Humans have domesticated a number of animals. Of the larger beasts there are essentially, what, 7? Cows, horses, oxen, pigs, sheep, camels, and llamas. It’s no wonder that migrants and tribes decedent from the Fertile Crescent won the day, as the first six draw from there, and every one of them massively exceeds the comparative value of what folks in the New World were stuck with.
But we have our other domesticates. Obviously the dog, wooed away from the wolf, the critter of amazing capacity and service appears to flourish as the subordinate of our established relationship. Capable indeed … eyes for the blind, nose for the hunter, a sort of mobile GC-MS for the crime scene investigator, the list goes on. They provide much, and we treat them well and often with reverence.
Then there is the cat. Our established relationship with the cat, in deference to Durkheim, is one of vermin control. That capacity is significant, but has never been amenable to the refined training of the dog. So, while reducing harmful rodent populations in human communities, they are equally at ease taking the song bird to the considerable consternation of many, and this is not a feature that has or apparently can be trained away.
And yes, there is at some level others: ferrets, doves, some snakes and so on.
I am completely arrogant in my respect and observance of animals. I am human, I am supreme, I am for me and mine. I believe, however, that I and others get the most when we treat our relationships with those animals with respect … I believe that is what serves us best. I am completely at home with manipulating the experimental lab rat. It would do the same. It is its right and purpose as much at it is mine. But neglect of any sort invariably diminishes value.
The poody cat in question is a domestic animal, and while capable in a pinch, is one fully evolved towards a certain degree of human dependency. It may forage successfully, or not. Myself, I consider it a component of my compact with them, my slaves in the end, to carry my end of the bargain. They control vermin, I provide services that while simple to me, exhibit the fundamental truth of why darwin hood-winked those cats into the relationship they enjoy. I’ve got the opposable thumb and the brain the size of a cantaloupe. They chose to side with a winner.
I would capture the kitty and bring it to a no-kill place, or a kill place, but I would go with a no-kill place. For me it would be out of some sort of godly sense of wholeness, of honoring a partnership.
Many consider feral cat populations a significant drain on species diversity, and considering the pressures we as humans place on other animals, perhaps it is best that we recover those domesticated vermin killers and keep them more contained to their agreed upon assigned task as oppose to having them exert pressure on other things (e.g. song birds) that we already exert enough pressure on ourselves
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