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On March 5, Metro Animal Resource Services went to the aid of a feral
cat caretaker who asked our help to trap, alter, and release 14 feral
cats. This woman had begun to feed three or four wild cats, but soon
found herself helping more than a dozen, with no end in sight. When
she first started feeding the cats she had called Animal Control for
help but backed off when all they could offer was to trap and
euthanize the first cats. She was willing to continue feeding and
monitoring the colony but needed help with humane population control.
Almost a year later she found Metro Animal, but then she was feeding 14
cats -- not four.
In spite of bitter cold and biting winds, three Metro volunteers set
traps by the light of the moon and waited patiently. By 8 PM,
they were rewarded with a cat in every single trap. They were
ecstatic, but it got even better: On second glance, one trap held two
kittens, for a grand total of 15 felines. The colony caretaker had
miscalculated her numbers.
The ferals spent the night, still in their traps, in a volunteer's
warm, cozy garage. This was safer and more humane than trying to
transfer them to crates, but it resulted in all-night feline
serenades, and a pretty stinky garage the next morning.
Off to St. Louis Pet Clinic sped the volunteer with her furry load.
The day before, when she'd called to give Dr. Phil Wagenecht a
heads-up about the incoming ferals, he'd laughed at her estimate. Dr.
Phil didn't believe Metro could trap 14 cats in one night. "We needed
number 15 just to goad him a bit," said the prez. Dr. Phil examined,
altered, and vaccinated each cat.
Dr. Phil reports that about half of the colony were females, most of
prime breeding age. By altering these animals, Metro prevented 25 to
35 kittens! And this is what we're all about: Preventing the flood
of unwanted, homeless animals that continues to plague the St. Louis
metro area. Stayed tuned for more Metro success stories.
Feral cat count to date for 2001: 58 cats trapped; 32 of them females; 16 of them
relocated or placed with adopting organizations.
All the cats were spayed/neutered regardless of where they were going.
Please check out the How To Help Metro Animal page
if you believe in what we do!
We need active and financial help to
increase our numbers and to reduce the metro area euthanasia numbers.
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