Sandra, I used to hear a guy sing 'Basingstoke' many years ago, if it's the one where he survives the fire, but... but I've never heard 'Ferdinand.'

How anyone can be overly sentimental about cats is beyond me. I subscibe to the Terry Pratchett view that "If they looked like toads, we'd realise what horrible bastards they are."
We have two, currently, and have had up to five at a time in the past! The most decent ones were both Siamese, who 'brought 'em back alive' and never killed anything. But, then what do you do with baby birds?
Here in NZ, if a dog strays onto a farm and chases stock, it is legal to shoot it. What then should happen to a cat that roams onto a reserve and kills native birds for fun? And by extension, one that kills the native birds that have been displaced by Man's actions and are trying to make a living in suburbia?