Gothamist: Cruella DeVil Catnapper in Prospect Heights

guest

Sun, 30 Sep 2007 04:43:37 -0500

@Smitty: More birds are killed by pollution, pesticides, and sprawl than cats could ever HOPE to eat. So stop scapegoating (scape-catting?) felines and start addressing the real problems...

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 21:36:40 -0500

#41 where do you live that has pigeons that are "the size of small turkeys?" Sounds like some new, interesting hybrid pigeon.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 20:48:35 -0500

If you are going to pay to have stray cats spayed and neutered, why not bring them inside. If you want to feed stray cats and have them roaming into your yard and your neighbor's yard, you must realize that they will be urinating all over the yards. I have no problem with anyone feeding the stray cats but go the full step and either adopt them and bring them in or start cleaning up when they do what usually happens after feeding. Its the same nonsense when the loons feed the birds. There is one woman who strolls through my neighborhood feeding the pigeons. The birds are the size of small turkeys and they then crap all over our windowsills and cars.

lornagrl

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 19:03:24 -0500

or perhaps Pond should be arrested for animal cruelty... Whoops, I meant the neighbor lady who took the cats to Queens and dumped them should be charged with animal cruelty...not the Ponds. I posted too quickly. Sorry.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 19:00:43 -0500

Kill the evil cat napping bitch.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 18:15:00 -0500

she ate them.

Elderta

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 16:50:10 -0500

Wow, that's the crappiest story I've ever heard... the woman doesn't think cats should live outdoors so she had someone dump the cats outdoors? You have got to be kidding me, she didn't take them to a shelter? She had them dumped in a park in Queens? Give me a freaking break. Idiot.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 16:31:20 -0500

I'd like to go back a comment or two and reflect on what that person said. WHAT ABOUT THE TURTLES? Has anyone stopped to think about what their place in all of this is? No, you haven't. And that's what the real tragedy is hear. I also like turtles.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 16:31:00 -0500

I love my half indoor half outdoor cat. i swear she could fight off a coyote and probably did when we go upstate. sad to say she only lived to about 10, my mom's indoor cat lived to age 14. we were more worried bout coyotes than cars upstate.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 16:23:00 -0500

my outdoor cat lived to be 16... couldn't catch a bird if his poor life depended on it. Upstate though, not in NYC.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 16:07:28 -0500

i like turtles.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 15:47:00 -0500

" they also generally enjoy a standard of living that protects them from many threats themselves. followed by this piece of wisdom: Outdoor cats are exposed to disease as well as the dangers of traffic, traps, poisons, abuse, and attacks from other animals. In fact, outside cats frequently don't live past the age of five, contradict ourselves much? duh." Having a home to sleep in and regular meals doesn't prevent the other things from happening when a cat is outside. There's nothing contradictory here. They can both be true. You can also substitute "humans" for "cats" in the above statement, and it's still true.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:57:32 -0500

P.S. It's Cruella De Vil

smitty

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:54:27 -0500

Here is an interesting piece on indoor/outdoor cat pros and cons: http://cats.about.com/cs/catmanagement101/a/indooroutdoor.htm Her points for keeping cats indoors: Pros: 1. Injury or death by vehicles 2. Poisoned intentionally or accidentally 3. Injury or death by fighting with other cats 4. Infectious diseases contracted from other cats: FIP,FIV,FeLV,URIs 5. Parasites: fleas, ticks, ringworm 6. Injury or death by sadists 7. Injury or death by dogs or predators 8. Killing of wildlife by outdoor cats 9. Getting lost, picked up by A/C 10. Theft for sale as laboratory animals or "bait" for illicit gaming 11. Problems with neighbors: cats littering their yards Cons: 1. Indoor cats are lazy, and don't get the exercise they need. 2. Cats by their very nature deserve the freedom of outdoor life. 3. The cats love the outdoors, fresh air and sunshine, and I love watching them there.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:52:03 -0500

Yeah, drop them off at a shelter where they will be put to sleep because there are already thousands of cats in NYC shelters. Great idea, Gothamist!

smitty

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:51:37 -0500

Also, cats who are left outdoors are at great risk of catching and spreading FIV...and getting hit by cars.

smitty

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:50:06 -0500

Uh, ok, but domestic cats aren't a natural part of the ecosystem, so it isn't a natural survival of the fittest. Your logic is a little fallible.

zodak

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:33:46 -0500

4 & jtg i was thinking the same thing!! lol! smitty it's a little thing called "survival of the fittest" if those stupid birds can't stay away from the cats they deserve to be eaten. go watch the discovery channel & stop whining about animals behaving like animals. from your dumb article: they also generally enjoy a standard of living that protects them from many threats themselves. followed by this piece of wisdom: Outdoor cats are exposed to disease as well as the dangers of traffic, traps, poisons, abuse, and attacks from other animals. In fact, outside cats frequently don't live past the age of five, contradict ourselves much? duh. if the ponds wanted to keep those cats they should made sure the cats didn't go into other people's yards. duh.

smitty

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:14:22 -0500

PROTECT BACKYARD BIRDS AND WILDLIFE: KEEP PET CATS INDOORS by Katherine Noyes, Senior Editor – Animal Welfare backyard birds More than 600 species of backyard birds live in the United States, and more than 82 million Americans enjoy watching and feeding them. Unfortunately, bird populations are declining faster than ever before around the globe, and one of the leading reasons is predation by domestic cats. By keeping your pet cat indoors, you can help give backyard birds and wildlife the best possible chances for survival. Of the roughly 90 million pet cats in this country, about two-thirds are allowed to go outside. That's in addition to the millions of homeless stray and feral cats who are forced to live outside. Together, it's estimated that these outside cats kill hundreds of millions of backyard birds each year as well as billions of small backyard animals such as chipmunks, rabbits, squirrels, shrews and field mice. Among the backyard birds that fall victim to outside cats are common bird species such as cardinals, blue jays and house wrens, as well as rare and endangered species such as the piping plover, Florida scrub jay and California least tern. Even if a caught bird escapes, it usually dies soon afterward from infection. Sadly, it is pet cats' instinct to hunt – not real hunger – that usually drives them to kill backyard birds and wildlife. Domestic cats are not a natural part of ecosystems, yet they are among the most widespread predators across the globe today. By virtue of their close connection with humans, they also generally enjoy a standard of living that protects them from many threats themselves. When pet cats hunt backyard birds and small native mammals, they deprive other native species, such as the Great Horned Owl and Red-Tailed Hawk, of food. In so doing, they pose a significant threat to the diversity and health of local ecosystems. They can also transmit diseases to wildlife, further weakening the health of natural populations. Allowing pet cats to roam outside is not just bad for backyard birds and wildlife, it's bad for the cats too. Outdoor cats are exposed to disease as well as the dangers of traffic, traps, poisons, abuse, and attacks from other animals. In fact, outside cats frequently don't live past the age of five, while indoor cats often live to be 17 or more. It's a fallacy that cats need to roam outside to be happy, and the common strategy of putting bells on their collars has been found to be ineffective for alerting wildlife to their danger. The best solution for everyone is to keep pet cats inside. * Keep your pet cat inside. If you're about to adopt a young cat, it's usually pretty easy to establish that his territory does not extend beyond the back door. For cats that have been allowed out, however, it can take a little more effort on your part to get them accustomed to staying in. The Humane Society of the United States offers a number of tips and suggestions on bringing an outside cat in and keeping a cat happy indoors. For pet cats who are tough to convince, safe options for enjoying the outside include walks on a harness and leash or providing a safe outdoor cat enclosure. Scratching posts, cat trees, toys and a supply of fresh "cat grass" (available at most pet supply stores) can also go a long way toward replacing what cats have come to expect outside. Also be sure your cat is spayed or neutered; unaltered felines have a harder time accepting the limits of life inside. * Start a community effort. By helping educate those around you, you can help protect backyard birds and wildlife not just in your own yard but in your whole community. The American Bird Conservancy has developed a broad array of downloadable brochures, presentations, educators' materials, posters and public-service advertisements as part of its Cats Indoors! campaign. Success stories and detailed instructions on launching a community effort are also available from ABC. Similarly, the Humane Society has educational materials available online as part of its Safe Cats campaign, and the Audubon Society has a number of other practical suggestions for protecting backyard birds and wildlife.

JRod5417

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 13:49:50 -0500

Cat AIDS . . . gulp.

amandabee

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 13:33:30 -0500

If you're wanting help dealing with feral cats of your own, Neighborhood Cats is a great resource.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 13:29:41 -0500

#19 - I beg to differ, cats shouldn't be allowed to freely roam outdoors. It's bad for the cats because it exposes them to hazards and disease--and it's doubly bad for the birds they kill.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 13:18:21 -0500

@ #19: She's a selfish piece of trash, especially when you consider she didn't know that the cats were already sterilized. "Oh, can't have filthy strays breeding in my neighborhood, I'll just dump them in Queens and let them become someone else's problem."

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 13:16:14 -0500

Journalistic Gold!! Good job Jen!

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 13:03:15 -0500

Unbelievable. Didn't the neighbor notice that they were well fed and cared for?? "I just wanted to lower the population of cats. I thought I was doing a service to the neighborhood." Um so you dump them in another NYC neighborhood?????? Smitty, cats are ANIMALS. They can lead happy outdoor lives with responsible owners.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 13:00:31 -0500

#14 - ditto.

Blairy Blair

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 13:00:01 -0500

Cats pounce like coiled snakes on dogs, eternally optimistic creatures.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:58:29 -0500

This woman is just full of crap. She's "doing a servide to the neighborhood"? How? She was just doing a service to herself. Who the hell is she trying to fool? Does she honestly think anybody would fall for her unbelievable rationalizations?

Mike B.

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:54:35 -0500

If the Ponds liked the cats so much, to the point of feeding them, playing with them, and having them neutered, why didn't they take them in altogether, or at the very least collar them? They didn't realize that unidentified cats living outdoors are eventually not going to be there anymore? Pretty dumb. But the neighbor should just have called animal control, so she doesn't come off any better.

smitty

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:42:55 -0500

Cats shouldn't be outdoor cats - it's bad for the cats, and bad for the bird population.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:42:32 -0500

"the cats will meet a grizzly fate in Queens" OMG Will they be fed to bears??? I think you meant "grisly."

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:38:25 -0500

Cruella should be spayed!!

jimmylegs

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:13:24 -0500

well, it can be difficult to tell if a cat has been fixed, that's why ferals often get ear-tipped. but this lady sounds like a dick. she pays lip service to fearing for that cats' safety (AIDS, maiming), then ups and dumps them in the next boro. somebody should dump her in queens and see how she likes it.

Reality Czech

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:13:01 -0500

If I were the cat owners, I would move ASAP. Sure you take a risk letting your cat outside, but the risk is usually from cars and dogs, not angry spinsters.

CR

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:02:48 -0500

" I did extensive research to figure out how I could bring them to be sterilized" - but they were already spayed/neutered... I don't get it.

MarygraceNYC

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:57:42 -0500

Some people are fucked up. I don't like cats either, but I do feed the strays in my neighborhood. If it has a mouth, it has to eat. My next door neighbor did almost the same thing, except he killed the whole litter. He trapped them and one by one they disappeared. I hate him for that. Bastard.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:53:29 -0500

seriously, what a cold, cold woman. oh and extensive research on how to sterilize them, um maybe you should have talked to your neighbors. you know, the ones who actually figured out how to do it.

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:52:16 -0500

I say we trap the neighbor, poor kitties. Clyde looked so cute with his black hat.

jtg

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:48:46 -0500

Shouldn't it the cats have been Inky, Blinky, PINKY and Clyde? Where did Mookie come from? Don't these people know anything about Pacman?

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:47:03 -0500

DWIGHT SCHRUTE

guest

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:44:52 -0500

PLEASE print the addresses so we can go and snuff this cat-hating, cunt of a neighbor.

balt

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:36:26 -0500

Arrested for animal cruelty? How exactly is taking care of feral cats cruel, let alone a crime?

lornagrl

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:29:37 -0500

or perhaps Pond should be arrested for animal cruelty...