New Zealand village plans ban on new domestic cats: Report
File photo of a kitten on Aug 4, 2018. (Photo: AFP / Hasan JAMALI)
SINGAPORE: A village in New Zealand has caused controversy amid plans to ban all new domestic cats as part of efforts to prevent them from preying on native wildlife, according to local media.
Residents in Omaui, a village in New Zealand's Southland region, have said they will "actively petition" the plan proposed by Environment Southland on banning new domestic cats in the area, the Otago Daily Times reported on Wednesday (Aug 29).
According to the report, the plan proposes that existing cats in the area should be neutered, microchipped and registered with the council, and that no cat should be replaced after it dies.
Anyone not complying will receive a notice to do so, and as an "absolute last resort", authorities will step in to remove the cat, Environment Southland biosecurity operations manager Ali Meade told the news outlet.
The biosecurity operations manager also told Newshub that Omaui was home to native bush and nature reserves which have to be protected.
"There's cats getting into the native bush; they're preying on native birds, they're taking insects, they're taking reptiles - all sorts of things. They're doing quite a bit of damage," she told the news organisation.
Omaui Landcare Charitable Trust chairman John Collins, who championed the push for the ban, said removing the cats would enable native animals to thrive, the Otago Daily Times reported.
"We're not cat haters, but we want our environment to be wildlife-rich," he told the news outlet.
"Native wildlife is disappearing rapidly around the country and places like this where people still live and enjoy and hear the birdsong are probably few and far between."
Native birds had been "ripped to pieces" by cats on his front lawn, he added.
Resident Nico Jarvis told Newshub that the plan had come as an "absolute shock".
"I feel a bit hoodwinked to be honest."
Residents have two months to voice their views on the ban, Newshub added.
