Much of the appeal of birding is in the thrill of the hunt.
It begins with hearing the song or catching a fleeting glimpse of a bird, perhaps one you've never seen before, then tracking it through the branches and leaves -- trying to get a better view.
Your pulse quickens; your senses sharpen. You hold your breath, treading the forest floor as quietly as possible until, suddenly, there it is, perched quietly, sunlight glistening off its plumage. You adjust the binoculars and bring the bird into focus. Your quarry has been captured.
Cats clearly thrill to the same sort of sport, but their intentions are deadly. Cats are domesticated from wild ancestors who survived on such small animals as birds and rodents. And although their needs are usually fully met by their owners, they are still hard-wired to stalk and capture prey.
My wife and I have three cats: the rotund Woody, the beautiful princess Gypsy, and Taj, an orange tabby who is ruler of all he surveys. Our cats get a lot of pampering, but there are limits. They don't eat off our plates -- at least not while we're looking. And they don't go outside This is for their own good and for the protection of the birds in our neighborhood.
It is a myth that cats need to spend time outside to be healthy and happy. A cat that has been allowed to go out much of its life may be unhappy indoors, but it will get used to it over time. A cat that has been inside all its life really won't know the difference.
Taj was an indoor/outdoor cat for the first few years of his life when we lived in Randolph County. He was a holy terror for the birds and chipmunks around our house. When we moved to Winston-Salem, I knew it was time for him to get used to staying in. He protested for years. He would often streak past me when I entered the house and then slink around the lawn grazing on grass, which he would later disgorge on the carpet as if to say, "This is what you get for making me come back in."
But after my wife and I became more vigilant when opening doors, and with the passage of time, Taj got used to being an inside cat. The best part of this is that he is still with us, healthy and happy at age 15.
Yes, Taj was displeased when I started to keep him inside. But I couldn't abide the toll he was taking on other animals. House cats kill millions of birds each year in the U.S. And the Humane Society estimates that free-roaming cats may live only two or three years because of accidents and disease. Cats that stay indoors have an average lifespan of 12 to 13 years.
For more information, go to www.hsus.org and search on cats, www.audubon.org/educate/expert and select Birds and Cats, and www.abcbirds.org/abcprograms/policy/cats/index.html.
□ Liz Schmid, the owner and manager of Birds Unlimited in High Point, will present "Operation Rubythroat: A Costa Rican Adventure" at 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 26, at the monthly meeting of Audubon Society of Forsyth County. This program will be at SciWorks, 400 W. Hanes Mill Road. It is free and open to the public.
■ Bird's-Eye View is a joint column by Ron Morris and Phil Dickinson. Today's column was written by Morris. Morris retired after 24 years as curator at the N.C. Zoo. He has studied birds around the world and is the vice president of the Audubon Society of Forsyth County. Dickinson is a legal writer. He has been an active birder for 15 years, and is a past president of the Audubon Society of Forsyth County and chairs the conservation committee. If you have a birding question or story idea, write to Bird's-Eye View in care of Features, Winston-Salem Journal, P.O. Box 3159, Winston-Salem, N.C. 27101-3159, or send an e-mail to birding@wsjournal.com. Please type "birds" in the subject line.
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