AliveFall 2005 - Zoological Society of Milwaukee

Fall 2005 Zoological Society of Milwaukee (WI) www.zoosociety.org
Help CATS, Help BIRDS
Did you know more than 7 million birds are killed each year by cats? That’s a lot of birds! If you keep
your family cat indoors, you’ll help many birds near your home. You’ll help your cat at the same time.
“Cats are predators, which means they hunt other living things,” says Vicki Piaskowski, international coordinator
for Birds Without Borders-Aves Sin Fronteras ®. “Even if your cat is well-fed, it still has the natural instinct to
hunt when it is outdoors.”
Once caught by a cat, few birds survive, even if they
escape. The bird usually dies because its wounds get
infected from the cat’s claws or teeth.
Did you know that the average life
span of an outdoor cat is 2-5 years? Cats that
live their entire lives indoors, however, can live
17 years or more. When you let your cat outside,
it may get hit by a car, attacked by other animals
or get lost or stolen. It may pick up a disease
or even starve. So, do what is best for your cat:
Keep it indoors. When you do this, you’ll also
be doing your part to help conservation.
You’ll be protecting birds!
*Birds Without Borders-Aves Sin Fronteras® Fronteras® is an international research, conservation and education project
co-sponsored by the Zoological Society of Milwaukee and its partner, the Foundation for Wildlife Conservation, Inc.
Black cat and American robin photos by Robb Quinn. Other photos: stock photography.
For more information and to learn how to make
an outdoor cat an indoor cat, visit the American
Bird Conservancy Cats Indoors! program
Web site at www.abcbirds.org/cats/.
KIDS ALIVE FALL 2005 2005 13