Written by Zeta Frasca
Monday, 10 November 2008 00:00
The
United Kingdom's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) this week issued a controversial Consultation Code of Practice for the Welfare of Cats.
Obligations on cat owners under the new Code include
- providing identification such as a micro-chip or a particular type of collar
- having at least one litter tray per cat in different parts of the house
- ensuring your cat has places to climb
- controlling their diet so they are neither too fat nor too thin
- supplying a suitable scratching post
- supplying suitable toys and playing with them
The Code does not technically have force of law but can influence a court considering prosecutions under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Offences under the Act carry penalties of fines up to 20,000 and/or six (6) months imprisonment. Critics have branded the Code a weapon for animal rights extremists to force people to, for example, buy expensive cat toys in the face of a recession but we see it differently.
The Code provides a blueprint for reducing - not increasing - the cost of pet ownership. People are always taking their cats to vets for spraying, over eating, malnutrition, excessive grooming etc. As vets we have a duty of care to rule out clinical causes and this can involve blood tests, taking the cat in for observation and other things which might have been avoidable if the root cause - ie stresses in the cat's environment - were dealt with properly. Ensuring your cat has things to do that align with its natural instincts and feeding the right food might cost a bit more in the short term but it pays off in the end, in the form of reduced vets fees.
Our only criticism would be that the Code could have gone further on the issue of neutering. Apart from the inconvenience of unwanted pregnancies, un-neutered males are more likely to roam at night putting themselves at risk of road traffic accidents, cat fights and infections among other things. The new Code details many benefits of neutering but does not unequivocally state that owners should have their cats neutered if they are not intending to breed from them.
Find the Defra Code here: www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/welfare-cats-cop/consultation.pdf
Find commentary on our reaction to the Code here: