Fix them, surrender them, but please don’t let them breed.
In the last 20 years, no kill shelter and society policies have shifted intake responsibility from their doors—to yours. Mother ferals, semi ferals in your cities garages, sheds, yards and trash cans. Overwhelm, frustration, and suffering follows—because when you don’t admit them, they do not magically stop existing or disappear.
They all end up, somewhere. They end up at the mercy of, someone. And not everyone, is kind or loving toward these feral or newly stray, pets.
Cats and kittens are protected by law as companion animals. But that does not remove the risk and danger, they often find themselves in.
If “no kill” is working, why are all the cats and dogs roaming and in need of new homes? Why so many in/out of animal care organizations?
Two Major Shifts in policy: Community Cats = Community Responsibility-No kill shelters and societies refuse animals by the thousands every year, and promote only solution as trap and return (if they have a program, at all) via your time and cost. Community response to this model is often frustration, overwhelm, a sense of blame shifting, and much larger populations of sick cats and kittens. We understand that frustration, as we are a part of this community, too. We are limited financially, too and we don’t appreciate new unaltered and unvetted animals being left for us to navigate by the hundreds each year, either. Especially, when space in this small shelter and consistent resources for it are limited and must be carefully used.
Our Model for our county since 1967:
•Acceptance & open intake
•Compassionate access to options, including humane euthanasia
•Spay & Neuter Assistance Programs for our counties safe, non nuisance individual or colonies of cats.
Semi feral, more tame, outside kitties being fixed is a wonderful solution. If you see an earnotched cat, please relax. If it’s not injured or in distress, leave it—someone’s invested in them!
Why should I take the time to fix a cat?
Spay and neuter reduces euthanasia. Spay and neuter reduces neglect, suffering and illness in communities. It also reduces behavioral and nuisance related complaints
Spay and neuter is a piece of the puzzle! The biggest, and most important, including best outcomes for ALL!
But when an animal needs to enter a shelter or society…they should be able to do so safely.
When these options for the cats and kittens do not exist, we humanely euthanize unwanted cats. We know the reality, and the humane and compassionate measures required, even when folks do not, always, understand.
Do you know anyone who wants 30 cats and kittens? Neither do we. Inaction is not the answer, and abandonment isn’t either.