Legal questions about domestic cats? Read now!

Questioner

I have/had a trap in my garden to prevent the nuisance of cats from the neighbourhood (letting a bucket of water over it and then releasing it). A cat owner reported this to the Animal Police and they claim that I would be in violation if I had the trap in working order in my garden. When I asked which law prohibits this, I got the answer that the trap would be an illegal trap according to the Flora and Fauna Act. However, I only see provisions in the FF Act that relate to the catching of animals living in the wild. Can someone tell me whether it is actually punishable to catch stray and nuisance-causing pets (in this case non-feral domestic cats) in a trap in the city and which precise law/article/provision prohibits this? Discussions about this subject on internet forums only get bogged down in emotional statements by proponents and opponents of free-roaming domestic cats. Related to this question: is there a law/article/provision that generally obliges pet owners to ensure that their pet does not cause a nuisance to the environment? For example, can I legally hold a cat owner who lets his cat roam freely in the neighborhood and who causes a nuisance by doing his business in my garden and regularly startling me awake in the middle of the night with his screeching, liable for these facts?

Lawyer

Article 15 paragraph 2 of the Flora and Fauna Act states: 'It is prohibited to be outside buildings with means designated by general administrative measure that are suitable for killing or capturing animals, or with materials for the immediate production of those means or of the means designated pursuant to the first paragraph, if it must reasonably be assumed that those means or materials will be used for killing or capturing animals. ' A 'means' referred to in that article includes a trap cage (Article 11 paragraph 2 of the Animal Management and Control Decree, Bbsd). Trap cages may only be used in the context of pest control, according to article 5 Bbsd. This situation does not fall under that. Based on the neighbour law or the municipal APV, action can often be taken against nuisance animals. So you do not have to simply accept nuisance from cats.