The Implications of Policies on the Welfare of Free-Roaming Cats in New Zealand

Audience segmentation of New Zealand cat owners: Understanding the barriers and drivers of cat containment behavior

Free-roaming companion cats have a detrimental impact on the environment and are at risk of harm. Despite these negative impacts, it is the norm in New Zealand (NZ) to allow companion cats to roam freely and only a minority of cat owners practice cat containment. This study firstly sought to identify what factors act as barriers and drivers of NZ owners' participation in cat containment, and secondly whether NZ owners could be segmented into unique audiences based on the factors predicting their cat containment behavior. It was hypothesized that cat owners with greater capability, opportunity, and motivation to perform cat containment would have greater cat containment intentions and behavior. Furthermore, it was expected that at least three segments of cat owners would exist in NZ which differed significantly in the set of capability, opportunity and motivational factors predicting their cat containment behavior. A quantitative online cross-sectional survey of 395 NZ cat owners was conducted, measuring containment intentions and behavior, and capability, opportunity, and motivation to perform cat containment. Results from bivariate correlations and multiple regression demonstrated that capability, opportunity, and motivational factors predicted increased cat containment intentions and behavior. Latent profile analysis identified four distinct segments of cat owners with unique COM profiles; engaged (6%), receptive (17%), ambivalent (48%), and opposed (30%). Validation analysis demonstrated that these groups all differed significantly in their cat containment intentions and behaviors. From these findings theoretically grounded behavior change interventions can be developed to target the causes of non-participation in cat containment for each of the identified cat owner segments, thereby improving the management of free-roaming cats in NZ.

Detection of extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli genes isolated from cat rectal swabs at Surabaya Veterinary Hospital, Indonesia

Background and Aim

Escherichia coli causes a bacterial illness that frequently affects cats. Diseases caused by E. coli are treated using antibiotics. Because of their proximity to humans, cats possess an extremely high risk of contracting antibiotic resistance genes when their owners touch cat feces containing E. coli that harbor resistance genes. This study was conducted to identify multidrug-resistant E. coli and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing genes from cat rectal swabs collected at Surabaya City Veterinary Hospital to determine antibiotic sensitivity.

Materials and Methods

Samples of cat rectal swabs were cultured in Brilliant Green Bile Lactose Broth medium and then streaked on eosin methylene blue agar medium for bacterial isolation, whereas Gram-staining and IMViC tests were conducted to confirm the identification results. The Kirby-Bauer diffusion test was used to determine antibiotic sensitivity, and the double-disk synergy test was used to determine ESBL-producing bacteria. Molecular detection of the genes TEM and CTX-M was performed using a polymerase chain reaction.

Results

Based on morphological culture, Gram-staining, and biochemical testing, the results of sample inspection showed that of the 100 cat rectal swab samples isolated, 71 (71%) were positive for E. coli. Furthermore, 23 E. coli isolates (32.39%) demonstrated the highest resistance to ampicillin. Four isolates were confirmed to be multidurg-resistant and ESBL-producing strains. Molecular examination revealed that three E. coli isolates harbored TEM and CTX-M.

Conclusion

In conclusion, pet owners must be educated on the use of antibiotics to improve their knowledge about the risks of antibiotic resistance.

A retrospective study of native wild birds and reptiles admitted to three New Zealand wildlife hospitals due to predation by cats

AIMS

To investigate the types of wildlife affected and outcomes of hospitalisation for native wild birds and reptiles admitted to three wildlife hospitals in New Zealand following predation by cats.

METHODS

We reviewed hospital records of three wildlife hospitals (Wildbase Hospital (WBH) in Palmerston North; The Wildlife Hospital - Dunedin (DWH); and The Nest Te Kōhanga (TNTK) in Wellington) for cases of native species with a submission history or diagnosis of predation by cats over the period 2006-2022. Frequency analysis and cross-tabulation of the data were carried out using the factors wildlife hospital, animal order, species, and case outcome.

RESULTS

Native wildlife (n = 639) presented following predation by cats to the three wildlife hospitals comprised 598 (93.6%) birds from 31 species and 41 (6.4%) reptiles from eight species. The mortality rate of these patients combined was 61.8% (395/639), with the other 38.2% (244/639) being released from hospital to rehabilitation facilities, released to the wild, or, for a small number, put into permanent captive placements. The most common species of birds admitted due to predation by cats were tūī (Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae; n = 173), silvereyes (Zosterops lateralis; n = 142), sacred kingfishers (Todiramphus sanctus; n = 100) and kererū (Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae; n = 70). There was an overall trend to increasing numbers of wildlife admitted for predation by cats over the period of this review, but the different operating periods of the three hospitals should be considered. Each of the three hospitals saw a different mix of species, with Wellington's TNTK seeing the widest diversity of species affected.

CONCLUSIONS

Predation by cats was a common cause of native birds and reptiles being admitted to all three wildlife hospitals and a diversity of urban and rural wildlife were affected.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE

Predation by cats causes significant mortality in wildlife patients admitted to wildlife hospitals despite best current treatment. Cat management strategies in Aotearoa New Zealand should consider the welfare and health of wildlife.

Intensive Adoption as a Management Strategy for Unowned, Urban Cats: A Case Study of 25 Years of Trap-Assess-Resolve (TAR) in Auckland, New Zealand

Globally, unowned urban cats are a major concern because they may suffer from poor welfare and cause problems, including public health risks, nuisances, and urban wildlife predation. While management options are often presented as a choice between culling or trap−neuter−return (TNR), for 25 years, the Lonely Miaow (Inc.) charity in Auckland, New Zealand (hereafter LM), has used a third strategy—intensive adoption or trap−assess−resolve (TAR). As of 2019, of 14,611 unowned cats trapped, 64.2% were adopted, 22.2% were euthanized if unsocialised or in grave ill-health, 5.7% were neutered and returned to the site, and 7.9% had other outcomes, such as being transferred to other shelters. Adoption rates increased over this time, exceeding 80.0% in 2018 and 2019. The cost of processing each cat from capture to adoption rose from NZD 58 in 1999 to NZD 234 by 2017. Approximately 80% of colonies (sites where cats were trapped) were around residential areas. Approximately 22% of cats required veterinary treatment after capture; common ailments included respiratory infections, ringworm, dental problems, and trauma. Consistently, 52% of cats were young kittens (<10 weeks old), c. 80% of cats were <1 year old, and only c. 2% were estimated to be >5 years old. TAR avoids euthanasia where possible. Its effectiveness would be enhanced by fewer abandonments of owned cats and kittens, fitting within integrated strategies for the control of unowned cats involving community education. Cat adoptions improve the welfare of cats and, with appropriate husbandry, should alleviate concerns about nuisances, public health, and attacks on wildlife or the cats themselves, essentially benefitting the community and the cats. This case study is relevant to other cities around the world that are seeking to manage unowned cats.