Carbondale residents and officials are continuing to try to herd in the cats that are allegedly killing birds in the area. Mary Harris is worried that cats are killing enough birds in the Carbondale area to cause a real problem. “I field calls all the time with people saying that... they see their neighbor’s cat killing birds,” says Harris, who’s President of the Roaring Fork Audubon Society.
“They don’t know who they can call,” continues Harris, who points to various research showing birds are suffering with habitat loss and climate change. Some argue that cats are only adding to the problem. So this summer Harris proposed that Carbondale make a new ordinance, imposing restrictions on the cat population and owners, with requirements like ownership licenses, spaying and neutering, and more.
It turns out Carbondale already has a cat ordinance, though it’s decades old. “It needs updating for sure,” says Harris. “There’s a fine in there for $10. It’s not worth anybody’s effort for that.” Harris is on a committee of local residents and officials looking at how to improve the existing rules and regulations. She plans to roll out specific wordsmithing at this morning’s meeting or soon after.
“My hope is the committee will leave the current ordinance alone,” says Cindy Sadlowski, of the Carbondale Street Cat Coalition. “Our goal, same as the Audubon people, is to reduce the population of cats on the streets. And the best way to do that is spay and neuter. We offer all kinds of spay and neuter vouchers and programs and vaccination clinics.” Sadlowski argues that requiring residents to pay for such things out of pocket, for any cat reported as a nuisance, would unfairly punish low income families.
“When we deal with ordinances involving cats or dogs, it’s very clear to us that people are very emotionally involved in their animals,” say Lieutenant Chris Wurtsmith, of Carbondale’s Police Department. “They’re family members, you know.” The police chief and another officer attend cat committee meetings, as a neutral presence. There’s one this morning.
