Cat owners in the German city of Walldorf have been ordered to keep pets inside until the end of August to protect a rare bird during the breeding season.
The decree was created to help rescue a bird, which makes its nest on the ground and is therefore easy prey for cats. The new rule applies to all cats in the southern part of the city and will be repeated for the next three years from April to August.
Owners risk being fined 500 euros if their cat is found wandering outside and could be hit with 50,000 euros if the cat hurts or eats the bird.
"Sudden blocking of cats that are accustomed to going out means great restrictions and stress on animals," Deutscher Tierschutzbund, Germany's largest animal welfare organization, told Euronews Green.
The organization supports measures to protect rare birds, but believes no animals can be treated as second-class.
"The impact of agriculture, monocultures, insect mortality and increased land development is probably greater than that of some cat-hunting cats," Daniela Schneider, a Four Paws Germany activist, told Euronews Green. "
"These are caused by people. "It would be better to fight the current causes than to blame the cats for it."
