Know your obligations before you set a cat trap

With such a variety of niches that cats occupy, it is not surprising that people have different relationships with cats. Some people enjoy cats being around their communities, whereas others do not. Most companion cats in New Zealand can come and go from their property with little to no restriction and most Councils do not have by-laws that place conditions on cat ownership or cat movement. This can result in frustrations for property owners when cats make unwanted visits or exhibit unwanted behaviours around their house and garden.

People may turn to trapping to address problems with cats in their neighbourhood or concerns for protecting native wildlife – but this can lead to significant negative welfare impacts on the cats.

If a cat is making unwelcome visits to your property, SPCA first recommends taking steps to deter them by removing attractants, such as food sources. If you decide to trap a cat, always have a plan for what you’ll do with the cat before you set the trap. If you trap a cat who is sick, injured, old, or very young and without their mother, you can reach out to your local SPCA Centre or veterinarian for help.

You have legal obligations under the Animal Welfare Act 1999 if you set a live trap. One of those obligations is that you must manually check the trap within 12 hours after sunrise each day the trap remains set. You have legal obligations if you use remote sensing technology that alerts when the trap has captured a cat. You can read more here for information on obligations with checking traps.

Although some leg-hold traps are legal to use in New Zealand, SPCA opposes the use of leghold traps because of the negative impacts to the welfare of the trapped animal and the indiscriminate way they capture animals.

Leg-hold traps are declared as ‘restricted’, and the Animal Welfare (Leg-Hold Traps) Order 2007 outlines the requirements and restrictions on their use. The only leg-hold traps that can be legally used are (1) size 1 long spring traps, (2) size 1 double coil spring traps, and (3) size 1.5 padded-jaw double-coil spring traps.

It is important to note that leg-hold traps must not be used within 150 meters of any dwelling without the express permission of the occupier. Additionally, leg-hold traps must not be used in any area where there is a probable risk of catching a companion animal. This inherently precludes the use of leg-hold traps in or near residential communities. Most companion cats in New Zealand have access to the outdoors and the distance they travel from home can be far, with that distance doubling for cats living in rural areas.

Once you catch a cat in a live trap, you legally become the person in charge of that animal and have obligations for how you treat the cat. You cannot leave the cat in the trap for any extended period of time without providing for their needs – this includes food, water, and shelter. Leaving a cat for hours in a trap to ‘teach it a lesson’ is not appropriate. In turn, physically hurting a cat, or causing unreasonable or unnecessary distress, such as hosing the cat while trapped, is an offence under the Act. Taking a trapped cat to an unfamiliar location for release can be an offence under the Act. This is especially true for companion cats and stray cats, which rely on humans for their basic needs.

If you live trap a cat who is sick, injured, old, or very young and without their mother, you can reach out to your local SPCA Centre or veterinarian for help. If you trap a cat in an urban and rural location, then you should have the cat scanned for the presence of a microchip to reunite the cat with their owner. Veterinarians and SPCA Centres can assist with scanning and alerting owners.

SPCA does not recommend lethally controlling cats caught on private property in urban and rural settings, as it can be very difficult to determine if a cat is owned, and you could find yourself committing offences under the Animal Welfare Act 1999. Killing any animal in an inhumane manner is an offence under the Act, and depending on the situation, circumstance, and method of killing, you could potentially be committing a reckless or wilful ill-treatment offence, which carries a term of imprisonment of up to 3 years and 5 years respectively. It is inhumane to kill a cat by drowning and an offence under the Animal Welfare Act (detailed in in the Animal Welfare (Companion Cats) Code of Welfare 2018). Young kittens have a ‘diving reflex’ that prolongs their distress while drowning. No animal must ever be killed by drowning.

You may also find yourself committing an offence under other acts enforced by the New Zealand Police. Companion cats are considered property under New Zealand law, and you could be held criminally or civilly liable for harming a person’s cat.

It is important you set a live capture trap in ways that protect the cat’s welfare. Traps should not be set in temperatures that could cause heat or cold stress, or in weather conditions such as rain or snow. Traps should have bedding and be placed in areas where there is shelter, such as under bushes or buildings. SPCA recommends using traps with live remote monitoring which alerts when the trap has gone off. This helps minimise the length of time that a cat (or other animal) spends in the trap.

SPCA recommends that anyone setting animal traps uses best practices to ensure trapping is as humane as possible. There are reputable resources available for best practices for traps, including:

• Department of Conservation (DOC) Practical Guide to Trapping (3^rd Edition)
• Alley Cat Allies A step-by-step guide to Trap-Neuter-Return
• Neighbourhood Cats The Neighbourhood Cats TNR Handbook
• Best Friends Animal Society Community Cat Programs Handbook