According to the Feral Cat Coalition, a pair of feral cats that aren't spayed or neutered can produce an estimated 420,000 offspring in a seven year period.
...Imagine trying to pay that child support.
When a domesticated house cat becomes a stray and then has kittens, those kittens are considered feral. Then those kittens mate (as early as four months old) and have more kittens, then those kittens have kittens, and so on...
A problem occurs when too many ferals inhabit a single area, and there really is no set solution.
If we feed them, nothing will happen, if we remove them, more will come back.
The only way to stop a feral cat colony from getting larger is to have the cats spayed and neutered. That way, they will be unable to produce more offspring.
Many communities and shelters have set up Trap-Neuter-Release programs (TNR) in their area. These programs are run by volunteer veterinarians and members of the community.
Traps are set; once the cats are trapped, they are taken to the TNR facility (usually at the vet's or a designated area set up by volunteers). Then, they are spayed and neutered, given shots and usually tagged on their left ear. The cats that are deemed adoptable are sent to shelters around the area to be given homes; the cats that are too wild to be pets are released back into their natural habitats.
The truth is, only one in nine feral cats live to see adulthood. The others are hit by cars, picked off by predators, starved, or frozen during the winter months.
Most--if not all--are neglected.
This is a growing issue and it effects everyone, no matter if you live in the city or a rural area; the problem is, it needs more awareness.
I've been speaking to students, commmunity members and shelters that participate in TNR programs to really get to the bottom of the issue.
Look for a feature story soon! In the meantime, check out some of these sites to learn more information about feral cats and how you can help in your area.
www.humanesociety.org/issues/feral_cats/
www.alleycat.org/
www.feralcatproject.org/
If you're in the Shippensburg area and would like to visit/adopt from TNR-friendly shelters, please visit these websites...
www.betterdaysanimalleague.org/
www.pawsorpa.org/
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThank you for bringing up this issue. I like how you pointed out that "If we feed them, nothing will happen." I don't think a lot of people understand this. They have good intentions of helping the cats but, it only contributes to the cycle. Instead of investing time in buying or providing food for these cats, people should take them to these TNR facilities to get them spayed or neutered, and then they have a chance to be adopted and actually survive...and also stop the population from growing.
ReplyDelete