Cats and Wildlife
The Portland metro region is home to more than 200 species of birds, many of which are already under huge pressure due to habitat loss and fragmentation. Cats and other hazards like window strikes add to those pressures.
Spaying and neutering cats and keeping them safe at home reduce impacts on local wildlife populations. In addition, when you keep your cat safe at home, you minimize its exposure to all kinds of dangers: disease, cars, predators, and more.
In the Portland metro region, Bird Alliance of Oregon and Feral Cat Coalition of Oregon, along with Multnomah County Animal Services and Bonnie L. Hays Small Animal Shelter, are working together through the Cats Safe at Home campaign to address the root causes of cat overpopulation with strategies that recognize the value of both cats and wildlife.
Every cat deserves a safe home where it is loved, cared for and kept free from hazards. Yet thousands of cats die in local shelters each year and tens of thousands of stray and feral cats roam our urban landscape vulnerable to a variety of risks and preying on our native wildlife. Cats Safe at Home seeks to address the challenges associated with cat overpopulation in the Portland metropolitan area in a humane and environmentally responsible manner.
Visit the Cats Safe at Home website to learn more about the annual Catio Tour, catio resources, Hayden Island Cat Project, solutions to help reduce cat overpopulation, and information on how to build a safer and healthier environment for both cats and wildlife.
For more information about Bird Alliance of Oregon’s Cats Safe at Home work, contact conservation director Quinn Read at qread@birdallianceoregon.org.
10th Annual Catio Tour
Don’t miss this very Portland, one-of-a-kind event! Hosted by the Feral Cat Coalition of Oregon and Bird Alliance of Oregon every September, the self-guided tour seeks to inspire cat owners to build or buy their own outdoor cat enclosure so their felines can enjoy safe outdoor time. Backyard enclosures from frugal to fabulous keep cats safe from outdoor hazards while also protecting wildlife from cat predation.