2021 Feral Cat Project

Feral cat movement ecology in the Southern Downs Region

This project aims to trap and remove a large number of feral cats, whilst gathering sound information on the distances feral cats will travel, the diseases they carry, their diet and their capacity to breed and survive. The collected data will:

• inform an awareness campaign for residents on the importance of responsible cat ownership, and
• provide locally relevant data to support the development of a cat management strategy. The strategy may including elements such as compulsory cat registration and de-sexing and will be presented to Southern Downs Regional Council (SDRC) for endorsement and implementation.

This project is a collaboration between Southern Downs Regional Council, the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, the University of Southern Queensland and the University of Queensland. The work will be carried out by a mixture of council staff, Biosecurity Officers, experienced researchers and tertiary students. Assistance and advice will also be sort from local veterinarians.

How can you help?

We are seeking your assistance with the trapping and tracking component of this project which will occur between April and December. If you are interested in being involved in the project at some stage during this period, please contact one of the project team via the details listed over the page.

If you normally catch feral cats on your property, we would like you to continue catching them. However, before you take them away or euthanize them, we would like you to call us so we can come and collect the cat from your property. To ensure the welfare standards of any animals caught are met, only cage traps are to be used. If participating in the project, traps can be provided. However, if you are unable to check your traps daily for any reason, those traps need to be deactivated.

Participating landholders will be required to check traps daily each morning and phone-in before 9:00 am if they have caught a feral cat. A USQ student or staff member will come to your property that day and either

1. put a tracking collar on the cat and release it back on to your property, or
2. take the cat away and have it humanely euthanized. The best information can be attained if the cat can be released with a tracking collar however, the choice is yours and your decision will be respected.  

Native animals accidentally caught are to be released immediately. If a native animal is injured please contact a local vet or wildlife carer – the Granite Belt Wildlife Carers Wildlife Rescue Hotline is 0418 144 073.  

If you do not wish to have cats trapped on your property you can still support the project by reporting all sightings of all feral animals to Council. Reporting a sighting helps Council better understand where feral animals occur within the region.

To report a trapped cat or a feral cat sighting or to find out more about this project, please phone on 1300 My SDRC (1300 697 372) or submit an email to mail.sdrc.qld.gov.au.

Please contact us at any time on the details below if you would like to participate, or would like more information about this feral cat study.

Contact details:

This project has been funded through the Communities Combating Pest and Weed  Impacts During Drought Program - Biosecurity Management of Pests and Weeds  - Round 2 - an Australian Government Initiative.

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