This is the cutest pic EVER (kitten)

Introduced cats have also become a serious threat to some native birds and other animals. There are an estimated 63 million pet cats in the United States (Nassar and Mosier 1991), plus as many as 30 million feral cats (Luoma 1997). Cats prey on native birds (Fitzgerald 1990), plus small native mammals, amphibians, and reptiles (Dunn and Tessaglia 1994). Estimates are that feral cats in Wisconsin and Virginia kill more than 3 million birds in each state per year (Luoma 1997). Based on the Wisconsin and Virginia data, we assume that 5 birds are killed per feral cat/year; McKay (1996) reports that pet cats kill a similar number of birds as feral cats. Thus, about 465 million birds are killed by cats per year in the nation. Each adult bird can be valued at $30. This cost per bird is based on the literature that reports that a bird watcher spends $0.40 per bird observed, a hunter spends $216 per bird shot, and specialists spend $800 per bird reared for release; in addition, note that EPA fines polluters $10 per fish killed, including small, immature fish (Pimentel and Greiner 1997). Therefore, the total damage to U.S. bird population is approximately $14 billion/yr. This figure does not include small mammals, amphibians, and reptiles that are killed by feral and pet cats (Dunn and Tessaglia 1994).

Like cats, most dogs introduced into the United States were introduced for domestic purposes, but some have escaped into the wild. Many of these wild dogs run in packs and kill deer, rabbits, and domestic cattle, sheep, and goats. Carter (1990) reported that feral dog packs in Texas cause more than $5 million in livestock losses each year. Dog packs have also become a serious problem in Florida (Layne 1997). In addition to the damages caused by dogs in Texas, and conservatively assuming $5 million for all damages for the other 49 states combined, total losses in livestock kills by dogs per year would be approximately $10 million per year.

Moreover, an estimated 4.7 million people are bitten by feral and pet dogs annually, with 800,000 cases requiring medical treatment (Sacks et al. 1996). Centers for Disease Control estimates medical treatment for dog bites costs $165 million/yr, and the indirect costs, such as lost work, increase the total costs of dog bites to $250 million/yr (Colburn 1999; Quinlan and Sacks, 1999). In addition, dog attacks cause between 11 and 14 deaths per year, and 80% of the victims are small children (CDC 1997).