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Trial A lasted for a period of 4 weeks during April and May 1999. 18 participants and 21 cats were involved with half the participants being asked to have the collar switched off for a week and then on for a week, then off for a week and turned on in the final week. The second half of the participants followed the opposite order of switching. During the period that the collar was switched off, 19 mammals and 30 birds were taken. This compares with the periods when the collar was switched on when again 19 mammals were taken but only 11 birds.
In broad terms it appears that the collar reduced predation on birds by two thirds but had no effect on mammals. Furthermore, 13 of the 18 participants found their cat brought in more birds when the collar was off than when it was on and only one the reverse. Thirteen out of the 18 participants had the collar switched on in daylight only, and so the cats hunting for mammals at night may explain the lack of reduction in mammal prey taken. |
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The encouraging early results from this study, for birds, backs up the results of the initial CatAlert study (button to trial details), which also found a significant reduction in the number of birds taken. Trial A was undertaken during April and May when there were few young birds around. The next phase of the trials, Trial B, was undertaken during June when large numbers of young birds were available for cats to prey upon. The final part of the trials took place in September and October 1999. When sufficient results have been received for a statistical analysis, it will be possible to produce a peer-reviewed paper for publication in the scientific literature. |