Cats are important members of our families. However, free-roaming cats may influence animal, human and environmental health. With limited data, decision-makers must choose among several, often competing and emotionally-charged, interventions to address the challenges posed by cats in our communities. Our research aims at developing evidence-based management strategies for cats in urban areas. To do so, we are developing a suite of quantitative models to predict cat abundance, population dynamics, and environmental and social impacts. Field studies measure perceived and actual environmental impacts to birds. Field experiments measure the effect of different management actions at the individual- (e.g. change in behaviour and welfare) and population-level (e.g. change in abundance). Studies in social science seek stakeholder preferences, our ability/willingness to communication with different interest-groups and to identify common objectives. Our research embraces that effectively meeting this challenge requires working with both animal welfare and environmental advocates. We respect the views and opinions of all stakeholders but allow the data collected during focused studies to inform how best to reach our collective societal objectives.
© 2024 Tyler Flockhart | Solutions for complex ecological problems