Cat overpopulation
Written by Carmen Dunn, former president of the Feral and Abandoned Cat Society, October 14, 2015
A numbers challenge with precious lives on the line
Did you know that there are an estimated 20,000 feral, stray and abandoned cats living homeless within the Cape Breton Regional Municipality?
It is hard to imagine really, but just take a drive through some areas of Sydney, North Sydney, New Waterford, Glace Bay and countless other locations, and you will see cats roaming, lots of cats. Some have homes, but many do not.
Where did they come from and how did this happen?
Whether you love them, hate them or are indifferent, you can't blame homeless cats for their plight. The sad truth is that they originated directly or indirectly from human care at some time in their lives or feral ancestry. And for some reason, that I struggle to comprehend, these small domestic creatures are often regarded as disposable, like litter.
Cat Chat is dedicated to raising awareness of issues and sharing information about homeless cats, responsible pet ownership and related topics.
Welcome to my column!
I grew up in a rural setting where most of our pets arrived seemingly out of nowhere. My parents would check with neighbours to see if they were missing a pet, but they never were.
Our first family cat was Tigger. She was a friendly tabby who wandered in one day and soon gave birth to five kittens. We kept two and found homes for the rest. Our cats were fixed, no more kittens were born and they all lived long happy lives with us. Unfortunately, many cases of abandonment do not end this way.
So much unnecessary suffering for cats stems from human choices. Simply allowing your unneutered male pet to tomcat around the neighbourhood can lead to horrible consequences that you may never know about.
An unspayed female cat may be doomed to a vicious cycle of giving birth to unwanted kittens. Without human intervention, a mother cat and her kittens may be exposed to extreme weather, starvation, infestations of fleas and ear mites, and potentially suffer from upper respiratory infections, eye infections and deadly diseases. These are the consequences of human choices that are being made every day, right here in the CBRM.
The Feral and Abandoned Cat Society was formed in 2012 to implement a trap-neuter-return program across the municipality. The trap-neuter-return program has been proven worldwide to be the most humane and effective approach to reducing homeless cat populations. Cats are trapped, tested for deadly diseases, spayed or neutered and then typically returned to their original location. Many of the cats encountered are fearful of humans and not suitable for adoption. However, friendly cats and kittens are fostered, sheltered and adopted through other organizations, when capacity is available. Meanwhile, the feral cat society and the public are working together to provide food and shelter for homeless cats, improving their quality of life.
I joined the feral cat society as a volunteer in 2013 and quickly became passionate about the society's mission. The society has helped more than 2,300 homeless cats through its trap-neuter-return program so far. The sense of urgency to fix more, to fix them all, as quickly as possible, is always on our minds and in our hearts. It is a numbers challenge with precious lives on the line.
Thanks for reading Cat Chat. Until next time, I leave you with this to consider. As a pet owner, you can help to save lives and end suffering by making a conscious decision to stop cat overpopulation. Please spay or neuter your pets, it matters.
Fast Facts
An unspayed female cat, her mate and all of their offspring, producing an average of two litters per year, with 2.8 surviving kittens per litter, can lead to an overwhelming cat population in a very short time:
One Year — 12 cats
Two Years — 67 cats
Three Years — 376 cats
Four Years — 2,107 cats
Five Years — 11,801 cats
Six Years — 66,088 cats
Seven Years — 370,092 cats
