Let’s face it, whenever humans take up the issue of animal control, it’s a pretty safe bet that they’re not thinking of the animals; any more than your local “pest control” company is looking out for the well-being of cockroaches.
Every once in a while there is an idea that is so silly that its time comes and goes almost simultaneously.
That fortunately was the case with an ill-considered notion by the town of West Springfield to leash cats.
Before the ink was dry on an animal control proposal that included leashing cats, common sense seems to have prevailed and the whole idea was sent back to committee where hopefully it will die a quiet and quite deserved death.
I was glad to hear such news, not because I have such great love for cats (I don’t claim to understand them near enough for that) especially as my last venture into interspecies commentary ended rather disastrously for me.
A while ago I innocently pointed out the perfectly obvious fact that cats are natural-born killers (a fact I thought everyone knew and one which I never personally held against them, – a position that would be harder to maintain if I were, say, a vole.)
Yet, surprisingly my opinions on the somewhat murderous instincts of cats (it’s not their fault, it’s their genes) were not wholely appreciated by catlovers, several of whom proceeded to bombard me with correspondence suggesting that I was a son of a you-know-what (a fact I have never denied.)
So I admit I am wading into the whole leash-cat issue somewhat gingerly (the way I generally approach skunks) only because there’s a certain all for one and one for all attitude I like to adopt when dealing with humans who are bent on animal control.
Let’s face it, whenever humans take up the issue of animal control, it’s a pretty safe bet that they’re not thinking of the animals; any more than your local “pest control” company is looking out for the well-being of cockroaches. If it were up to me, animals would be left to control themselves and the obligation of caring for and cleaning up after them would be properly called human control.
And I recognize that when it comes to human politics, we are not exactly a force to be reckoned with.
We don’t vote, so no one panders to us. We don’t pay taxes so no one tries to shake us down. And although parents still tell their children that any one of them can become president, no one ever says that to a dog.
Be that as it may, we generally have good sense (a trait we share with horses) and my horse/dog sense tells me that cats consider themselves born free. And while they may be willing to put up with human company in return for occasional stroking and a meal they don’t have to hunt, they seldom insist upon being taken on long walks.
Their bathroom habits are considerably more civilized than ours and hence the call of nature generally takes them no farther than their litter box. So unless you happen to be a mouse or a bird, or your cat happens to be a Bengal Tiger, leashing them for safety reasons is pointless. It seems that most cats of my acquaintance would consider being leashed to a human not only unnecessary, but downright insulting.
Responsible cat owners recognize that stray and feral cats are a problem not only to humans but to the cats themselves; and few would suggest that leashing them would solve the problem.
So I say let cats be cats. Let them cuddle when they want to, and disappear under a couch when they don’t. Keep them inside where any wildlife they may encounter does so at its own risk. But spending time and energy on an ordinance requiring them to be leashed is like trying to teach a pig to sing.
In the end, everyone is annoyed and the pig never sings.
Theo Chipkin doesn't do email, but he be reached through his agent at rchipkin@repub.com