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NorseTikiBar t1_ivzmrrz wrote

Feral cat colonies and "blue-collar" cats are very much still a thing.

17

boceephus t1_ivzpcfi wrote

Maybe a program reestablishing a healthy population of black rat snakes, or long tail weasels. Those are some real rat sized animal hunters. Also, they are native species of animals that historically lived in our area.

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wowihaveanopinion t1_ivzqykh wrote

Replying to boceephus (#504,056)

all the long tail weasels are on capitol hill. easy to find - and you just bait them with wads of cash. if it’s a Gaetz you’re gonna wanna use an underage girl on a 50,000lb test yacht. sorry i thought this was the local fishing/embezzlement sub.

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gator_fl t1_ivztct1 wrote

No, cats don't real keep rat populations down.

There are million dollar-plus non-profits who work to find feral cats abd have them adopted and DC does help.

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gator_fl t1_ivzzi3i wrote

Replying to BoredHangry (#504,642)

Interesting you say "problem"; those orgs are looking for the best welfare of fetal cats and humans (yes, diseases from cats and garbage they rummage thru).

Cats running around on city streets is not what is best.

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super_robotic t1_iw03694 wrote

Today was the first time I've ever seen a large rat out in mid-afternoon just hanging out on the sidewalk on 15th and K downtown. I wanted to believe it was a squirrel (it wasn't)

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Ro-Ro-Ro-Ro-Rhoda t1_iw03dlp wrote

Call HRA and see if you can get a semi-feral cat: you put out food and water and the cat hangs out with you and keeps your local rodents scared. Basically a stray that isn't traditionally adoptable.

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Playful-Translator49 t1_iw04vmt wrote

Dc has a program blue collar alley cats you can request one for your business. Also, we have colonies of feral cats in my neighborhood there’s usually a local who feeds them some. Might be through the humane rescue alliance they come and tip their ears and give them shots.

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gutterbrain73 t1_iw0bzxf wrote

Cats don’t take on adult rats. They’re more mouse-focused.

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202markb t1_iw0oh8t wrote

Some people thought the cats kept down the rat population, others thought the cats were starving and tried to feed them. They ended up feeding the rats. Yet others highlighted to (truly astounding) numbers of native wildlife that cats kill, aside from rats.

0

pengo242 t1_iw1bcma wrote

Cats are domestic animals, not meant to be stray. They die young that way. Stray rat terriers would work better but it's obvious how dumb that sounds, as is this suggestion

4

Worf0fWallStreet t1_iw2fp38 wrote

I wasn’t looking down when I was walking in Dupont last night and I stepped on a dead rat and some insides squished to become outsides. It was not great. Nope.

2

t00100t t1_iw2k5dd wrote

Outdoor cats are the reason many bird species are dying. We are better off finding a different solution

3

FetchingSparrow t1_iw2lwl8 wrote

Studies have shown (easy google search) that free-roaming cats kill billions of wildlife every year and are responsible for around 60 species’ extinctions.

Edit: Others are right when they say to bring back natural predators of rats (snakes and such). There is also a rat contraceptive program that has recently been started.

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shackleford_rusty t1_iw3hu1i wrote

Replying to EternalMoonChild (#510,999)

I'm not the authority, my girlfriend is more of a cat expert than I'll ever be, but as I understand it, the ear clip means the cat has been trapped, neutered or spayed, and released back to its feral colony/its feral existence. We've fostered some cats that have had the ear clip before, and they've gone from the shelter to us to their forever homes.

It's also not a wholly missing ear tip, in case anyone misunderstands, but a little nick in the tip of the ear to denote their neuter/spay status.

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