ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE PETS SUGGESTED

The environmental footprint of pet dogs and cats is apparently way too big:

Pet lovers should consider keeping native animals instead of a potentially destructive cat or dog, the NSW Government says.

"Cats really do cause absolute devastation to native animals," Verity Firth, the Minister Assisting Environment Minister Phil Koperberg, said. "If you are wanting to get a pet, think about getting a pet that is environmentally sensitive."

Christopher Cheng, the author of Locally Wild, said laws should be softened to allow native animals to be kept as pets but people should be licensed to keep them.

Mr Cheng, a former teacher at Taronga Zoo, said possums, bats, bandicoots and wombats would make good pets. Quolls would be a good replacement for cats as they can be affectionate and interact with humans.

Cats are pretty much useless but a good dog is priceless. My Ridgeback is not only a faithful companion, he's a fantastic burglar deterrent: on more than one occasion he's scared the crap out of people entering the yard in the dead of night. I just can't see a wombat or bat doing that.