Cat Is Lost to Coyote and Bureaucracy
Here’s another suburban jungle story with an unhappy ending.
It comes from Fountain Valley, not usually thought of as a place where civilization meets the wilds. In other words, not exactly canyon country. Yet, it was the site last Sunday morning for a tiff between a coyote and a house cat. You can guess the outcome of that.
That was bad enough news for Donna and Robert Kapche, who are lamenting that the county’s Animal Care Services agency didn’t inform them that their cat, which had identification tags, had been killed until the couple telephoned the agency more than 48 hours later.
Those of you without pets may be rolling your eyes at this moment. Why would county government be obliged to notify anyone that its pet had been killed by a coyote?
That’s what I thought.
It was surprising, then, to learn that it’s county policy to notify pet owners, if possible, when their pets are found dead. Nor is it unheard of for an animal-control officer to come to your doorstep, with your pet’s body, so you can give it a proper send-off.
That’s why the Kapches of Fountain Valley are miffed that the county didn’t call when Pyewacket, their 10-year-old cat, was picked up about 6 a.m. Sunday. The Kapches confirmed Pyewacket’s death when they phoned Animal Control on Tuesday afternoon.
Kathy Francis, an official speaking for the agency, says she isn’t sure why the delay occurred, other than to note that the intervening Monday was a county holiday. She also says the officer who found the cat was working the late shift and didn’t report back to the shelter until 11 p.m. on Sunday--a point the Kapches question since their neighbor, who didn’t know it was their cat, says the cat’s body was picked up before 6 a.m.
Nature Meets Civilization
The Kapches’ situation probably should be chalked up to a bureaucratic mistake. But, in miniature, it points again to the increasing potential for dismay as suburban life comes into contact with wildlife.
Donna Kapche says the county should have informed residents of a possible coyote problem. “I’ve lived in Fountain Valley for 32 years, and I’ve never been worried about letting cats out,” she says. “This is very unusual. What bothers me is them [county officials] not bothering to inform the neighborhood. They have some responsibility for that.”
Maybe you have to be a pet owner to accept that. But, from the Kapches’ standpoint, the county would warn residents about other perils they wouldn’t expect, so why not a coyote warning?
Sort of a killer-on-the-loose warning.
Francis says the agency tries to educate the public about such predators, mainly at local schools or civic groups. It doesn’t post warnings, she says, because the encroachment of wild animals is so commonplace throughout Orange County.
“We could [post notices], but coyotes are everywhere in every city in Orange County,” she says. “If [a coyote] is healthy, it has a right to be here. Unless it’s acting in an aggressive manner, we’ll usually send an officer to chase it off.”
For that reason, Francis says, the agency encourages people to restrict cats and small dogs to indoor status. “It only takes a second for them to be snatched up,” she says. “The life expectancy of an outside cat is two years. For an inside cat, it’s 15 years.”
Francis says the agency brings in about 17,000 dead animals a year and an additional 30,000 or so live or injured ones. That’s why it’s crucial that pet owners have name tags on their pets.
As for notifications of dead animals? “It gives people a sense of closure,” she says. “I’d like to know what happened to my animal if it was out and hit by a car. It’s hard to take sometimes, but at least you know.”
On that, she and the Kapches would agree.
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Dana Parsons’ column appears Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Readers may reach Parsons by calling (714) 966-7821 or by writing to him at The Times’ Orange County edition, 1375 Sunflower Ave., Costa Mesa, CA 92626, or by e-mail to dana.parsons@latimes.com.
