Nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs could be one way of describing the approach of some Waitaki District Council councillors to developing a policy on cats.
On Wednesday, the council asked officers to consider and report back on options to address the need to manage the district's cat population. From that, it would decide on a course of action.
While feral cats are not a major issue in most parts of the district, they are in Palmerston, where numbers in the central business district have increased over at least the past year, causing safety and health concerns.
Spoken to after yesterday's council meeting, the area's councillor, Kathy Dennison, said she had received many complaints recently about feral cats in Palmerston's centre. She saw three in one litter bin one night. They were foraging in the bins and spreading litter, as well as running across the road at night.
This raised health issues for contractors emptying the bins and road safety issues on State Highway 1 and SH85.
''It is a major problem,'' she said. ''Some people are passionate about cats and feed them, but numbers are increasing so much,'' Cr Dennison said.
During the council debate on investigating options on cat control, Cr Jim Hopkins noted the view of some councillors the issue could be ''very contentious''.
''It will arouse strong views, either side. It can escalate very quickly,'' he said. He questioned whether the request for staff to report was a priority, considering other work, when there appeared to be only one major problem in the district.
Cr Melanie Tavendale also questioned whether the matter was urgent.
