Swiss group suggests one-cat-per-household limit

ZURICH, Switzerland, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- A Swiss animal protection group is proposing a one-cat limit for the country's households to protect local wildlife preyed on by the felines.

The Zurcher Tierschutz group in Zurich suggested the country's cat population needs to be controlled due to the threats felines pose to wildlife including birds, lizards, amphibians and small mammals.

The group said there are an estimated 1.4 million cats in the country of 8.1 million people and measures are needed to control the cat population to protect local wildlife. The group suggested a limit be put on cat ownership to allow only one feline per household.

Claudia Kistler, co-author of the group's study, said there are an estimated 430 cats per square kilometer, about .38 square miles, in the country.

François Turrian, director of ASPO/Bird Life Suisse, said the group's proposal should be discussed. He said the green lizard has been wiped out of some areas in Switzerland and is endangered in others due to being hunted by cats.

Some have criticized the proposal, however, saying it does not stipulate what would be done with the country's surplus cats.

Dennis Turner, a British professor at the University of Zurich and a specialist in cats and dogs, told Le Matin Dimanche the idea that Switzerland has too many cats is "completely unfounded."

"Rome has 2,000 cats per square kilometer and there are 2,350 in a Japanese fishing village -- don't tell me that Switzerland suffers from an overpopulation of cats," he said.