The cost of removing feral cats from Brimbank properties could cause people to take matters into their own hands, one resident claims.
Lisa, a Deer Park resident and cat owner, said she had been inundated with feral cats on her property over the mating season, and was shocked when Brimbank council asked her to pay for a cage to trap and remove them.
“I keep my cat indoors, but the feral cats get attracted to it, and when I rang council about it, they told me I would have to pay $60 for a cage,” she said.
“I don’t get a cent of that back – I’m on a pension and I can’t afford that, so the problem gets worse. I had two cats die under my house recently – it’s just not right.
“I pay my rates, I pay for my cat to be registered and microchipped, why is it up to me to pay to get rid of feral cats?”
Lisa said she was a lifelong cat lover and didn’t want others in her position to resort to illegal means to get rid of the strays.
“No-one is going to pay $60 to get rid of feral cats,” she said.
“No-one will pay, and they’ll get rid of them in inhumane ways, which is the last thing I want … the council should do more,” she said.
Brimbank council’s acting city development director Matt Aquilina said the fee charged for cages was used to help cover the cost of council’s feral cat removal service.
“The management of feral cats is one of the key areas of animal management dealt with by council,” Mr Aquilina said.
“The fee charged by council is not for the sale of the trap, but is a hire fee, which goes a small way to recovering the costs associated with offering this service to residents.”
Mr Aquilina said any resident found to be poisoning feral cats instead of going through council services would be harshly punished.
“Council would be very concerned with any resident poisoning any animal within the municipality, and would investigate reports of this occurring,” he said.
“This is a criminal offence and may be reported to the RSPCA or police if it is found to be occurring.”
