Me-ow! Kenyan feline lovers fret over cat-tax plan

The city’s feline population – lions in the Nairobi National Park excluded – is not known, but they are ubiquitous: prowling on streets, lounging in shops, and foraging at rubbish tips and restaurants.

Yowling from various cats in different registers can often punctuate the hush of night, especially during mating season.

Naomi Mutua, who with more than a dozen cats calls herself Nairobi’s “mother of cats”, told the BBC the county authorities should have checked with cat owners, rescue organisations and veterinary groups before coming up with the draft law.

She runs a Facebook group of about 25,000 cat lovers and says the introduction of mandatory rabies vaccinations is a good thing but queries how it will be achieved in reality.

About 2,000 Kenyans die every year from rabies caused by dog or cat bites, according to the health ministry.

And Ms Mutua says the first premise of any new law should start with improving “standards of care that are lacking”.

She wonders whether confining a cat on heat would be “restricting them from their natural behaviour”.

A public consultation is being organised by the county – to begin this Friday.

City residents will be able to give their views about the bill – which may inform further amendments to be considered by the county assembly.

For the head of the Kenya Society for the Protection and Care of Animals (KSPCA), Emma Ngugi, the draft legislation is a welcome move given that animal welfare in the city is a “huge problem”.

But licences, she feels, are probably not the answer as people may not want to claim ownership of cats.

Some people may end up throwing out their cats if they are forced to pay for them, which would defeat the purpose of the bill.

“If you introduce what is essentially a tax on cats, then it’s going to be even harder for organisations like us working in communities to get people to take responsibility,” she told the BBC.

Ms Ngugi also points out that there is already legislation on dog ownership that is ignored as most people do not bother to get licences for them – even those who can afford to do so.

Under the proposed bill, cat owners who fail to comply with the licensing and welfare standards would be guilty of an offence and liable to penalties including jail terms.

Yet many people are scoffing at the idea of anyone checking up.

“Nairobi cats are restless. You cannot own Nairobi cats,” a panellist said on a youth TV show over the weekend.