The town that wanted people to leash their cats

Short of keeping them indoors, there wasn't much anyone could do to keep cats from roaming outside. But a Nova Scotia town council was exploring its options.

Councillors in Wolfville, N.S., had proposed a bylaw that would require cats, as well as dogs, to be on a leash when off their owners' property.

There was just one hitch.

"While many people secretly hate cats, and what they can do to a garden, not many people seem to think a leash on a cat is much of an idea," said reporter Phil Forgeron on CBC Halifax's 1st Edition on Oct. 14, 1992.

'A little ridiculous'

"I think it's a little ridiculous ... to think you'd have to put your cats on leashes," said Dale Gruchy, who said she had a three-year-old cat. "She's not used to having a leash. She'd probably go wild."

Bob Stead, who said he and his fellow town councillors had been getting calls about the issue, clarified that the town was seeking "an effective means of control."

"It may be, at the worst, the leash," he said. "But at the best it may be something far better than that that's more sensible."

But the idea of keeping tabs on tabbies by leashing them got some local animal lovers' backs up.

A difficult task

Ladney Richmond vividly demonstrated the challenge cat owners could face if the leash bylaw proceeded.

Seated on the steps of her porch, she was seen wrangling a white cat into a harness and leash. The cat leapt away as soon as it was able.

"See, he's pretty laid back, so ..." she said, trailing off to let the viewer draw their own conclusion about the effectiveness of a leash, given the cat's resistance.   

Richmond, who represented the Wolfville Area Animal Group, said it could be "disastrous" for a leashed cat that was tied up if a dog came along. And she explained why it was pointless to put a leash on a cat.

"Getting a harness on, you almost have to do it a special way to keep them from pulling out, because they're so supple."

Claws come out

"We don't sell a lot of the leashes," said Amy Ostrowski, an employee at the Animal House pet store. "How often do you see a cat ... being walked like a dog?"

A meeting was scheduled for the local firehall, and it promised to be "packed" by the "anti-leash lobby," said Forgeron. 

According to subsequent reporting by CBC, that meeting was postponed because too many people turned up. More than 100 came out for the rescheduled event.