Kangaroo Island Cat Control Committee

KICCC response to flawed newspaper report (Adelaide Advertiser and associated publications)

KICCC secretary Mal at home with Mika, 2 year old Devon Rex

Feral cats turned into hats, slippers
By KARA PHILLIPS
12dec05

Advertiser: CATS on Kangaroo Island are being killed and made into souvenir stubby holders, hats, golf club covers and slippers.

KICCC response: Kara Phillips claims she obtained her information from this website. Where on the website does/did it say this? There was a photograph of catskin stubby holders, since removed, with no accompanying text. No reference was made to "hats, golf club covers and slippers", or to "souvenir" stubby holders.

Advertiser: Animal welfare groups are outraged, believing the measure could be sending the wrong message on issues of animal cruelty.

KICCC response: Kara Phillips quoted Christine Pierson of one organisation. Which other organisation/s have contacted her?

Advertiser: Cat groups agree feral cat numbers need to be better managed on the island to protect wildlife, but say using their fur, heads and tails for profit is "appalling and barbaric".

KICCC response: Is the use of rabbit skins to produce Akubra hats for profit "appalling and barbaric"? More info...

Advertiser: The project is being carried out by the Kangaroo Island Cat Control Committee, which receives money from the State Government-funded Dog and Cat Management Board through Kangaroo Island Council.

KICCC response: This is an outright lie.

Advertiser: Neither were available for comment yesterday.

KICCC response: Why did Kara Phillips try to contact government officers on a weekend? Presumably she wanted to be able to state "Neither were available for comment yesterday".

Advertiser: Christine Pierson, president of key lobby group Cats Assistance to Sterilise, said she was "truly disgusted" the products were being sold and marketed on the internet - with the financial support of the Dog and Cat Management Board.

KICCC response: Two more lies: the products were not "being sold and marketed on the internet", and the Dog and Cat Management Board were not providing financial support.

Advertiser: She feared the sale of the products promoted cruelty to cats, particularly following recent local and interstate incidents of cats being burnt, beaten or run over.

KICCC response: KICCC is TOTALLY OPPOSED to any and all forms of animal cruelty. That is why we exist! Feral cats are decimating Kangaroo Island's wildlife, and what they do to the dozens of different native species is cruel. They also maintain the cycles of infestation of sarcosporidiosis and toxoplasmosis in sheep. Infected sheep don't look too jolly.

Advertiser: "Feral cats feel pain and suffer just as much as domestic pets, and our research shows killing them is not the answer to reducing numbers," Ms Pierson said. "We know de-sexing is much more efficient and cost effective and less cruel."

KICCC response: Ms Pierson's research has overlooked the outstanding result achieved by the Tasmanian Government in eradicating all feral cats from Macquarie Island. This information is also available from our website.

Advertiser: It is understood the island has an estimated 5000 feral cats.

Advertiser: RSPCA spokeswoman Emily Vatkovic described the use of the cats' fur as "extremely vulgar".

KICCC response: as above, re Akubra hats. Rabbits are also a feral species. Fortunately Kangaroo Island is free of that pest.

Advertiser: Environment Minister John Hill said local communities implemented cat and dog management programs.

Advertiser: He expected KI Council would implement the program in the most humane way and would be "disappointed if that was not the case".

KICCC response: Kangaroo Island Council has recently released it's new Dog and Cat Management Plan. KICCC was actively involved in it's formulation, and the entire Kangaroo Island community is proud of this achievement. We are experiencing gratifying rates of microchipping of cats and dogs, with around 90% community support. Most residents are owners of cats and/or dogs.

Summary

Readers of the Advertiser and associated papers have been duped by shoddy reporting, badly researched. Christine Pierson made no attempt to contact the Kangaroo Island Cat Control Committee, which she could have done via the contact form on our website, which she obviously accessed.

An email to us could have saved all the upset she has caused to cat owners.

Every cloud has a silver lining. We have had a lot of positive feedback about our cat control measures... far more than negative feedback... from those people motivated enough to look at our website and see what we do. The negative letters in the Advertiser were obviously from people who believed the nonsense that was reported, and might change their minds if they knew the truth.

By spreading obvious untruths both Kara Phillips and Christine Pierson have demonstrated dubious credibility at best, and an intention to deceive the public.

Response authored by Mal Ellson,
Secretary and Web Author, Kangaroo Island Cat Control Committee