Cats in  German town will be released from a special lockdown

When the authorities release a particular lockdown in one German town, cat owners will be able to let their cats out for the first time in three months. To safeguard an endangered bird, residents of Walldorf in the southwest were instructed to confine their cats inside in May.

Cats were only permitted to go outside if a leash no more than two metres (six feet) in length was used to control them. But starting at 00:01 local time on Monday, the animals will once more be free to wander. Owners were instructed to phone a special hotline, locate, and imprison the offending cat if one escaped while the lockdown was in effect.

Any violation would incur a fine. An owner who caused harm to or death to one of the protected birds was subject to a fine of up to €50,000 (£42,000). Because the crested lark is an endangered species in the German state of Baden-Württemberg and throughout the country, authorities have been working to safeguard the local population.

Only three breeding pairs were said to be left in Walldorf proper. While underlining their support for measures to protect the larks, activists criticised the limits, claiming they would be detrimental to the wellbeing of the cats.

According to Britain’s Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, many millions of birds die naturally each year, and there is no proof that cat assaults in gardens are to blame for the population drop (RSPB).

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