SPCA looking into feral cat hunting competition for children
Monday, 17 April 2023
Rural kids are being offered a $250 cash prize for killing feral cats, but public backlash has prompted inquiries by the SPCA.
Several people contacted SPCA Canterbury with concerns about the “most feral cats” junior hunting category in the annual North Canterbury Hunting Competition, which began on Saturday.
Hunters aged 14 or younger have until late June to kill as many feral cats they can. Whoever kills the most wins $250, and will be in the running for a $4600 dirt bike spot prize for being a Junior Hunter.
The competition is a beloved community event and fundraiser for Rotherham School and pool, attracting more than 900 participants in 2022, 250 of which were in the junior category. Juniors hunted animals including possums, ducks, hares, rabbits, rats and geese.
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In a statement on social media, SPCA Canterbury said it was “extremely concerned” because it was not possible to tell the difference between a feral, stray or domestic cat based on appearance.
It was also concerned that junior hunters were more likely to use air rifles, “increasing the likelihood of pain and distress, and can cause a prolonged death”.
Among those concerned is Margaret Maguire, a former event sponsor and local, who feared beloved pets would be caught in the crossfire.
In a now-deleted post on the North Canterbury Hunting Competition Facebook page, participants were told they would be disqualified if a microchipped cat was found in their collection.
“But the animal would have to be dead before they know,” Maguire said.
Unlike strays and house cats, which have varying interactions and dependence on humans, feral cats are wild.
Craig Gillies, a principal science adviser for the Department of Conservation (DOC), said the difference in appearance was “virtually impossible” to tell.
Maguire feared for the safety of a farm cat she’d domesticated. She hadn’t seen any rules around where cats could be hunted or if parental supervision was required.
She was also concerned that air rifles from a distance wouldn’t kill a cat instantly or humanely.
Far from being anti-hunting, Maguire had previously been an annual sponsor of the competition through a family business. She was not a sponsor this year because of the category, and had raised concerns with the organisers directly, she said.
She understood the importance of pest control, as she was raised in rural Australia and from a young age “walked around with a .22” on the property, she said.
“We used to kill foxes and get money for handing in the tails, but it’s really hard to look at a fox and mistake it for a pet, or a kangaroo. But a cat?”
On a North Canterbury Hunting Competition social media post on Saturday, launching the feral cat hunt, participants were told to familiarise themselves with the difference between feral and non-feral cats, and warned any microchipped cats in their bounty would disqualify the whole entry.
The post included a link to a DOC web page on feral cats, however on that page DOC states feral cats don’t look different to house pets.
Gillies said the webpage “is not a guide and should not be used in such a way”.
Feral cats have a major impact on native wildlife, and its introduction as a category was mostly met with praise by locals.
Gillies said DOC “absolutely” supported members of the public participating in feral cat control, “provided feral cat control is undertaken by experienced people using approved humane methods”.
That included equipment of the correct calibre, used by trained professionals.
The competition ends on the weekend June 23 to 25.
Competition organisers have declined to comment until they can formally meet on Tuesday evening.