# Neighbor shooting at kitten.



## FranklinTturtle (Sep 27, 2011)

What do you think about my neighbor shooting at stray cats and kitten with a BB pistol? He said he does not want them using the bathroom in his yard. I think it is cruel and I have gotten after him several times.


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## Angi (Sep 27, 2011)

I don't think a BB gun will do much damage. Is it the airsoft gun type? My kids used to shoot them at each other. That is what most people have now. I would not wan't stray cats going to the bathroom in my yard either, but I would probably not shoot at them. Coco mulch is suposed to keep cats away. You might tell him that it works better than the BB gun, I think it would.


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## AnthonyC (Sep 27, 2011)

I think that's horrible! Besides it just being morally wrong, what about if he critically injures one? It will just suffer and die! There must be an alternative method to keep the cats/kittens off his lawn.


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## FranklinTturtle (Sep 27, 2011)

It breaks my heart. I try to get the kittens friendly enough to take to the vet to get them fixed. Soon as we get one friendly it disappears. I wish they would stop going into his yard but they know no borders and they quickly forget what just happen.


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## zoogrl (Sep 27, 2011)

I think it's awful! It may be better for him to get with the local animal control & trap the cats. He is at risk for animal cruelty charges by shooting at them, depending on what the laws are in your community and if someone reports him.


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## cherylim (Sep 27, 2011)

I'm definitely against it. I don't like cats using my garden as a toilet either, but at the end of the day what gives me more right to the land than them? They're animals, you can't set boundaries. My neighbours have three cats and they've started using a corner of our garden (we were working on it, so it's raw soil) as a litter tray. Frustrating, and it means I have to keep Emrys away from that corner, but cats will be cats and I'd never want my neighbour to feel that her cats needed to be restricted in some way, or weren't welcome in our garden.


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## dmarcus (Sep 27, 2011)

I don't like it, there are still BB guns out there that has a pump action handle and you pump it to build up pressure to shot it, so the more you put the more pressure you build up and that can do some damage...


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## Jacqui (Sep 27, 2011)

I don't like it at all, but then I am the crazy cat person in my neighborhood.   BBs can actually do damage. We have had kids in the neighborhood, when my kids were young who use to play war with those guns. In their growing up years each of my four at one time or another had an actual injury from BBs. By injury I mean at the very least they broke skin. On my youngest child they went into the skin right before his ear. I was able to myself get the little pellet out.

Now these were all human children and all over 10 years of age. I don't want to know what it could do to a small child. I know they can kill birds using a BB, would think it could also be strong enough to kill a kitten.


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## yagyujubei (Sep 27, 2011)

I am a cat lover, but my neighbors flanking me probably have 30 barn cats between them. They would come by my house and fight with my in/out cat. I used to catch them in a live catch trap, and just before I let them go, I'd drench them with 5 gal of cold water. I've never caught the same one twice. Nobody hurt, but they steer clear of my place pretty much.


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## AshleyJones (Sep 27, 2011)

I watch alot of animal shows and I have actually see one where they caught a stray dog did an xray on him and found a ton of BBs under his skin from kids shooting him. Its very sad!!


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## GBtortoises (Sep 27, 2011)

I say if you're going to kill it, use a caliber of shot big enough to do the job. Don't make them suffer. Beyond that I see no difference between a stray cat or a skunk or racoon. Anyone of them can be a menace in a given situation it just depends upon what an individuals tolerance level to their menacing may be. I'm not saying whether it's right or not to kill strays. I'm just saying if you feel that you must do it, do it right so that they die quickly with as little pain as possible.


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## ascott (Sep 27, 2011)

Have you filed a complaint with animal control?


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## Claireabbo (Sep 27, 2011)

thats horrible!!!


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## jaizei (Sep 27, 2011)

While I wouldn't do it, I think that, depending on how powerful the bb gun is, it might not even be cruel. Whats worse shooting (killing) any cat that strays into his yard, or using the bb gun to deter them?


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## FranklinTturtle (Sep 27, 2011)

His BB pistol has a CO-2 cartridge. So you know thats quite powerful.


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## dmmj (Sep 27, 2011)

I am sort of on the fence here, as long as he is not inuring the kittens (permanently) I am sort of ok with it, Of course I like the ice water method someone else mentioned, I can understand frustration at animals that people either release or don't take care of. I wouldn't do it


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## Jacqui (Sep 27, 2011)

What if the neighbor were to be shooting children who came into his yard? Would all of you who thought it was okay to shoot the cats, also think shooting a child was okay, too? Just curious.

...or what if one of your tortoises escaped into his yard, is it still okay to shoot them, too?


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## dmmj (Sep 27, 2011)

Come on jaqui kids and kittens are two completely different things. With all due respect I can't even argue the point.


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## Jacqui (Sep 27, 2011)

dmmj said:


> Come on jaqui kids and kittens are two completely different things. With all due respect I can't even argue the point.


Yes they are, but also no they are not. Both are living animals and neither one (depending on age) may know they are doing wrong. Me personally, I'd rather be shooting the kids.  



I am sorry, I guess I am just either from the old school or life in the cornfield has me jaded or something. I think part of being a neighbor, is to put up with each other. For example, if I put up with your loud music or your pain-in-the-butt kids, you need to put up with my noisy or pain-in-the-butt animals. We all just need to learn to give a little and to take the time to think about what it is that we are doing or having, that may annoy our neighbors. Then to try to get it into perspective with what they are doing that annoy us. 

It's like my neighbors complained about the dogs of the woman who lives behind me barking all night long, so they could not sleep. Yet they did not think it was wrong to run lawnmowers and do repair work right next to the window where she was trying to sleep. Just because the dogs barked at night did not make a person being able to not sleep due to noise, any less then it did making noise during the day when a person who works nights needs to sleep.

Then there is the simple fact, that I don't think anybody has the right to hurt an animal. Be it a human animal, a feline animal, or a tortoise animal.


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## Edna (Sep 27, 2011)

Shooting at the kittens/cats is mean and ineffective. The cats that get hit will only learn to be more sneaky and they will continue to use his yard. When my own kittens were using an area I wanted them to stay out of I just laid 2x4" welded wire over the top of the dirt. Being unable to dig, they abandoned the area.


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## FranklinTturtle (Sep 27, 2011)

Thanks everyone for your opinions. I have always been tender hearted for animals and I know as much as I love animals some one else feel quite the opposite. But, I have already spoken to this man several times about how I feel. So, tomorrow I am going to call animal control and let them laid the law down for him. If I don't speak up for the Cats and the Kittens I will not think of my self as the person I thrive to be. I hate to not get along with my neighbor but apparently he does not care how I feel. So the heck with him and I hope that God has some questions for him when he tries to enter the pearly gates.


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## terryo (Sep 27, 2011)

I'm one of those who thinks it wrong to hurt any animal. This person is very lucky he doesn't live here in NY. I hate to think what would happen to his property if a kid here saw him do that.


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## ascott (Sep 27, 2011)

Ditto TerryO....


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## RV's mom (Sep 27, 2011)

I've had 2 cats shot, neither killed. The first had his front leg shattered, requiring surgery and a cast. The next was hit by a pellet gun. The person who fired it had no idea of cat physiology and instead of killing her, hit the spinal column, partially paralyzing her hindquarters. She didn't come home for 2 weeks. Surgery was out of the question (I had no cash to spare) and so she lived her life either kenneled or in the side yard.

I have absolutely no tolerance for people who shoot for sport or "because they don't like something" e.g. ~ your cat is in my yard...

Hunting to put food on the table is different.


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## Laura (Sep 27, 2011)

depending where you live.. its probably illegal to shoot.. a hose would work too.. coffee grounds in his garden, cayenne pepper, 
If they are strays.. then trap them and turn them into animal control. spare them the pain of getting shot and stop the cycle of unwanted kittens..


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