Cat lovers decried this report as fear-mongering, anti-cat PR, but in Florida, the report could influence a piece of legislation that's kicking around Tallahassee. Zhang, J.; Jin, Z.; Sun, G.-Q. See id. Cases are scarce, and the cases that do exist are unpublished and highly fact-specific. Simultaneously, this system would allow the casual good Samaritan to feed a feral cat without fear of liability. Global Ecology and Conservation 2018, 15, e00413. Second, the article addresses the question of whether feral cat keepers or caretakers can be held civilly liable for the actions of feral cats. Free-ranging domestic cats (Felis catus) on public lands: estimating density, activity, and diet in the Florida Keys. CA - Cats - Consolidated Cat Laws | Animal Legal & Historical Center Feral cats are included in many anti-cruelty laws but may be specifically excluded in certain provisions. In Fiori , a customer sued a store owner after the customer was attacked by a cat that had taken up residence in the store and was being fed by store employees. Today more than 800,000 people look to Alley Cat Allies for leadership on saving cats lives, developing communities that safeguard cats, and helping shelters embrace feline-friendly policies. Summary. Implementation of a Feral Cat Management Program on a University Campus. The Tennessee Court of Appeals recently held that a cat's owner did not owe a duty to prevent her cat from trespassing on her neighbor's property. Code 14-8-2-87 (2009 ); Wild Mammals, Defined, Neb. It is possible, then, that individuals who care for feral cats in these jurisdictions would not be required to comply with any of the requirements imposed on animal owners, nor would they be liable for any damages caused by the animals behavior. C. G. S. A. Step outside, close the door behind you, and politely ask the officer if you can read the search warrant. C. 8217 . You want to have all the information so you can provide it to your attorney later. at 97374, 966. More likely, the officer is just making a request. Only in emergency situations (called exigent circumstances) may an officer search your property without a warrant. An SNR program - Spay, Neuter, Release - is also a good way to reduce the numbers of feral cats in a given area. Under this regime, if a keeper or caretaker has given a feral cat food and water every day for several years and has provided the animal with periodic veterinary care, that person is more likely to be viewed as an ownerand subject to liabilitythan a person who has merely fed a feral cat once a day for six months. (The Center Square) - An animal rights group is applauding a policy change by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources regarding feral cats that could save taxpayers money. Until then, however, only the courts can provide clearer guidance for keepers and caretakers in common law jurisdictions. The key question in either case is whether the owner has a duty to control the cat's behavior. EcoHealth 2013, 113. Therefore, in the absence of a specific statute defining the rights and responsibilities of feral cat caretakers, an individual who regularly cares for feral may not qualify as an owner or a legally designated caretaker. The question, then, is what will a court in a common law jurisdiction do when faced with a feral cat keeper or caretaker who has exhibited greater evidence of ownership than the defendant in Baker ? Id. Conservation Biology 2012, 25, 808815. Further, the cases that do exist have been based on specific local laws, making it more difficult to determine what a judge might do in the absence of such a statute. Likewise, an Ohio appellate court has upheld a local ordinance that made it a criminal offense for, among other things, an owner, keeper or harborer of a cat to allow the cat to run at large. Remember: You dont have to give permission just because they ask for it. /* Content Template: Content template for Resources - end */ Are stray or feral cats dangerous to humans and public health? Neutering of feral cats as an alternative to eradication programs. You may exercise your right to remain silent like in the examples above. Levy, J.K.; Isaza, N.M.; Scott, K.C. Although their research methods did not allow them to evaluate the programs impact on the population of campus cats two years later, researchers noted that, based on the decrease in the number of complaints those [cats] who remain are less of a nuisance than previously they were [2]. However, on . [d]oes not become a public nuisance, does not run at large, and [d]oes not defecate on the property of another . Recent laws may not yet be included in the ILCS database, but they are found on this site as. As discussed above, this varying degree of control over feral cats is why common law jurisdictions are likely to determine liability based on the amount of control that a particular keeper or caretaker has exercised. Detailed Discussion of Feral Cat Legal Issues | Animal Legal Feral cats are among the most prolific predators of numerous near-extinct native forest birds. ; Schauber, E.M. Second, keepers and caretakers do not exercise the level of control over feral cats that owners of wild animals exercise over those animals. You: Could I see the warrant, please? St. 37-246 (2008). These cats damaged the plaintiffs home, destroying insulation, a vapor barrier, and duct work. And the fact is that you can not tell the difference between a wild cat and a domestic cat. In contrast, keepers and caretakers usually care for feral cats where they find them, exercising a limited degree of control over the animals. Exceptions: Special area restriction apply in Unit 14C Source Arizona - AZ Species you can Trap: Small game (cottontail rabbits and tree squirrels), skunks, muskrats, badger beavers, raccoons, and weasels require a permit to trap. When included as part of targeted TNR efforts, regular feeding of free-roaming cats can reduce potential impacts on public health, wildlife, and the environment because targeted TNR efforts can be implemented more efficiently when cats are fed regularly. Owned cats, even those who live primarily indoors, are at risk of being impounded if they slip outside and are not wearing a collar and license. Anything you say in an interaction with the authorities could inadvertently reveal something unhelpful to your case or give them grounds for a more extensive search. In the US, the debate about free-roaming cats has been raging for years. Reducing Feral Cat Threats To Native Wildlife In Hawaii; University of Hawaii at Hilo Pacific Aquaculture and Coastal Resources Center: Hilo, HI, 2008. On the other hand, in cases like McElroy where the owner had no reason to foresee any damage or injury that her cat might cause, a court may be unlikely to find that such a duty exists. Similarly, Delaware defines a keeper of a stray cat as any person who has possession of or control over the animal and has fed the cat for three or more consecutive days. Feb. 16, 2007). Three years later, nocturnal vocalizing had been greatly reduced and was not detected by the authors at any time during the three-year census [3]. St. 37-246 (2008). Do not touch or threaten officers or neighbors. I would like a copy of it. Silva-Rodrguez, E.A. And results of various other studies [17,18] demonstrate an increased difficulty trapping feral cats in more remote natural areas, where the cats are not likely being fed by humans. Local authorities, often in the form of an animal control agency are charged with enforcing laws related to the control and impoundment of animalsincluding laws that may affect the feeding, spaying and neutering, and care of outdoor cats. A wild animal is an animal that belongs to a category of animals that have not been generally domesticated and that are likely, unless restrained, to cause personal injury. Restatement (Third) of Torts: Physical and Emotional Harm 22(b) (2005) . Restrictions or outright bans on feeding stray or feral cats are typically proposed in response to complaints about the presence of unowned, free-roaming cats. Therefore, a notice requirement like that suggested by the Baker court would have to be drafted carefully to avoid creating a significant burden on potential feral cat caretakers. . You cannot trap a cat and then shoot it if the cat is trapped on your property. In 2007, the Texas legislature amended its animal protection statute to include feral cats and dogs in the statutes definition of animal. This amendment was passed in response to several instances in which juries acquitted defendants who were accused of cruelty to feral animals because feral animals were not explicitly protected by the states animal cruelty statute. Third, the article discusses the ways in which feral cat keepers or caretakers may be exposed to criminal liability for abandonment, neglect, or failure to comply with state or local animal ownership requirements. Under section 235 (4), any owner whose dog is found to have caused damage to a person, livestock, or other property shall be responsible for that damage. This ordinance clearly outlined the rights and duties of feral cat caretakers, giving the judge a legal basis for deciding whether the defendant was liable for damage to the plaintiff's property. Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Preventive Medicine; 3rd ed. ; Nutter, F.B. Concern for animal welfare is typically the driving force behind feral cat legislation, but it is important that animal welfare advocates adequately address the concerns of property owners who may be adversely affected by feral cat colonies. As communities across the U.S. consider how best to manage their population of unowned, free-roaming cats, an option often proposed is an outright ban on residents feeding feral animals. The relevant science suggests, however, that such policies are not only unlikely to reduce free-roaming cat populations but might actually backfire, increasing their numbers. The statute defines a keeper as any person or organization, harboring, regularly feeding or having in his or its possession any feral cat. The law further clarifies that an individual is more likely to qualify as a keeper if she attempts to prevent an animal control officer from impounding feral cats. Kass, P.H. Someone who cares for a feral cat is likely to limit her activity to feeding, watering, and in some cases spaying or neutering the animal. We seek to change them into positive laws that save animals and meet the needs of cats, caregivers, owners, and the community at large. Laws affecting Trap-Neuter-Return and outdoor cats are different in every city and state. In that sense, they are unlikely to pose a serious threat to humans, and any risk that they do pose is likely to be understood by the general public. Ct. Mar. , No. TNR/Community Cat Care Financial Resources, How Rescuers Can Effectively Adopt Out Cats, Debunking the Myths and Misinformation: Cat Predation, Solutions to Prevent Surrendering your cat, Press Release on African Wildcat Campaign, Differences between AWCs and domestic cats, click here to see why feeding bans do not work, http://cfa.org/Portals/0/documents/legislative/cat-leash-laws.pdf, https://idfg.idaho.gov/question/it-legal-kill-feral-cats, http://www.accord3.com/docs/TNR%20Law%20Kortis.pdf, http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/pets/feral-cats/nirenburg_hsus_cat_outdoors.pdf. A further problem is the relatively limited degree of control exercised by the defendant in Baker . When damage to property or persons is reasonably foreseeable, a court in these jurisdictions could impose civil liability on keepers and caretakers for breaching their duty to control the feral cats in their care. Similarly, Kentucky has enacted a statute that states, [a]ny person with feral cats on his premises shall make a reasonable effort to capture or vaccinate the cats. KY ST 258.015 . Often known as leash laws, these regulations prohibit cats from being loose in the community. Make sure to keep your attorneys phone number and name handy. Hughes, K.L. The court further suggested that counties might resolve this problem by modifying their feral cat ordinances to require feral cat caretakers to notify neighbors of the colony's existence, the potential for damage from such a colony, and appropriate preventative measures that could be taken. Id. A recent landscape-scale camera-trap study across 16 counties in southern Illinois, for instance, found that 75% of cat detections occurred no more than 0.32 miles from human-made structures and never more than 0.83 miles from such structures [10]. When they do attempt to resolve these issues, judges and legislatures must take care to ensure that the legal regime they impose on feral cat keepers and caretakers is not overly burdensome. Animal Control: "We have a search warrant for this home." You: Scientists are calling for a widespread cull of feral cats and dogs, pigs, goats, and rats and mice to save the endangered species they prey upon. Thus, the most rational way to determine ownership of feral cats is to use a modified version of the legal regime for owners of domestic animals, in which courts look at the extent to which a particular keeper or caretaker has exercised control over a feral cat and then imposes limited liability in a way that reflects that level of ownership. Even in common law jurisdictions, the scarcity of published judicial opinions makes it difficult to determine what a judge will decide in a particular case. Further, the court stated that the plaintiffs claim of severe emotional distress that arises out of the alleged nuisance of having to deal with a large number of cats on their property . Stoskopf, M.K. Two researchers undertaking a detailed study of TNR in Randolph County, North Carolina, noted, for example, their remarkable success trapping feral cats perhaps because the cats were well acclimated to humans and used to being fed in particular locations [16]. Based on . "Feral cat" means a cat that (i) is born in the wild or is the offspring of an owned or feral cat and is not socialized, or (ii) is a formerly owned cat that has been abandoned and is no longer socialized or lives on a farm.