mix, then we can assess more accurately the other dangers for our feathered friends. Thanks for writing! Hi there – I don’t disagree with your comments about reflective glass and habitat loss. Global climate change has also impacted the migratory (and therefore lives) of songbirds, too. Perhaps my own bias is showing – I don’t believe cats should be allowed outside. I’ve seen way too many cats suffer because of being hit by cars, mauled by dogs and hurt by humans. Birds outside – cats inside. If we eliminate this predator from the bird mix, then we can assess more accurately the other dangers for our feathered friends. Thanks for writing!

]]> By: seagreen http://www.improveyourhomeandgarden.com/feed-the-wild-birds-feed-your-soul/comment-page-1#comment-2295 seagreen Sat, 15 Aug 2009 01:50:33 +0000 http://www.improveyourhomeandgarden.com/?p=1825#comment-2295 Cats are not the biggest problem for birds/wildlife, humans are. Human caused habitat destruction is the major cause of bird/wildlife decline, followed by window strikes: "Muhlenberg College ornithologist Daniel Klem Jr. has been investigating the bird-window problem for decades, and he has found that highly reflective windows account for between 100 million and a billion bird deaths a year. That means that windows kill more birds in a year than windmills, cats, and cell phone towers. Combined." The ABC has a real bias against cats. There's a product out, the CatBib, that's been shown to stop 81% of cats from killing any birds. The ABC will never mention it because it goes against their message to "keep cats indoors." Thanks for listening........ Cats are not the biggest problem for birds/wildlife, humans are. Human caused habitat destruction is the major cause of bird/wildlife decline, followed by window strikes: “Muhlenberg College ornithologist Daniel Klem Jr. has been investigating the bird-window problem for decades, and he has found that highly reflective windows account for between 100 million and a billion bird deaths a year. That means that windows kill more birds in a year than windmills, cats, and cell phone towers. Combined.” The ABC has a real bias against cats. There’s a product out, the CatBib, that’s been shown to stop 81% of cats from killing any birds. The ABC will never mention it because it goes against their message to “keep cats indoors.”
Thanks for listening……..

]]>