https://gazeteoksijen.com/turkiye/v...

The governor actually said, "Cats don't catch mice." Last week, Istanbul Governor Davut Gül went on Ekol TV and warned local municipalities that they’ll face criminal charges if someone gets hurt because they didn’t round up these animals. He also called out the habit of feeding cats everywhere, which triggered a huge backlash on social media.

Gül’s statement: (...) There's a problem here. The balance of nature is broken. Normally, cats hunt rats. But in Istanbul, cats don't catch rats. Cats eat cat food, and the rats just join them and feast on the same food. We need to solve this. It doesn't mean 'round up every single cat,' but it means you can't just feed them anywhere. When you put food out, that spot becomes their territory. It's fine to have pets, but a system where rats and cats are eating together without touching each other is a health hazard.

This is coming from the governor of Istanbul, a city known as the 'paradise for street cats.' 😮 He's criticizing street feeding because cats aren't hunting rats, and the rats are just eating the cat food, causing a rodent surge. Cat feeders were triggered immediately, but his point isn't new or baseless. Studies in New York showed cats rarely catch city rats, and Paris has stated that feeding cats or pigeons is a primary cause of rat infestations.

On November 20, 2025, Istanbul’s regional HQ for Nature Conservation and National Parks issued an official directive. They told municipalities to ban indiscriminate feeding, build shelters, and speed up the process of catching and moving street animals. The document emphasized that messy street feeding won't be tolerated anymore. This is being done to stop pests/rodents, reduce ecological risks, protect public health, and prevent safety issues near schools, hospitals, and parks.

So it’s not just talk; they’re actually banning indiscriminate feeding now. 😎 On top of the existing order to round them up and send them to shelters.

AI Translated Image

(How can every word he says be so spot on? 🤔) Even in the Islamic world, where cats are traditionally favored for religious reasons, they’re starting to regulate street feeding. Dubai already had fines, and Kuwait started fining people for leaving food in public this year. Morocco even has a bill that would fine people for not just feeding, but also building shelters or even treating them. Compared to that, Istanbul's move to just ban feeding outside designated spots is a small first step... But looking from the 'Cat Mom Republic' of East Asia—where local governments run 'public feeding stations' (what a joke) and use taxes to basically boost the stray cat population—Istanbul looks incredibly sane and common-sense. I'm jealous. 🙄