By Lisette Mill,
Biodiversity Innovation Au

There are plenty of “bad cats in the bush” stories, and their impact is significant.^1,2 We know cats are responsible for killing more than 1.6 billion native animals every year – and that number isn’t going to change itself.¹ Yet we just hear the negative stories – a problem that needs to be addressed, not the positive steps that we as individuals can personally make to help change the big picture. As with reporting on the impacts of climate change or any other form of ‘bad news’ that people feel they have no stake in or control over, this drives audience disengagement.³

I think a part of that problem lies in environmental conservation messaging, which is focused on the idea that only experts or “big conservation” can address cat predation of native wildlife in Australia. These stories suggest ‘someone else is sorting it’, so communities think it’s in the hands of governments, conservation peak bodies, or local councils. This means local people aren’t stepping up to the responsibility of controlling local cats for positive change where they live and work.

Feral cat populations urgently need to be controlled. The challenge is enormous, and requires ‘boots on the ground’, yet nothing will change if we wait around for someone else to do something. We need the media, politicians, government, invasive species organisations, and conservation agencies to encourage and empower people to take individual responsibility in addressing the impacts of outdoor cats.

Progress may be possible when every Australian has an understanding, and ideally a direct experience, of the positive changes made for our native species when we remove exotic cats from the ecosystem as invasive predators. Animal management can be an intimidating activity to get started with, but there are simple tools and processes to help you get underway.

To demonstrate, here is my story of the excellent results to date from the local cage trapping of feral cats in a rural part of south-west Victoria called Laang. So far this year, we have trapped 13 cats in our garden. Of these, 12 were declared feral by Council Authorised Officers. 

Seeing the difference

Before I begin, I should stress that I don’t hate domestic cats! We also have our own pet cats, safely contained 24/7 indoors.

As a result of keeping our cats inside, cage trapping those in our garden, and a live trapping program for exotic black rats and mice, this year we have seen the return of native bush rats to our garden, who join the native swamp rats that came back last year. Those two native species will actively defend their territory to prevent the introduced black rats from re-establishing. 

Additionally, a small covey of native stubble quail has started to cross our lawn semi-regularly. When I garden or do anything outside, the little native birds follow me around. I have found that I no longer need to use pesticides for aphids, codling moths, pear slugs, or grapevine moths. I also don’t need to bait for slugs and snails anymore. 

Over summer this year, a wild blue tongue lizard started to come and share my fruit on the front step each morning. Native agile antechinus have adopted our verandah and machinery sheds, and hunt the insects and exotic mice that try to build up their numbers there. 

I recognise this sounds idyllic, but the reality is simply that removing invasive predators – in this case, introduced cats and rats – has given the indigenous ecosystem a chance to restore balance.

As you’d expect, I thought all of this was pretty good! We’ve set up cameras to monitor trails, and observe both the friendly and feral fauna. Recently, we saw something marvellous for the first time since a particular trail camera was installed in 2023: a tiny native sugar glider left the safety of the nearest tall trees on the road reserve 30m away, and came to our front step. It was deliberate.

To get to our step, this sugar glider had skipped across no-man’s land. For an animal who only has “flight” or “hide in a tree hollow” as a means of escape from a predatory cat, it represents a significant change in behaviour.

The glider had tried several times to try and get into the feral cat cage trap. We realised that it had followed the scent trail, to eat the little bits of raw meat I sprinkle outside the trap to lure cats (sugar gliders are omnivores).

Changing an established point of view

These sugar gliders, possums, skinks, lizards, native rodents, birds, frogs, bandicoots – all the native species – that can live with us in our local environments, most often don’t, because of cats. Feral, stray, and pet cats – there is little distinction when it comes to which group will catch and eat a native animal. When outdoors, your pet cat isn’t turning down a native bird because there’s tinned cat food at home.

I believe the reason that people don’t manage cats where we live is because not enough is said about the positive that comes when we do. 

There isn’t enough evidence shared of how a few simple actions can support the return of native animals to your local environment. The steps are easy:

• • Confine your own cats to your property.
    

    “Catios”, enclosed cat runs, and keeping cats indoors are all well-researched solutions to the very real problem of roaming cats killing wildlife. Cats cannot switch off their instinct to kill. Even very well-fed and pampered pet cats still kill/injure/terrify wildlife. Most of those incidents you will never see. Agriculture Victoria has a number of ideas available on their website.⁴

Our cats have adapted perfectly well to being indoor cats. Yours will too!

• Trap cats that come to your property.

  Talk to your local council – you may be able to borrow a cat trap from them. Alternatively, you can buy an approved humane cage trap and start catching cats. If a cat is on your property and not your cat, then you can legally cage trap it.
  
  From there, you contact your local council again and ask them to collect the trapped cat from the cage. They will check the cat for a microchip and, if no chip is detected, the cat will be impounded. If no owner comes to claim the cat, it will be either put up for adoption or, if injured/feral, it will be humanely euthanized by a vet.
  
  

  

  You can familiarise yourself with the cat ownership and control laws of Victoria,⁵ and talk to council local laws officers before you start cage trapping.

Practical tips for cage trapping cats

1. Have the right attitude. Just because the cat isn’t your pet and will kill natives, doesn’t mean you can be cruel. No hooks, no poisons, no leg-hold or illegal gin traps, no letting your pets harass a caught cat in the cage. Let your goal be to catch the cat on your property as quickly as possible, and hand it to the council with legislated authority as quickly as possible.
2. Be mindful that cats can carry and spread diseases. Cats can transmit the parasite Toxoplasma gondii to humans through contact with faeces. When handing a cage, and any parts that the cat has fouled, make sure you wear disposable gloves. To be safe, keep your pets and family away from the cat trap.
3. As a general rule of thumb, use a trap that at a minimum would fit the body of a Kelpie dog if it crawled inside.
4. Cover the trap exterior with an insulating shield, so that any cat trapped is not exposed to the weather. Wrapping the back half of the cage with a sunshade used in car windscreens can work well. Not only does it help keep the cat weather protected, it also protects it from other cats, dogs, foxes, and other animals that may try to harm it. The darkness of the cover also helps any cat trapped feel secure and calm. Again, don’t be cruel to the animal.
5. Use rubber matting or folded thick newspaper over the wire floor of the trap. Cats don’t like the feeling of wire on their feet. Make sure what you use isn’t covering the treadle plate that triggers the trap, or obstructing the door when it closes. If the floor covering gets ripped up and fouled, wear gloves to remove it and put it in the rubbish bin. Rubber mats last longer and they do not have to be removed after each cat. The scent a cat leaves in the trap will sometimes attract the next cat – especially territorial Tomcats.
6. Use any meat as bait. Fried chicken is good (de-bone so the cat does not choke). Raw mince, tinned mackerel, and commercial cat food are also good. Different meats work on different cats, so if you have a cat visiting and it doesn’t get caught with the meat you used after 16 hours in the trap, remove the meat and try a different one. Don’t leave the meat you use in the trap until it becomes rancid – fresh is best.
7. Set your trap in a place on your property where it is sheltered from human view and roaming dogs, but where a cat has free access to it. Secure it to a fixed object with a bike lock if you’re worried about it being stolen.
8. Only set up traps on your private property. You can only legally trap cats where you are the property owner.
9. Check the trap every eight to twelve hours. Some cats only come at night. If so, only set the trap at dusk and check first thing in the morning. Traps catch things other than cats, so you need to be home and checking and releasing any non-cats caught in a timely fashion to minimise harm. This is especially important in very cold or hot weather.

Positivity for the future

Looking back over this year and seeing now what a difference cage trapping feral cats has made to the lives of the free living wild native fauna using our property, I can see it has all been worth it. Onwards.

I know that I cannot win the big war on cats in Australia by myself. But I can win it here, and that is what matters to the wild things here with us in this place we call home. You can win at your place too – we can all support native species where we live.

–

Lisette Mill is an inventor, innovator, and conservation consultant. Her business, Biodiversity Innovation Au, advises on invasives, shelterbelts, and conducts biodiversity surveys. Current projects: Canid Pest Ejector lure trails, Bandicoot Motels, salt marsh fauna surveys, Farm Biodiversity Action Planning, and Pop-Up-Puddle Biodiversity Survey Kits.

Follow Lisette’s regular posts on LinkedIn (linkedin.com/in/lisette-mill/) or email [email protected] 

References:

1. Tackling the Feral Cat Pandemic: A Plan to Save Australian Wildlife. (2020). Commonwealth of Australia. aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Former_Committees/Environment_and_Energy/Feralanddomesticcats/Report
   
2. Legge, S., et al. (2020). Cat-dependent diseases cost Australia AU$6 billion per year through impacts on human health and livestock production. Wildlife Research, 47(8), 731. https://doi.org/10.1071/wr20089
   
3. Why Constructive Journalism? (2024) Constructive Institute. https://constructiveinstitute.org/why/
   
4. Free standing cat enclosure. (2020, September 1). Agriculture Victoria. https://agriculture.vic.gov.au/livestock-and-animals/animal-welfare-victoria/cats/enclosures-and-fencing/free-standing-cat-enclosure
   
5. Legal requirements for cat owners. (2022, January 10). Agriculture Victoria. https://agriculture.vic.gov.au/livestock-and-animals/animal-welfare-victoria/cats/legal-requirements/legal-requirements-for-cat-owners