Comments by "FishE" (@fishe9863) on "VICE Asia" channel.

  1. It's not natural at all. The native species haven't had time to evolve. Evolution takes millions of years, so to have a predator emerge in a century and spread like "wildfire".( pun intended ) The cats are hitting the environment too hard at once, along with humans doing it as well. But at least humans try to fix our screw ups and to restore the natural order we tampered with.
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  2. Unfortunately sterilization won't work for multiple reasons. 1. That won't stop them from overkilling as cats kill for sport due to instinct. 2. Diseases like Toxoplasmosis and Sarcocystis will still be spread 3. We simply can't catch them all. So even if we are able to catch a majority a small unsterilized population may remain and produce the next generation. That next generation will simply spread once again. 4. Stress on the cats. Moving them miles away from their territory to undergo a surgery that has a slight chance of infection, let alone the period of healing time in captivity will lead to a lotta stress. Though I'm not saying TNR (trap, neuter, release) won't work. TNR works wonderfully in stray colonies and small feral colonies. Personally I think it would be the best option to use TNR near human settlements so we wouldn't run the risk of accidentally shooting or poisoning someone's pet. Then in the country side we wouldn't need to use TNR as there's a FAR less risk. Also I do see your point with the catman, the dude and his house is terrifying. You don't see deer hunters go to that extent either
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  3. Oh don't worry, feral kittens can be tamed and adopted, it's the adult ferals and stupid pet owners that are the problem.
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  4. I partially agree with this, adult ferals are untamable, but the kittens can be tamed. Strays are abandoned cats that have had some experience with humans and are tameable.
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  5. Rodents are already native to Australia, and have many natural predators unlike the cats there that only have two: dingos and a specie of raptor. Both of which, are endangered or are somewhere way below least concern on the list.
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  6. *rodent problem Also no the rodent problem wasn't caused by the feral cat culls. Reason being that the culls have been going on for years and the rodent problem would've popped up much earlier if it was indeed the result of the culls. Now as of recent, Australia did have some flooding after the past couple years of little rain water. So it's more than likely the weather caused the population boom. When you look at the timing of things it makes more since because the problem started when the floods ironically came.
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  7. It won't work over THOUSANDS of kilometers of rough terrain. Plus it's too expensive and time consuming to catch 2 million cats and sterilize them all. It also won't stop them from killing things (cats kill for sport because of instinct) so it's just fruitless to do it. But it's most likely more effective in suburban areas because you don't run the risk of hurting someone's pet, or affecting non-targeted with poisons.
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  8.  @jadkiss827  feral cats are basically impossible to tame unless they are kittens. Australia has been cut off from any other continent besides Antarctica for millions of years. If you noticed, North America has some species of cats living there. Australia on the other hand, doesn't. In no way shape or form is 100 years enough for the native species to evolve against cats. Cats kill for sport due to instinct. No matter how full they are, they will still kill things. This is due to not knowing when your next meal will be, so they will keep killing. As long as it is physically able to that is. No matter where you are, it's inhumane to let your car outside. The only reason to is pest control and stimulation. Both of which the owner should be able to do. Diseases, cars, natural predators, poisons are just a few on a whole list of negatives. Thats why TNR won't work.
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  9.  @jadkiss827  it's still going to be impossible to trap, nueter, and release every cat. It's inhumane in certain situations because if the amount of stress put on the cat with moving it great distances. Cats will still kill for sport. Diseases will continue to run rampant. TNR isn't the solution. Though I do agree with the hunting for sport part. The only reason why I support the situation is because cats are basically one of the worlds worst invasive species, and this is conservation hunting (well, mostly I hope)
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  10.  @jadkiss827  yes, I agree that TNR is a blessing in certain areas. But Australia's ecosystem is unique, it hasn't touched any other continent besides Antarctica since Gondwana started to break apart (Gondwana was after Pangea) North America, South America, Asia, Africa, all those major continents had cats. But Australia never has. Another thing with the hunting, a lot of cat owners actually don't know how often their cats actually kill things, as they won't always being things home. Cats will still kill, as long as they are physically able to. Heck, I once saw a cat with a neurological disorder flop around trying to chase a squirrel (I'll admit it was cute) but point is, cats will still kill. Disease is also a major factor, although admittedly strays also have the same problem with diseases. Two major ones in Australia are Sarcocystis and Toxoplasmosis Yes I do think TNR is a good solution, but it doesn't work over THOUSANDS of kilometers of rough terrain. I do believe it's actually better to use TNR practices in urban and suburban areas because it gets rid of the risk of affecting non-targeted species. But out on farmlands and forests, it's far easier, humane, less time consuming and less costly to simply hunt the cat. Sorry for any spelling errors/grammatical errors, I'm on mobile.
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  11.  @jadkiss827  if we continue to let cats do whatever they want species will go extinct. Yes humans have caused many extinctions. No this isn't the cats fault it's the humans fault. That's why it's the humans job to fix it. Also just because something can reproduce like a cat doesn't mean it's at an incredibly high risk, as non of the native species have been given enough time to evolve. Also only TWO native species actually kill cats, but even then they aren't common. Foxes can kill cats but even then we need to reduce their numbers.
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  12. Feral cats have been estimated that 90% of them on Australia have Toxoplasmosis, although they are still edible if cooked thoroughly. Even if cooked, if the cat has sarcocystis, which developed cysts in the muscles, I don't think you would wanna eat cats that are "cream filled" though some people do eat them.
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  13. Well the cat man does try to revert them feral cats back into "house cats"
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  14. Do research please! I find the research and the controversy very interesting.
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  15. This isn't natural at ALL. Cats are screwing up the entire ecosystem that will reck havoc and cause Apex predators to go extinct due to the mass disappearance of their prey. This was the humans fault, so it's our job to fix it. If we don't the entirety of Australia could become a wasteland due to essential pollinators being unable to pollinate because they simply don't exsist. Without pollinators there isn't any plants, thus famine sets in which is basically doom for the entire food chain. Australia is a specific continent because it's been cutt off from any other continent besides Antarctica for over 100 million years. From the way you wrote it, it appears you've never heard of an invasive species.
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  16. In fact, there is! It's about 10$ per cat scalp. Which is kinda gross but at least it encourages the public to take action.
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  17.  @onlyincompetentsbelieveing9460  that literally is less effective then shooting them.
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  18. Is there any tracking process needed or trapping? Just morbid curiosity
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  19. Actually they have invasive foxes that can take care of em no need to add more invasive a lol
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  20.  @mattressmccabe1686  didn't think of that, shows ya how American I am XD
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  21. Clearly someone here didn't do research :I there is one upside for the cat lovers, feral kittens can be tamed and rehomed, adult ferals can take months to tame, or be untamable at all. The adult ferals and reckless cat owners that are the problem.
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  22. I think the rabbits where a bad influence on the cats, because the cats now breed like rabbits Xd
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  23. All animals have a darker side to em. It's just a shock to some people that are so used to seeing cute little cats with big goo goo eyes. Same with dogs. Feral dogs are terrifying even to me- a dog lover.
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  24. Nah y'all tamed strays these are the wild ones that are almost impossible to tame, or not even.
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  25. If we did that the entire ecosystem on every continent is screwed. We didn't even realize species could go extinct till 200 years ago. 200 years. Millions of extinctions caused by humans since 2 million years ago when humans first evolved. That's a lot of damage. Yes we can't undo it all but we can try to fix our mistakes.
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  26.  @thehauntedstream7206  it is because less cats means less genetic diversity. Plus less cats mean less hosts for diseases, parasites ect. Plus there are now rules for cat owners so there's less pets running around breeding.
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  27.  @thehauntedstream7206  it's better than nothing at least
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  28. They have rules for pets there! So for cars they require you too keep your cat on your property. You must take your cat inside during the night when they hunt the most. You must have a collar on it when outside. Now there are the cases of cats escaping which is a major concern. But at least Australia is trying to prevent pet deaths. I hope that answered your question!
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  29. You can try to live trap them and then generously "take care" of them. Though I don't know if your area has trapping laws or any rules related to "taking care" of them. Wish ya luck though. Oh if the cats travel thru your property I highly suggest Turnah81 on YouTube. He likes to make really cool things to scare off cats, and he does it in a very comedic manner.
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  30. Those "ferals" you are talking about are actually strays. They aren't the same thing besides the fact they are the same species Felis catus but that doesn't mean because they are the same species means they are the same.
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  31. R/Cursed comments XD
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  32. I like that kind of thinking of repurposing the cats. It's like pigs, some people don't like pigs and we eat them. Yet, they are one of the world's most intelligent species. So it's honestly like why not cats? They aren't as smart as pigs, they are destructive and they can be used in many ways. I think it would be more beneficial to donate the meat to poor countries. Problem is though, is that the ferals can carry diseases. Though, it's possible to make cat leather or clothing. I guess popular belief can sometimes get in the way of a healthy benefit.
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  33. Their are actually native rodents there, before humans even came. The native species know how to deal with em. Plus If they get out of hand, humans have had decades of experience with rodent infestations, not with cats.
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  34. You have the right idea though it's gonna be hard to reuse the ferals especially for consumption due to Sarcocystis. Sarcocystis makes you develope cysts in your muscles and it's spread through bodily fluids. It's actually a major problem in the sheep industry there right now. Though I see your point
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  35. There are invasive foxes and rabbits too!
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  36. Dude the cat has 8 lives left now, hope you have more ammo! Lol
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  37. It's hard to do anything with the meat due to toxoplasmosis; it causes lower reproductive success and it can develop cysts in your muscles. Unfortunately toxoplasmosis is a major problem in the sheep industry due to feral cats. I appreciate your curiosity, and I hope that answered you're question :)
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  38. I partially disagree with the culls for one reason: if you remove any predator, invasive or not it's going to impact the number of prey species around.
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  39.  @robertotalkeena9027  Australia is notorious for releasing non native animals to get rid of other invasive animals. Kinda funny when you look back at it. Interestingly, most conservation efforts globally don't think about the butterfly effect when they remove a invasive species. I like to think of it like sticking an arrow in a food chain. If you remove it without repercussion, it's gonna make a nasty wound.
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  40.  @robertotalkeena9027  well... Yes but actually yes
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  41.  @robertotalkeena9027  me too, got some major anxiety from arguing with rando's till 2AM. It's nice to have a civil talk on the internet
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  42. Feral cats are not the same as strays. Ferals avoid humans and can take months to tame, or be untamable. Strays had an experience with humans at one point, and where abandoned. They can be easily tamed unlike ferals.
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  43. Hopefully not as this has more planning
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  44. What we should do for Christmas to all them cat lovers that hate conservation efforts ; send them cane toads in candy cane packages lol
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  45. Ayyyyy a fellow Asian carp hater! I'm from further north in Wisconsin, next to the fox river. I dread for the time if the Asian carp get into lake Michigan and into our aquatic ecosystems. Wisconsin's fishing industry is worth like 3 billion. Though, it makes me wonder if they will make the cat hunts a tourist attraction like with what they do with feral hogs in Texas.
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  46. Not exactly, this is just a mini documentary. It's 100% legit, although I do think they where a bit gruesome in the format of the video.
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  47. It's kinda hard to eat them due to Sarcocystis being so common in the cats there. Now if you have a weak stomach or are currently eating, I don't advise you to read more: Basically, Sarcocystis develops cysts in the muscles. Thanks to feral cats, the sheep industry struggles with that problem every year. Sheep that people eat. Yes it is technically still edible as long as it's cooked throughly. But I personally don't want "cat meat with a cream cheese surprise".
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  48. Thank you for keeping your mind open to the situation as it needs to be done for multiple reasons.
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  49. Some people struggle with accents, or deaf people
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  50. I highly suggest you go and watch "Turnah81" he makes amazing and hilarious gadgets for exactly that problem.
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