Status of urban feral cats Felis catus in England: A comparative study

Abstract

This study sought to determine whether a change in the abundance of feral cats (Felis catus) in three areas of England had occurred between the completion of a survey undertaken by the Ministry for Agriculture Fisheries and Food in 1986/7 and the turn of the century. In the event of a rabies outbreak occurring in Britain, feral cats would be one vector of the disease that would need to be controlled under the Rabies (control) Order 1974. A total of 741 \"high risk sites\", found to provide appropriate conditions for feral cats, were surveyed between 1999 and 2000. The total number of feral cat colonies located within the survey areas was found to have fallen by 37% from 68 in 1986 to 43 in 1999/2000, translating to an estimated 212-247 fewer individual feral cats. Factories/trading estates and industrial premises continued to be the most common sites associated with urban feral cat colonies. However, the closing down of many traditional industries, such as mills and dockyards, and their replacement by more secure and insulated modern buildings, less amenable to feral cats finding warmth and food, had assisted the observed fall in numbers along with the effectiveness of neutering programs which are now taking place on many sites. Through this study information regarding feral cat colonies in urban landscapes as well colony size was gathered and fed into rabies contingency plans to help keep Britain rabies free into the future.