The average house cat is more dangerous than it appears. In the article "That Cuddly Kitty Is Deadlier Than You Think" by Natalie Angier, The author explains how scientists have come to believe that the small average cat is very violent. The scientists discovered a way to attach a video camera to a cats collar. By watching the footage, they were shocked! The numbers were way higher than expected. Cats were killing many, many animals. Around 2.4 billion birds and 12.3 billion mammals in only a year! Many people now believe that cats should not roam free.
I think that it is amazing how man animals cats kill. I also feel that it would be great if we could somehow get rid of all the cats on the street; but there are far too many strays and people who let their cats roam to just suddenly stop them. Along with the animals being killed, the author also states that, "they've [cats] been shown lapping up antifreeze and sewer sludge, dodging under moving cars and sparring violently with much bigger dogs."(2 Angier) I think that this shows another reason why cats should not roam free.
The author doesn't seem to be too biased. She doesn't use many strong words. Even though she appears to want the cats out of the street, I think she is more just trying to inform us. She does mention that: "All [scientists] concur that pet cats should not be allowed to prowl around the neighborhood at will." This statement makes you want to get cats off the street because regular people trust what scientists have to say. Her article doesn't really make me lean to one side though. I think it's an even arguement.
In conclusion, this article really made me think. I didn't realize that letting your cat out to roam could be such a horrible thing. I also didn't think that stray cats were that big of an issue until now. I think the statistics the author showed were extremely shocking. I'm glad that i read this article because it really made me realize what an issue this is. I thought the only main big issue was global warming, but there are many other things as well.
SOURCE: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/30/science/that-cuddly-kitty-of-yours-is-a-killer.html?ref=science
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