Re: “Letting cats outdoors puts birds at risk” (The Columbian, Aug. 5): Columnist Froma Harrop is absolutely right. Leaving cats outdoors (including sterilized felines in “managed” colonies) takes a deadly toll on vulnerable wildlife. But birds, small mammals and amphibians aren’t the only ones who suffer and die when people let non-native predators roam. Cats do, too.
In June, a cat who was allowed outdoors unattended in Spokane was found bleeding and paralyzed, after being shot. In April, an apparently homeless cat was skinned and decapitated in Yakima. In March, it was reported that four extremely ill and malnourished homeless kittens had been found in an empty lot, suffering from severe upper respiratory infections that left them barely able to breathe or see, with eyes painfully swollen and encrusted in blood.
These are just a few of the cases that have made headlines recently. Most don’t.
Cats depend on humans for survival. Letting them roam without supervision is irresponsible and cruel. Please, keep cats indoors and never support programs that abandon them outdoors.