There has been a lot of interest and comments made lately on feral cats. I have friends who recently took in a litter of kittens from a feral cat. The whole neighborhood was involved in feeding and caring for these fur babies and recently put an ad out on Facebook for the adoption of these cute little kittens. These kittens weren’t as skittish as their parents, due to all the human interaction they had received.
This neighborhood coming-together moment is not always the case with feral cats. Sometimes people fear them, try to capture them, or call animal control on them. Anything to rid the neighborhood of these unwanted guests. On the flip side, some people welcome them as a way to rid their area of mice, rats, unwanted birds, or they live by the mantra “live and let live.”
Why are cats always outside?
Where do feral cats come from? Sad to say many come from abandonment; they get tired of their pet, or they have to relocate and no pets are allowed. Maybe a child has an allergy and can’t tolerate the pet. Instead of surrendering them to a shelter, they drop them off somewhere to fend for themselves. This is against the law in most areas however, under the cover of night, it’s hard to catch someone guilty of this action.
So what can you do?
This is an age-old debate: as long as there are people and pets there will be this problem of more feral cats due to owners. Are you part of the solution? Where do your feelings fall in this debate? Start a conversation with your family, your neighborhood, to educate others on the proper way to care for their pets. They can spay/neuter, and if they need to give up their pet they can surrender or put them up for adoption. There are many solutions to this age-old problem. Feral cats aren’t always ‘cute raccoons’-sometimes they are cats who just want love. Which side of the fence do you fall on? We’d love to hear from you.
