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July 23, 2019 5:09 PM Subscribe
A Japanese man has posted videos of himself feeding stray cats. Every day (almost). For eight years.
I'm sorry, I have to take the contrary position here. A stray cat is a local ecological disaster.
Feral Cats Kill Billions of Small Critters Each Year (Smithsonian)
Invasive predators and global biodiversity loss (PNAS)
"Species such as cats (Felis catus), rats (Rattus rattus), mongoose (Herpestes auropunctatus), and stoats (Mustela erminea) threaten biodiversity through predation (4, 5), competition (6), disease transmission (7), and facilitation with other invasive species (8). The decline and extinction of native species due to invasive predators can have impacts that cascade throughout entire ecosystems (9)."
We need far less feral strays, not more well-fed ones. Spay and neuter every single cat you come across.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 6:55 PM on July 23, 2019 [5 favorites]
Feral Cats Kill Billions of Small Critters Each Year (Smithsonian)
Invasive predators and global biodiversity loss (PNAS)
"Species such as cats (Felis catus), rats (Rattus rattus), mongoose (Herpestes auropunctatus), and stoats (Mustela erminea) threaten biodiversity through predation (4, 5), competition (6), disease transmission (7), and facilitation with other invasive species (8). The decline and extinction of native species due to invasive predators can have impacts that cascade throughout entire ecosystems (9)."
We need far less feral strays, not more well-fed ones. Spay and neuter every single cat you come across.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 6:55 PM on July 23, 2019 [5 favorites]
While I don't know if this gentleman is involved with Trap Neuter Release, the fact that he feeds them at a set time every day makes me wonder. I know that with the colony I care for, a regular feeding schedule makes it far easier to trap them for spay/neuter.
posted by korej at 7:17 PM on July 23, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by korej at 7:17 PM on July 23, 2019 [3 favorites]
He said he's taken care of 50 cats over the years. Spaying/neutering costs around 20,000 yen (about $200), so that's $10,000. That's a not-insignificant amount of money, on top of what he's already paying for cat food, etc.
I mean, sure, it would be nice if he spayed/neutered them, but I can't blame him for not forking out $10,000.
posted by Bugbread at 8:16 PM on July 23, 2019 [3 favorites]
I mean, sure, it would be nice if he spayed/neutered them, but I can't blame him for not forking out $10,000.
posted by Bugbread at 8:16 PM on July 23, 2019 [3 favorites]
Hold on, sorry, the JSPCA helps partially defray spaying/neutering costs, so it looks more like it would cost an average of 8000 yen ($80) per cat ($100 for spaying, $70 for neutering), or $4,000 for 50 cats. A lot less than $10,000, but still nothing to sneeze at.
posted by Bugbread at 8:20 PM on July 23, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by Bugbread at 8:20 PM on July 23, 2019 [1 favorite]
Each human is a local ecological disaster, but it's not good to let them go hungry either. I agree it would be very good for the planet if they were all spayed/neutered too, though.
posted by fritley at 8:39 PM on July 23, 2019 [20 favorites]
posted by fritley at 8:39 PM on July 23, 2019 [20 favorites]
While I don't know if this gentleman is involved with Trap Neuter Release...
I noticed that several of the cats filmed had the tips of their ears docked, which at least in my USA city means they have been spayed/neutered, whether by him or some other compassionate soul(s).
posted by erattacorrige at 10:04 PM on July 23, 2019 [10 favorites]
I noticed that several of the cats filmed had the tips of their ears docked, which at least in my USA city means they have been spayed/neutered, whether by him or some other compassionate soul(s).
posted by erattacorrige at 10:04 PM on July 23, 2019 [10 favorites]
It means the same here in Japan.
posted by Bugbread at 10:09 PM on July 23, 2019 [4 favorites]
posted by Bugbread at 10:09 PM on July 23, 2019 [4 favorites]
I have subscribed to his YouTube channel for a good while now, and use the videos to relax. As much as I enjoy and benefit from them I have to say he has no "viral hits" because they aren't very good videos. They come in batches, are very short, and awkwardly shot.
As for ecological impact whataboutery: I would be curious to see how many stray cats I would have to feed to exceed the footprint of an average person's meat consumption. (which absolutely is not meant to dismiss the concerns over feeding cats not in your care if you don't intend to take them in)
posted by seraphine at 11:39 PM on July 23, 2019
As for ecological impact whataboutery: I would be curious to see how many stray cats I would have to feed to exceed the footprint of an average person's meat consumption. (which absolutely is not meant to dismiss the concerns over feeding cats not in your care if you don't intend to take them in)
posted by seraphine at 11:39 PM on July 23, 2019
IIRC, the Australian state of Queensland has closed all its cat shelters, as cats are considered invasive vermin there. Stray cats have to be destroyed by law.
posted by acb at 1:14 AM on July 24, 2019
posted by acb at 1:14 AM on July 24, 2019
New Zealand checking in. I’m a devoted cat mom. We spoil her outrageously. But I don’t let her out.
From this link on cat impact on NZ:
Cats have contributed to the extinction of 9 native bird species
Cats impact on 33 endangered native bird species
One feral cat killed 102 endangered native short tail bats in a week
Cats kill native birds. In our cities domestic cats kill native birds faster than they can possibly breed
Around 40% of New Zealand’s native land-birds are already extinct, and of the ones remaining 37% are endangered
posted by lemon_icing at 2:56 AM on July 24, 2019 [2 favorites]
From this link on cat impact on NZ:
Cats have contributed to the extinction of 9 native bird species
Cats impact on 33 endangered native bird species
One feral cat killed 102 endangered native short tail bats in a week
Cats kill native birds. In our cities domestic cats kill native birds faster than they can possibly breed
Around 40% of New Zealand’s native land-birds are already extinct, and of the ones remaining 37% are endangered
posted by lemon_icing at 2:56 AM on July 24, 2019 [2 favorites]
acb: IIRC, the Australian state of Queensland has closed all its cat shelters, as cats are considered invasive vermin there. Stray cats have to be destroyed by law.
Yeah nah
Because taking care of cats leads to your own happiness.
I was really lonely before adopting my last cat. After a few weeks settling in, we made eye contact and my boost of oxytocin was palpable.
posted by Thella at 3:06 AM on July 24, 2019 [3 favorites]
Yeah nah
Because taking care of cats leads to your own happiness.
I was really lonely before adopting my last cat. After a few weeks settling in, we made eye contact and my boost of oxytocin was palpable.
posted by Thella at 3:06 AM on July 24, 2019 [3 favorites]
After a few weeks settling in, we made eye contact and my boost of oxytocin was palpable.
Am I the only person who misparsed that as “toxoplasma”?
posted by acb at 4:48 AM on July 24, 2019 [2 favorites]
Am I the only person who misparsed that as “toxoplasma”?
posted by acb at 4:48 AM on July 24, 2019 [2 favorites]
Because taking care of cats leads to your own happiness.
I have been thinking of adopting a cat, now that I'm living somewhere with the floor space for a scratching post and a litter tray. When I was in London, I just catsat for friends and occasionally made friends with a neighbourhood cat or two. (There was a lovely, very affectionate one living near Newington Green.) The last cat I had I left in Australia when I moved out; he died in 2012.
The one thing holding me back is the occasional thoughts I get that maybe it's time to think about moving back to Melbourne. (Not this year, probably not next either, but if so, possibly within less than a cat's lifespan.) Transporting a cat from Sweden to Australia would be inhumane for all sorts of reasons (the long journey, the quarantine regime and the climate difference to name three, let alone the ethics of invasive species as pets). Any cat I got here would probably stay here.
posted by acb at 5:03 AM on July 24, 2019
I have been thinking of adopting a cat, now that I'm living somewhere with the floor space for a scratching post and a litter tray. When I was in London, I just catsat for friends and occasionally made friends with a neighbourhood cat or two. (There was a lovely, very affectionate one living near Newington Green.) The last cat I had I left in Australia when I moved out; he died in 2012.
The one thing holding me back is the occasional thoughts I get that maybe it's time to think about moving back to Melbourne. (Not this year, probably not next either, but if so, possibly within less than a cat's lifespan.) Transporting a cat from Sweden to Australia would be inhumane for all sorts of reasons (the long journey, the quarantine regime and the climate difference to name three, let alone the ethics of invasive species as pets). Any cat I got here would probably stay here.
posted by acb at 5:03 AM on July 24, 2019
Cats kill native birds. In our cities domestic cats kill native birds faster than they can possibly breed
I wonder what would be easier: breeding/genetically engineering modified cats that do not function as predators, or domesticating some native species in Australia/New Zealand into a functional replacement house pet (perhaps along the lines of the Siberian domestic fox experiment, only with bilbies or potoroos or something).
posted by acb at 5:05 AM on July 24, 2019
I wonder what would be easier: breeding/genetically engineering modified cats that do not function as predators, or domesticating some native species in Australia/New Zealand into a functional replacement house pet (perhaps along the lines of the Siberian domestic fox experiment, only with bilbies or potoroos or something).
posted by acb at 5:05 AM on July 24, 2019
Okay, so.
I've been playing this video game called Judgment recently. If you're familiar with the Yakuza series, then you know what this is, but if you don't: it's a spin-off from a long-running Japanese series where you play a Japanese gangster-type character with a heart of gold who gets embroiled in all sorts of criminal underworld crime drama storylines, but also wanders around Kamurocho (the video-game equivalent of Tokyo's Kabukicho red-light district) helping out random people with dumb problems. It's equal parts enthralling crime drama and goofy rescue-cats-from-trees do-goodery, with the occasional side quest about teaching an uncertain dominatrix how to find her inner sadist or whatever. (If this is something you'd like to know more about, this video about Yakuza 0 is a good place to start.)
Anyways. In Judgment, one of the people you can befriend in Kamurocho is a guy who walks around every day feeding stray cats. He keeps a blog where he updates people on what all the cats are doing. In the game, he asks you to help him track down some stray cats he hasn't seen in a long time because he's worried about them and he's so busy feeding and taking care of the other cats that he can't really spend time tracking down the ones that have gone AWOL. He doesn't want you to catch the cats and bring them to him; they're strays, they'll be fine on their own. He just asks you to send photos of the cats so he can upload them to the blog and let his followers know that the cats are okay.
It's a cute and precious sidequest, but it never occurred to me that it might be based on a real person. I'm still not sure, of course—maybe there are lots of people in Japan who do what this guy does but have larger social media presences—but in my head, that character in Judgment is now based on this lovely man.
posted by chrominance at 8:40 AM on July 24, 2019 [8 favorites]
I've been playing this video game called Judgment recently. If you're familiar with the Yakuza series, then you know what this is, but if you don't: it's a spin-off from a long-running Japanese series where you play a Japanese gangster-type character with a heart of gold who gets embroiled in all sorts of criminal underworld crime drama storylines, but also wanders around Kamurocho (the video-game equivalent of Tokyo's Kabukicho red-light district) helping out random people with dumb problems. It's equal parts enthralling crime drama and goofy rescue-cats-from-trees do-goodery, with the occasional side quest about teaching an uncertain dominatrix how to find her inner sadist or whatever. (If this is something you'd like to know more about, this video about Yakuza 0 is a good place to start.)
Anyways. In Judgment, one of the people you can befriend in Kamurocho is a guy who walks around every day feeding stray cats. He keeps a blog where he updates people on what all the cats are doing. In the game, he asks you to help him track down some stray cats he hasn't seen in a long time because he's worried about them and he's so busy feeding and taking care of the other cats that he can't really spend time tracking down the ones that have gone AWOL. He doesn't want you to catch the cats and bring them to him; they're strays, they'll be fine on their own. He just asks you to send photos of the cats so he can upload them to the blog and let his followers know that the cats are okay.
It's a cute and precious sidequest, but it never occurred to me that it might be based on a real person. I'm still not sure, of course—maybe there are lots of people in Japan who do what this guy does but have larger social media presences—but in my head, that character in Judgment is now based on this lovely man.
posted by chrominance at 8:40 AM on July 24, 2019 [8 favorites]
I read a short story, translated from Japanese, a year or two ago, from the point of a teenage girl who (IIRC) failed some exam and slumped into catastrophic depression, locking herself in her room and withdrawing from society. Eventually she meets a fellow misfit, a teenage boy who feeds and befriends stray cats; the one phrase I remember from it is him explaining her how he befriended the cats: “you have to show them consistent kindness”.
posted by acb at 1:27 AM on July 25, 2019
posted by acb at 1:27 AM on July 25, 2019
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