Wow.... this is kind of a hard one
First and foremost is the kid..... but that is nothing we can do anything about.....
Second is the cat..... I personally like cats.... BUT I hate stupid...... so if it is between a simple LIKE and stupid... LIKE looses.....
As far as the bait thing.... that could work....parts of that critter already have hooks installed (though barbless) so it would be an effective way to fix stupid in this case....
Last and foremost...... Let us know how it turns out.... My wife has a stupid dog I have been wondering about (sadly without the barbless hooks)....
Straw