Kids with guns and better methods for the future of pest control
The recent cancellation of a North Canterbury hunting competition where children were encouraged to shoot and kill as many wild cats as possible, with a $250 prize at stake, has aroused a flurry of conversation about how kiwis feel about cats vs how kiwis feel about unwanted species control. As an animal lover and a North Canterbury resident I was intrigued to hear how others in my community felt about it.
It appears that the issue is not black and white as most New Zealanders care about both our feline friends and our beautiful native creatures. It is refreshing seeing a topic with such a diverse range of perspectives in the limelight explored with nuance as opposed to what we often see where people decide they want to jump on either ‘team a’ or ‘team b’ with their values laying with their household companion animals, their love for native animals, their support for animal welfare, or their passion for hunting.
Ultimately the event was called off due to the enormous public backlash it received which is no huge surprise when 41% of households in New Zealand share their home with at least one cat. It is clear that cats capture the hearts of a large number of kiwis who were concerned that their household pets could become casualties to this event by accident. How were participants meant to tell the difference between a wild cat and a domestic cat? I believe most people, especially at shooting distance, would struggle to differentiate. So how were children under the age of 14 meant to tell? Unfortunately, the rules that were in place set both the child and the cat owner up for failure. The competition stated that if a child shot a cat that happened to have a microchip, the child would immediately be disqualified and would no longer be eligible to win the cash prize despite their efforts.
This fear is warranted too. SPCA inspectorate team leader Sam Cairns stated that cats being shot in Canterbury is not uncommon. Typically, air rifles are used which increases the likeliness of these furry friends experiencing prolonged suffering before their eventual demise. Only yesterday there was an example of a North Canterbury cat being brought into the SPCA with an air rifle pellet wound. Sadly, it passed away from sepsis.
Clearly there is a problem with controlling unwanted species, but surely there are ways of combating this issue that don’t involve giving kids guns. The public outcry makes it abundantly clear that Kiwis would be in favour of prioritising non-invasive pest control, that doesn’t involve harming animals if it is possible. The good news is that it is possible. Better methods aren’t a fairy-tale that are unobtainable, they already exist. There is also space for more to be developed, New Zealand just isn’t prioritising this kind of research with funding.
New Zealand researchers have been exploring the development of genetic biocontrol technologies, including research into altering specific genes to bias sex ratios (i.e., making a species predominately female to decrease mating and unwanted offspring) and disrupting the genes required for reproduction or development (i.e., making that species infertile).
Predator Free 2050 Ltd teamed up with The University of Otago to conduct a wide range of research. One project that sounds promising is aimed at trying to improve the effectiveness of oral baiting to make target species permanently infertile. Researchers at Victoria University have been urging for alternative methods for a long time and Landcare Research and Genomics Aotearoa have also been investigating non-invasive predator control in the same vein, yet Biosecurity New Zealand (as part of the MPI) does not currently fund or conduct any research into alternative (non-kill) methods for unwanted animal pest control.
To see change, we need funding to go towards better research methods that don’t involve painful and long drawn out deaths of thousands of animals. If people are upset by the idea of wild cats being culled, it’s bigger than just shutting down a singular competition. We need to be urging the NZ Government to invest money into alternative methods of unwanted species control.
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