I buy cat food and give it to random cats I meet in the city. This has extremely good cost:benefit ratio for happiness. The food is cheap and I only give each cat a little, but the act of feeding the cat makes me happy for a few hours. Because those cats are not mine, I have no additional costs. Try to beat that! :P
I used to take peanuts to a nearby park to feed squirrels, in much the same spirit. It had the additional benefit that I could eat the peanuts myself if I wanted, and it caused passersby to look at me funny (as I would not-infrequently have squirrels sitting on my lap and rummaging curiously through my pockets).
My significant other keeps a garden, and we have several productive fruit trees that we enjoy getting fruit from. Squirrels take a significant amount of fruit, and cats leave unwelcome surprises in the garden.
We trap squirrels and remove them to county parks. (We don’t do anything about the cats.)
Marginally increasing the frequency of squirrels and cats is a negative externality for us. I’m glad you aren’t feeding squirrels (or cats) near us.
Two cats staying on the same place—one near my home, another near my job. Chance of meeting 30% per cat per day + 1% random encounter. The cat food is dry, so it won’t spoil; I keep a small ration in a small box in a pocket of my coat, carrying it is no problem.
(The city is Bratislava, but both my home and work are out of center.)
I buy cat food and give it to random cats I meet in the city. This has extremely good cost:benefit ratio for happiness. The food is cheap and I only give each cat a little, but the act of feeding the cat makes me happy for a few hours. Because those cats are not mine, I have no additional costs. Try to beat that! :P
I used to take peanuts to a nearby park to feed squirrels, in much the same spirit. It had the additional benefit that I could eat the peanuts myself if I wanted, and it caused passersby to look at me funny (as I would not-infrequently have squirrels sitting on my lap and rummaging curiously through my pockets).
My significant other keeps a garden, and we have several productive fruit trees that we enjoy getting fruit from. Squirrels take a significant amount of fruit, and cats leave unwelcome surprises in the garden.
We trap squirrels and remove them to county parks. (We don’t do anything about the cats.)
Marginally increasing the frequency of squirrels and cats is a negative externality for us. I’m glad you aren’t feeding squirrels (or cats) near us.
(nods) Sounds like it works out well for both of us.
I see your one-shot cat food and raise you cat pennies.
What city do you live in? I don’t think I’ve ever been in a city that had enough cats for carrying cat food to seem worthwhile.
Two cats staying on the same place—one near my home, another near my job. Chance of meeting 30% per cat per day + 1% random encounter. The cat food is dry, so it won’t spoil; I keep a small ration in a small box in a pocket of my coat, carrying it is no problem.
(The city is Bratislava, but both my home and work are out of center.)