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Returning Feral Cats to the Streets
I believe this is a crucial question which must be fully faced if managed colonies are to take hold in NYC. Because this is a dense urban area, perhaps the densest in the country, there are unique problems with the environment - buildings being torn down, difficult access and just, in general, gritty urban conditions. Who would ever want to let a cat go in that? No one wants to, I don't think. It never feels good to me to let a cat go. When I look at them before their release, I always have an urge to protect him or her, to keep maybe one more in my home and spare them the dangers of the streets. I have to overcome this feeling and open the door of the carrier. I feel guilty, I worry about them. Sometimes they go missing and I don't see them again and I wonder what happened. Every time I do see them, I feel relieved and grateful. So how could I have let them go? Because I want to help solve the whole problem, not just a piece of it. I want to see the day come when no kittens are born on the street. And that day isn't going to come by rescuing one cat at a time, not when there are several hundred thousand of them. It might come, though, if all the ferals were neutered. As I wrote to one of our members wrestling with this issue, the pain of releasing them is part of the price of the solution. I also let them go because I can't do any more for them than that. I can't bring any more cats into my home, I've been through the route of finding a sanctuary and maybe once in awhile you can squeeze your way in, but really they're full. I have no more people I know who will take a feral cat and I can't afford to board them or pay for their socialization. But I can trap them, neuter them, put them back and provide them with food and shelter. So rather than do nothing, I choose to do that. I respect the decision of anyone who does work with each cat trapped until they are placed somewhere safe off the streets. But I also respect those who take the managed colony approach and, in so doing, also improve the situation. history | about | board | back to top |
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In implementing trap/neuter/return in New
York City, a recurring question that comes up is how can people be
expected to release cats back into uncertain and dangerous circumstances?