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Highland Park could join a small but growing number of communities throughout the country that are banning free-roaming cats from their neighborhoods.

The north suburb is considering an ordinance that would prohibit residents from letting their cats wander the streets without a leash or enter a neighbor's yard.

Conservationists in the community are urging the passage of the law because of the loss of small wildlife in the area and the health risks encountered by outdoor cats.

"I have become convinced that over the years we have been losing birds because of the cats and the deer that are destroying their habitat," said Highland Park Councilman Peter Koukos, who recommended this week that the city's environment commission study the issue.

The commission will be evaluating proposals that are used around the country to control outdoor cats, including an ordinance used in Montgomery County, Md.

A law passed there in August makes it illegal for a cat to be in a neighbor's yard without permission or to defecate outside the owner's property. If a cat is found in violation, the owner can face a $100 fine per occurrence.

"This is not an anti-cat ordinance," said Donald Dann, a Highland Park conservationist who brought the issue to the council. "I want to make the environment safe for everybody, including cats."

The American Veterinarian Medical Association estimates there were about 2.2 million cat owners in Illinois in 1996. Nationally, there are about 66 million cat owners, and about 65 percent of them allow their cats to roam outside, according to the American Bird Conservancy.

Roaming cats have been an issue in other Illinois communities. Waukegan, for example, has had an anti-roaming ordinance on the books for more than 20 years, according to Tina Frgassi with the city's animal control office.

Dann said the issue should appeal to cat lovers because cats that are kept indoors live an average of 17 years compared to the two to five years of an outside cat.

But the real appeal will come from conservationists who argue that, nationally, millions of birds are killed by wayward cats.

One of the country's leading cat associations said the felines are getting a bum rap.

"Our position is that cats are not very efficient predators of birds and they are often the scapegoat for what could be other factors," said Joan Miller, the legislative coordinator for the Cat Fanciers Association.

But keeping cats indoors is a good idea, vets and other cat authorities say. "We have seen the trauma of cats sleeping underneath car hoods and then getting caught in the fan blades," said Dr. Richard Rossman, a veterinarian at Glen Oak Dog and Cat Hospital in Glenview.

# posted by Medical Information : 2:51 AM