Wyoming’s stray cats could end up benefiting from a push to protect wolves from torture, and some advocate for controlling feral cats’ numbers through spaying or neutering rather than shooting them.
Feral cats have the same classification of “predatory animals” as wolves in much of the state.
Outrage over the alleged torture of wolf last year near Daniel, Wyoming, inspired efforts to give predatory animals more protection.
That includes a bill that would require predatory animals to be killed quickly, rather than being subjected to prolonged suffering.
Predatory Animals Not Protected
Under Wyoming statutes, predatory animals are wild species deemed to be a possible threat to agriculture or other interests. They aren’t directly managed by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, but are instead under the jurisdiction of the Wyoming Department of Agriculture.
They include coyotes, jackrabbits, porcupines, raccoons, red foxes, skunks and feral cats.
Predatory animals may be killed at any time and by any means, with no hunting license required.
With Wolves, It Depends Where They Are
Wolves fall under different classifications in Wyoming, depending upon which part of the state they’re in.
Within the boundaries of Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks, wolves remain under federal protection and may not be killed.
In a trophy hunting zone adjacent to the park — or about 15% of Wyoming — wolves are classified as trophy game animals. That means they may be hunted, but only with licenses and during set hunting seasons.
In the rest of Wyoming, wolves are classified as a predatory species, and are essentially unprotected, like the other animals in that classification.
Bill Would Expand Protection
Noted Wyoming outdoorsman Paul Ulrich is among those leading the charge for the “clean kill” bill.
He said that under current law, stray cats are in the same situation as wolves insofar as they’re among animals that can be abused or tortured – with little to no repercussions for the people who do so.
“To me, this effort goes well beyond wolves and coyotes. There are several species you are allowed to take in any (way) with very few exceptions,” he said.
He added that “there are some very sick people out there,” who enjoy hurting wild animals, sometimes even sharing their exploits on social media.
The clean kill bill aims to stop that by making it illegal to deliberately let a predatory animal suffer — similar to how it’s illegal to abuse a domestic or pet animal under Wyoming’s animal cruelty statutes.
And that should apply to all animals, including stray or feral cats, Ulrich said.
Cats Are ‘Liminal Creatures’
Similar to how it is with wolves, things can be complicated when it comes to cats.
Pet cats with owners are considered domestic animals and therefore fall under the protection of animal cruelty statutes.
Feral cats, essentially regarded as wildlife in the predatory classification, have no such protections.
But, how does somebody tell the difference between a pet and a stray?
In many instances, there’s no way of knowing, Cheyenne Animal Shelter Chief Executive Officer Britney Tennant told Cowboy State Daily.
“Cats are liminal creatures,” in terms of animal law, she said.
Many cat owners in Wyoming let their pets roam around outside. So, unless a cat is, for instance, wearing a collar with a tag, there’s really no way of knowing whether it would legally be classified as a predatory animal or a pet.
“They are both the same species, and they are both domestic cats. The question is, are they habituated to human beings?” she said.
There’s no getting rid of all stray cats, she added.
“Wherever you have a population of humans, you have a population of free-roaming cats,” Tennant said.
And while feral cats’ numbers must be controlled, Tennant and others advocate for “Trap, Neuter, Release” (TNR), instead of killing them.
Stray cats that are taken in at the Cheyenne Animal Shelter are spayed/neutered and vaccinated before being set free again. The top of one of each cat’s ears is clipped to signify that the animal has been processed. (Courtesy Cheyenne Animal Shelter) 
Karolyn Middleton used to have 60 stray cats on her property near Cheyenne. Over the years, she’s trapped cats and taken them to the Cheyenne Animal shelter to be spayed/neutered, vaccinated and returned. Now only a handful of barn cats remain. (Courtesy Karolyn Middleton) 
Karolyn Middleton used to have 60 stray cats on her property near Cheyenne. Over the years, she’s trapped cats and taken them to the Cheyenne Animal shelter to be spayed/neutered, vaccinated and returned. Now only a handful of barn cats remain. (Courtesy Karolyn Middleton) 
(Getty Images)
Different Options
When cats are brought into the animal shelter, there are different options for them, Tennant said.
Cats that are obviously friendly toward and dependent upon humans are likely pets. If their owners don’t show up to claim them, they can be put up for adoption as house pets.
Cats that seem feral and just don’t care for people might still be eligible for adoption, once they’ve had a health check and been spayed/neutered and vaccinated.
“Some people might adopt them because they want the cat to be a shop cat or a barn cat. They want it to live in their little ranch and control pests, and they don’t care if the cat likes them or not,” she said.
Then there is the “re-fielding” option. That means roaming cats that caught in live traps will get a health check, be spayed/neutered, vaccinated — and then taken back to where they were found and set free again.
If one of those cats was a pet that wandered off and was trapped, “the chances of that cat being reunited with its family is higher than if we kept it in the shelter” because the cat can find its way back home, she said.
Free-roaming cats that were trapped and brought in also have the tips of one of their ears clipped.
That helps keep track of the feral population, Niki Harrison, the shelter’s director of development and outreach, told Cowboy State Daily.
“The ear tip clip is a universally known signal that the cat has been vetted and spayed or neutered. It allows people to also easily identify new cats in their area, or to keep track of who may need vaccinations and spay/ neuter surgery still,” she said.
The shelter doesn’t trap cats, Tennant said. Instead, there are a network of volunteers who monitor and trap feral cats.
‘It Had Gotten Out Of Control’
Karolyn Middleton lives on nine acres on the rural outskirts of Cheyenne. She told Cowboy State Daily that trapping cats for the shelter’s TNR program has worked wonders for her and her neighbor.
Over the years, a few roaming cats started showing up. Middleton was kindly enough to let them stay in her barn and even started feeding them dry cat food.
But then the cats started doing what comes naturally, and their numbers boomed.
After dallying with tomcats, the females were giving birth to litters that averaged about six kittens each, she said.
“It had gotten out of control. It started with four or five cats. And all of the sudden, there were, like 60 cats at my place” and her neighbor’s property was also getting mobbed, Middleton said.
‘We Don’t Have Any Mice’
When she heard about the trapping program, she was more than happy to participate.
A little dry cat food in each live trap does the trick, she said.
“The traps are fully enclosed. So If I catch a skunk or a raccoon by mistake, I don’t have to worry about being sprayed by the skunk and all of that,” she said.
Each cat she caught was taken to the shelter, given its shots, rendered infertile and returned to her property.
In addition to keeping them from making more kittens, getting the cats spayed or neutered improves their temperaments, Middleton said.
“A lot of the cats, they’re wild when they show up, or their moms are wild. But after you fix them, they really mellow out. They become affectionate,” she said.
And over the years, TNR achieved its goal of thinning the feline population, as cats lived out their lives, but didn’t reproduce.
All that remains are three cats in her barn and one on her neighbor’s property.
That’s a good number to have, Middleton said. As long as she keeps providing dry food, the cats don’t seem to kill birds for fun, but they still control vermin.
“We have lots of birds out here, but we don’t have any mice,” she said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
