Importantly for the current prominent perceptions of cat impacts to wildlife: “all animal attacks combined accounted for 4.4% of threatened species rescues; dog-related rescues were more than three times greater than cat-related rescues, with cat-related rescues comprising 0.6% of all threatened species rescues”.
The current strong public focus on cats and impacts to wildlife “risks diverting attention away from other more major and preventable impacts on wildlife in urban areas. These include habitat loss and fragmentation, vehicle collisions, extreme weather, and hazards linked to roads, buildings, and other human structures”.
APWF Position Paper
From Australian wildlife hospitals, past studies have shown consistent patterns: road/traffic collisions, “orphaned or dependent young, disease, and environmental displacement” usually lead the reasons for wildlife entering a hospital.
This is the first state-wide analysis from the NSW Wildlife Rehabilitation Data Dashboard records used from 2013 through 2024. Points of interest follow.
[Note – this new research is under review]
Conclusion include:
- Companion animal attacks were causing “a small proportion of rescues overall, with dog-related rescues more than three times as common as cat-related rescues”
- Gains in conservation “are likely to come from preventing harm before it occurs and increasing survival through early intervention”
- Prevention efforts should be focused “on the major human-related drivers identified in this study offers the strongest opportunity to reduce wildlife rescues and improve outcomes for threatened species and wildlife rescuers”
- Acknowledging and responding to these factors and drivers “will be essential if conservation policy is to achieve meaningful reductions in threatened wildlife injury and mortality and protect human wellbeing.”
“Overall, threatened species most often entered care due to adverse weather events, unsuitable environment, hazardous materials, and vehicle collisions—suggesting that prevention efforts targeting these causes are likely to avert more harm than a primary focus on pet cats.”
About this new study:
- Data gathered from 52,475 individuals and 158 threatened species
- Outcomes include
- 24.1% of threatened animals were released,
- 58.5% died, and
- 17.5% had other outcomes
- Rescues due to largely human-related causes:
- 11.6% Entanglement
- 11.4% Weather–Drought
- 10.1% Abandoned/Orphaned
- 7.3% Unsuitable Environment
- 5.8% Motor-Vehicle Collision,
- although many were Unknown (21.9%).
- these six making up 82.1% of threatened species rescues.
Reference sources:
Bella and Charlie Are Not the Problem – It’s Us: The Real Drivers of Wildlife Decline in NSW https://www.preprints.org/manuscript/202604.1191
APWF Position Paper Domestic Cats and Australian Wildlife Populations https://petwelfare.org.au/position-statements
Jacquie Rand Stray Cats in NSW with ABC Evenings (Sydney, NSW & ACT) https://petwelfare.org.au/media/stray-cats-in-nsw
LRC 