This week’s post is sparked by Dr. Coleman’s class revolving around the ethics of environmental decision-making. Dr. Coleman’s reply to my post regarding cat poop has struck me how fragile both humans and animals are to parasites and other people’s decisions.
The Toxoplasma Gondii parasite that only the Felidae family carries not only affects wildlife; it is also a zoonotic disease that can spread to humans as well. As such, I’ll be focusing on owned Free-ranging domestic cats, whereby their owners allow them to roam around freely.
Question: Should the government allow roaming of cats, knowing their impacts on the health of otters and humans?
Let us do it step-by-step like in Dr. Coleman’s class activity!
If a strict ban on roaming cats is not ideal, we could look at other drivers of accumulating cat poop, which includes abandoned cats and the presence of unowned FRDCs.
Before we answer the main question, I feel that another alternative can be looking into reducing abandonment rates, which would seem like an ethical move. But would it truly solve this complex multi-stakeholder issue? Not to forget the bigger issue, the unowned FRDCs or feral cats.
Let’s look into it next week!
***If you have anything to add regarding the Prezi, do let me know! Inputs are welcome 🙂
References:
Centers for Diseases Control and Preventation. n.d. Toxoplasmosis. [online] Available at: <https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/toxoplasmosis/> [Accessed 6 November 2020].
Elton, C. (1953). The use of cats in farm rat control. The British Journal of Animal Behaviour, 4(1), 151-155. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0950-5601(53)80015-8.