Stupid Wisconsin Law: meow meow, BANG!

[Kwajman]

Lets here it from all you hunters and animal lovers!!

Firefighter seeks law legalizing hunting of stray cats

Associated Press
Mar. 7, 2005 10:26 AM

MADISON, Wis. - Hunter Mark Smith welcomes wild birds on to his property, but if he sees a cat, he thinks the "invasive" animal should be considered fair game.

The 48-year-old firefighter from La Crosse has proposed that hunters in Wisconsin make free-roaming domestic cats an "unprotected species" that could be shot at will by anyone with a hunting license.

His proposal will be placed before hunters on April 11 at the Wisconsin Conservation Congress spring hearings in each of the state's 72 counties.


"I get up in the morning and if there's new snow, there's cat tracks under my bird feeder ... I look at them as an invasive species, plain and simple," Smith said.

Smith's proposal has horrified cat lovers, but is seen by others as a way to stop cats from killing wild birds.

University of Wisconsin-Madison wildlife ecology professor Stanley Temple, who trapped more than 100 cats and analyzed their stomach contents during a four-year study, has estimated that between 7.8 million and 219 million birds are killed by rural cats in Wisconsin each year.

"It's obviously a very controversial proposal," Temple said, but added, "I think there really is a basis for having a debate about it. If we can shoot nuisance racoons and deer, why not cats."


"We (the DNR) don't have authority to regulate domestic animals. Legislation would have to be passed to accomplish this," Andryk said. "This might be an option of getting rid of cats."

But Temple said he thinks legislation is not needed. He said the department does have the authority to declare rural cats an unprotected species - because unclaimed cats can be considered non-native wildlife species like house mice, Norway rats, pigeons and starlings.

"If they are not a pet, if somebody doesn't claim ownership, they become a non-native wildlife species and not entitled to protection by the state," he said.

Cat enthusiasts Cheryl Balazs, Ted O'Donnell and Adam Bauknecht are trying to organize opposition to Smith's proposal.

O'Donnell said Smith's proposal "is a callous response" to the problem of cats preying on wild birds.

"There's more humane solutions," he said. "We as citizens should step up and solve the problem humanely."

Sheri Carr, senior humane officer at the Dane County Humane Society, said the group has not yet taken a position on the proposal, but wants cat owners to abide by their local ordinances and not let their animals roam. Currently it is not illegal for cats to be outdoors un-leashed but it is illegal for dogs.

Under the new law, any cat not on a leash or attended by its owner would be "fair game" for hunters.

"I would hate to think that tame, owned cats who happen to slip out would be at risk of being deemed a wild, unprotected species," Carr said. "It's a delicate (ecological) balance out there, but does that mean people should be able to shoot their neighbor's cat? Probably not."


Woo hoo, here in wisconsin hunters shoot anything that moves. I'm sure they could get some good recipes.

[Kinjiro Tsukasa]

O'Donnell said Smith's proposal "is a callous response" to the problem of cats preying on wild birds.

"There's more humane solutions," he said. "We as citizens should step up and solve the problem humanely."

What he said. ^^^^

"I would hate to think that tame, owned cats who happen to slip out would be at risk of being deemed a wild, unprotected species," Carr said. "It's a delicate (ecological) balance out there, but does that mean people should be able to shoot their neighbor's cat? Probably not."

And what she said. ^^^^

It's things like this that make me glad I live within city limits. Nobody is shooting anything in my neighborhood, not without attracting a lot of police attention.

{{So that hunter wants to shoot cats; let me at him -- I'll tear him to pieces with my fangs and claws! }}

[Cougar_v203]

KITTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! POOOOOOOOR QUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Kwajman]

KT, I knew you'd pop in. This article was one of those, I can't believe what I'm reading stories.

[Omicron]

God bless America.

[Knight_Errant]

You know you're a redneck when you shoot cats for being on your property.

[Kwan Jang]

Personally, I think it makes more sense for it to be legal for me to hunt down and kill stupid rednecks.

[oldshadow]

I agree there are more humane ways to deal with the problem but it does depend on where you live. We live in a suburb now and have 3 cats, which stay in doors. We have had one get out and it took a couple of days to get him back. Having lived in the country I know that sometimes you have to deal with domestic animals that have been turned lose or gotten away then turned wild. It was and still is a practice to shoot wild dogs, as they are a danger to live stock and people when they pack up. Wild cats will raid farms for chickens and such so they are dealt with the same as foxes and such.

[Cougar_v203]

Originally Posted by Knight_Errant

You know you're a redneck when you shoot cats for being on your property.

LOL!

[Fish Of Doom]

dude that dude is stupid, if he shoots cats that eat wild birds(which they do since they evolved into cats, it's one of their normal, natural diets for pity's sake), I shoot him and his hunter buddies who hunt and kill dozens of different wild animals just for sport , usually without much pupose other than fun.

stupid rednecks

if i had a cat that went walking though the streets and that guy shot it i think i'd uttely destroy him...

i like animals...

i like cats...

KITTY!!!!!!!

[AZeitung]

I was flipping through the channels and heard something about a man in Michigan getting shot by his cat. Apparently he had his gun sitting on the kitchen counter, the cat knocked it over, and it shot him. If only that had happened one state to the left, the irony would have been perfect.

[JTiedes]

Originally Posted by Fish Of Doom

I shoot him and his hunter buddies who hunt and kill dozens of different wild animals just for sport , usually without much pupose other than fun.

people who hunt ususally do not do so purely for sports sake. 9 times out of 10 if you find a hunter, and ask them why they hunt the answer is" i like to" and "for the meat". i have a decent number of freinds who hunt, i have nothing against it.
personally i think this is a good proposal. feral cats are just as detrimental to the environment and a farmers lively hood as feral dogs, which people are allowed to shoot when they enter their property. no one seems to complain about the dogs being shot. or if they do, its because its being done in their neighbor hood.
in my area, there is a town called manlius. we had a few packs of coyotes that roamed the area. the town hired a man to hunt them. of course there was huge public outcry. but it wasnt that people didnt want the coyotes killed, it was that the man with a gun in their nieghborhood scared them. personally growing up in an area where coyotes presented an actual threat ( Suburbs of San Diego, the Sera Mesa area, about 20 miles from the us mexico border) i was probably the only person who spoke up about how the coyotes schould be killed.

Originally Posted by Fish Of Doom

they evolved into cats

well we evolved into humans, and humans invented guns, im going to use the full extent of the gifts god gave me and my species in order to make my existance on earth as pleasant as possible

[Fish Of Doom]

Originally Posted by JTiedes

people who hunt ususally do not do so purely for sports sake. 9 times out of 10 if you find a hunter, and ask them why they hunt the answer is" i like to" and "for the meat". i have a decent number of freinds who hunt, i have nothing against it.
personally i think this is a good proposal. feral cats are just as detrimental to the environment and a farmers lively hood as feral dogs, which people are allowed to shoot when they enter their property. no one seems to complain about the dogs being shot. or if they do, its because its being done in their neighbor hood.
in my area, there is a town called manlius. we had a few packs of coyotes that roamed the area. the town hired a man to hunt them. of course there was huge public outcry. but it wasnt that people didnt want the coyotes killed, it was that the man with a gun in their nieghborhood scared them. personally growing up in an area where coyotes presented an actual threat ( Suburbs of San Diego, the Sera Mesa area, about 20 miles from the us mexico border) i was probably the only person who spoke up about how the coyotes schould be killed.

sorry about the misconceptions , i as talking about those kinds of guys that kill everything in sight just to decorate all possible walls and make rugs just about filling their houses and leave the bodies to whatever unknown fates they may have(i sure would not eat elephant or giraffe for example), but still there IS that 1 out of the other 10, and i don't think that the guy is planning to eat the cats is he?.

and i would have also spoken against the coyotes as well, but shooting cats is another thing, especially when some of those cats may be domestic cats and have a family, i would not like to see what remains of that guy when the owners of the dead cats finish with him.
wild animals are another thing though, but still you can't shoot an animal just because it entered you house without knowing if it was domestic or not, domestic cats run fee all the time and return when they want, unless they're garfield :P

Originally Posted by JTiedes

well we evolved into humans, and humans invented guns, im going to use the full extent of the gifts god gave me and my species in order to make my existance on earth as pleasant as possible

yeah well a cat eating it's nomal diet shouldn't make your existance any less pleasant, methinks , when humans eat lots of other animals that come fom all over the world, cooked with lots of stuff.

[Knight_Errant]

Personally, I think it makes more sense for it to be legal for me to hunt down and kill stupid rednecks.

Damn straight

[kungfufighter]

Originally Posted by Knight_Errant

You know you're a redneck when you shoot cats for being on your property.

hahaha, true, very true.

Personally, I think it makes more sense for it to be legal for me to hunt down and kill stupid rednecks.

LOL, i agree