IN response to the outcry my letter received from all the cat lovers, I must say not one of them has written anything constructive.

Not one person has actually read my letter correctly. I did not say I hated cats. I said that owners should be accountable for their cats leaving a mess on other people's property. What would you think if me and my dog Rex came along your street and I stood there whilst he messed on your lawn?

Dog owners are made by law to carry doggy bags now to clean up after them. I agree that we should do this. However cat owners feel it is right to just open their front door and let their pets go and mess on a neighbour's lawn.

S Hughes said I was stupid for my attitude about air guns. The pigeon was somebody's pet because it was tagged. That poor owner is without a loved pet now thanks to a horrible cat. Janet Truelove said she lives in a village and is always getting her car covered in horse muck. Well, driving in the country is not the same as a cat coming onto someone's property and messing.

Stephanie Giles said she encourages owners to fence their property in to keep the cat safely in their garden. Cats jump onto fences and get out.

You all want to be cat owners, well go and buy a lead take them for a walk. Train them properly and they will become properly domesticated like my Rex.

Philip Beaven is totally wrong when he said a cat would be no match for a squirrel. A cat is a killing machine primarily, and a squirrel does not own the biological balance to fight off a cat.

Next time you stand in some dog mess, don't moan about it, pick it up and put it in a bin. After all, that's what you all think we should do with your cat's mess.

COLIN JONES

Haydon Wick