A Visiting Kitten

And thoughts on the environmental pawprint of cats

Hello again!

Soon after we arrived home from our holiday in Dumfries and Galloway (which I posted about here), a little kitten appeared on the stairs in front of our flat. She is a total beauty

and has quickly made herself at home

Of course, she must have an owner somewhere, who is missing her very much. We've asked all our neighbours in our stair and no-one so far has claimed her. We've taken her to the vet who found that she hasn't yet been fitted with a microchip, probably because she's so young (the vet estimates she's about 3 months old). We've made posters, which we've displayed in the local area. Meanwhile, we're enjoying her company and considering her long term future if her owner doesn't come to claim her. Do we want to have a cat? I'd rather not give her up to a cat rescue (Edinburgh Pet Rescue Centres never kill healthy animals, so there isn't that worry, but still it would seem unkind), and would prefer to give her up to someone we know of who is actively looking for a kitten. She's so adorable that it would be tempting to try to keep her (if her owner doesn't turn up) but I don't feel cut out to look after an energetic kitten or even the more sedate cat she will eventually grow up to be. It would, after all, likely be a 20-year commitment, taking us into our late 70s.

Since this kitten turned up on our doorstep, I've been thinking about the environmental costs of keeping a cat.

The main issue with domestic cats is the number of birds and small mammals that they kill. This article about the environmental impact of pets, focuses on the toll cats take on wildlife. If we keep this kitten, she will be an indoor cat and so the live prey she would be likely to kill would be insects (in fact she has already killed a fly and a clothes moth). Insects, of course, matter too, though to be fair she can kill as many clothes moths as she can, as they are a definite pest species. Theoretically she could kill mice, but in my experience, pet cats tend to scare the mice away rather than killing them.

The other main issue is that cats are obligate meat eaters, they can't healthily be made to be vegetarians (though often do enjoy the occasional vegetarian snack). Here's an article about the carbon paw-print of cats and dogs that looks at the impact of the amount of meat they eat. Many cats are fed too much, so cutting down on how much you feed them can reduce their carbon paw-print. If you're looking for a vegetarian pet, I can definitely recommend a rabbit! We had a pet rabbit in the past, and she was a delightful companion, the only problem was that her food attracted mice into our flat.

Many brands of cat litter have a large carbon foot-print, so source an ecologically friendly brand.

Flea treatments generally contain pesticides, and recent research has shown that these pesticides are now polluting rivers in the UK and probably elsewhere, poisoning aquatic wildlife. The jury is out over whether indoor cats even need flea treatment if they don't already have fleas, though many vets recommend using the treatments anyway to prevent future fleas making their homes on your pet. Does the ecological damage caused by these treatments in fact outweigh the benefits? Herbal flea treatments are available, so ask your vet to source one, or look to purchase your own independently.

Cats need a warm environment, which may mean keeping the heating on more than you might do if you're trying to reduce your carbon footprint. Some cats enjoy sitting with a hot water bottle (in a suitable cover, of course).

Most cat toys are made from plastic and packaged in more plastic. My solution to that is to make toys from repurposed items, so far our little kitten has had huge enjoyment from chasing pieces of ribbon, chasing balls of rolled up newspaper / foil (she even fetches these balls as a dog would do!) and jumping into boxes. We've developed a game of football, where I kick a small ball into an old cereal box, while she leaps into the box to rescue the ball and passes it back to me (or back into the box, depending on her mood), this game can go on fur a surprisingly long time.

Finally, if you're looking for a pet, look to adopt a pet from a rescue centre, this way you are giving a new home to an animal in need, rather than adding to the demand for breeders to breed more animals.

Here's a useful article with some top tips for reducing your pet's carbon paw-print.

And here's a link where you can sign up to counteract your cat's carbon footprint through climate projects and help tackle climate change today.

Of course, pets have many benefits for our well-being. Dogs are particularly good for encouraging people to take exercise, while all pets are great companions helping alleviate loneliness and encouraging people to create and stick with routines. So, this isn't about not having pets, it's about reducing their environmental footprint wherever you can.

Cat Protection has some information here about what to do if you find a stray cat (or if a stray cat finds your home!)

In the News

(all this week’s news articles below are from the Guardian newspaper website)

Give nature space and it will come back’: rewilding returns endangered species to UK’s south coast

The EU has passed a landmark law to protect nature

How green is viscose? Not very it seems

UK General Election

If you live in the UK and are registered to vote, remember to vote in tomorrow's general election. Also, remember that this year you will need to take photo ID with you.