A controversial competition in rural New Zealand that resembles a real-life Hunger Games, with feral cats as the targets, has dominated headlines after roughly 340 animals were killed—approximately 100 more than last year’s event.

The annual North Canterbury fundraising event, which wrapped up on Sunday 30 June 2024, allows both children and adults to hunt deer, pigs, ducks, possums, rabbits, and, since 2023, feral cats. This recent inclusion has understandably sparked a furious backlash from animal rights activists.

Feral and domestic cats pose a serious threat to New Zealand’s biodiversity, preying on endangered native birds, lizards, bats, and insects. However, controlling their population is a contentious issue in a country where nearly half of all households own a cat. Conservation groups frequently call for feral cats to be included in New Zealand’s ambitious pest-eradication plan, which aims to eliminate all possums, rats, stoats, and ferrets by 2050.

According to The Times, this year, over 1,500 people participated in the North Canterbury event, including approximately 440 children under 14. Animal rights activists condemned the competition, arguing that it is cruel, desensitises children to violence, and puts domestic cats at risk.

However, event organiser Matt Bailey said the feline category was created to help manage feral cats, which threaten native wildlife and carry diseases that endanger farmers’ livestock, stating: “These are possessed by the devil or the like the devil on methamphetamine. These are feral wild beasts. They will try and attack you, if you get your hand near the cage, they will try and have you, you can see the evil in their eyes.”

A $500 cash prize is awarded to the hunter with the most cats killed, while the largest cat caught earns $1,000.

As reported by The Guardian, protesters from the Animal Save Movement attended the event and were confronted by young people in animal costumes mocking them as the ‘Animal Slay Movement.’

“There is nothing conservative about encouraging children to kill animals,” said Sarah Jackson, a protester who noted that attendees even attempted to throw dead possums at them.

Bailey, however, remained unphased by the criticism, explaining that rural children grow up in an environment where hunting is a part of life, and the competition follows strict guidelines to ensure domestic cats are not targeted. Feral cats must be trapped first to confirm their status before being humanely killed with a minimum of a .22 rifle. Hunting is restricted to non-residential areas, with traps set at least 10km away. Bailey also insisted that feral cats are easy to distinguish from domestic ones due to their aggressive behaviour when caged.

The event raised roughly $60,000 for a local school and community pool this year, and venison from the deer hunt was processed and donated to food banks.

Both hunters and animal rights groups agree on the need for responsible cat ownership, emphasising that individuals should neuter their cats to prevent unplanned breeding and the abandonment of unwanted litter.