First heat
If you’ve got a little female puppy at home, first heat might catch you off guard, so it’s not a bad idea to make some preparations ahead.
New Zealand: Cats out of law
In some areas of New Zealand, cats are already forbidden and in several decades, you may not come across any in the whole country. Are you interested in what makes New Zealanders create these rules?
New Zealanders love cats. You’ll find at least one in almost a half of the households and they take keeping them very seriously. For example, New Zealand Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals recommends neutring and emphasizes that inhabitants should not forget about their pets even in emergency scenarios, e.g. for an earthquake.
The regulations and recommendations for keeping cats differ in various regions and cities. They often order neutering cats not intended for breeding, the obligation to have a microchip and there are sometimes also limits on the number of cats in a household or the prohibition of free movement of cats overnight.
These measures usually aim to protect cats themselves, to prevent health risks, not to disturb neighbours and to protect original bird populations. And it's also for the birds that the regional council of Omaui on the South Island wants to prohibit cats at all. Nowadays, all cats have to be neutered, registered, have microchips and getting new cats will be prohibited.
As everyone knows, cats are natural hunters and they largely contributed to the extinction of several dozens of birds, reptiles and mammals. According to biodiversity experts, if cats were absent from New Zealand, it would mean a great improvement for local nature. This local suggestion follows the New Zealand plan which aims to get rid of many predators which are not natural there such as cats, rats, brown rats or weasels by 2050.
By all means, Omaui is not the first region which wants to prohibit cats. For example, Kapiti island prohibited cats in 1934 already and the largest New Zealand city of Auckland has a rule which says that each cat without a microchip captured in an environmentally valuable area is put down.
The sad truth is that cats really contribute to the extinction of species to a large extent. According to a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, they managed to contribute to the extinction of 63 animal species worldwide in only 500 years. The most endangered are island species, for example those on Madagascar or New Zealand. When an unknown predator (a cat in this case) gets to their isolated space, they got no chance.
That’s why it’s understandable that New Zealanders want to eliminate this “foreign beast of prey” even though they love them. Is this the only solution? What do you think?
Related articles
Dogs at work
Domestic dog is the oldest domesticated animal and it has provided accompaniment to humans for 14 thousand years at the minimum. During this time, it underwent numerous changes and a long development. All the dog breeds of today are a result of human...
How to tame a chinchilla? Guard yourself with patience
With their appearance, the chinchillas just attract cuddling. They look a bit like plush toys and their eyes like beads give them a friendly and a kind-hearted look. But don’t let yourself be fooled! These rodents are definitely no phlegmatic pets with...
Dogs and horses
I am not much of a horse person, but from time to time, I like to go horse riding. Usually, I leave my fuzzy friends at home. The presence of horses upsets them. When I was getting my dog fellows, I didn’t think about the fact that not all the breeds...
Dogs may be more similar to humans than we had thought
Like master, like dog. You have probably heard before from someone that your dog fits you very well or maybe even, that you look alike. At least to me, it happens very often. However, that dogs sometimes tend to behave like people and they resemble us...
Why do dogs dig?
If you take pride in your nicely groomed garden and your dog belongs to the category of the so-called diggers, it probably doesn’t make you very happy. However, frantic digging in earth doesn’t please not even us, who wink at a few holes in the grass....
How to train calling with a whistle?
Calling a dog is without any doubt one of the most important commands that the dog should reliably master at any situation. Most often, we call the dog using the command “come”, but we can also emphasise it with a whistle. It pays off mainly in...
Five myths about dogs
I have always thought, that I know my four-legged fellows to their last hair, but there’s always something that manages to surprise me and there’s always a lot to learn from them. Some of the myths are so deep-rooted, that one doesn’t even fall upon...
How do the dogs and cats hear?
Simply put: much better, than us, humans. And cats even hear much better than dogs. But from experience, I can say, that it also depends on what and whom they want to listen to. How is it with dogs?
How to unteach your dog to beg?
Does your dog beg for food at the table? Do they beg even from strangers when you’re at a restaurant? Then you should know, that you are one-hundredth percent guilty of this yourself. If a dog learns to beg for human food, it is an educational mistake....
Dog Puzzles
When the weather is lovely rather for ducks than dogs for a longer period of time and long walks don’t come into question, my fluffy friends are getting get bored at home and start with their shenanigans. I always try to think of a home activity to...
How to keep your “little bull” busy? With sports for bull terriers, not even you are going to get bored
Recently, my friend has bought a puppy of a Staffordshire bull terrier. It didn’t take long for her to find out, how much energy is hidden in this tiny bitch. And not even several hours long walks weren’t enough to tire her. And that’s precisely what...