Animal groups reach crisis point as stray cats to be culled
The Cavan Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (CSPCA) has said that it has reached a crisis point in relation to the number of cats and kittens being abandoned in the county and are now at a point where they can’t cope and any new cats coming to them will have to be put down.
CSPCA chairperson Tina Boyle is calling on cat owners to be more responsible and have their animals spayed or neutered and is also seeking good homes for the many cats in their care.
When The Anglo-Celt called to Tina Boyle recently, she was after taking up to 30 calls that morning already and they all concerned cats.
“Cats can have up to three litters of kittens per year, so you are possibly looking at an explosion of 22 kittens from the one cat, who in turn are ready to breed when they reach the age of six months. In a year, you could have up on 40 cats, all deriving from the one original cat,” explained Tina.
With that in mind, the CSPCA is urging all cat owners to get involved with their neutering scheme next month, which allows cat owners who are in receipt of benefits to have their animals spayed or neutered free of charge with participating vets.
Spread of feline aids
Tina further explained that once there is a population explosion of cats and kittens taken into shelters in confined areas, disease control becomes a major issue. “Diseases are prevalent such as cat flu, feline aids virus... once they start off in small kittens, they are more likely to kill them but they may have infected a whole place before you realise,” she said.
Cats being taken out and shot
Tina also said that the CSPCA have had an influx of calls about cats being picked off with pellet guns and nail guns. “If people out there want to cut down on the population of cats, traps can be rented from vets and from ourselves and the cats be put to sleep humanely,” she advised.
“We are very much against cats being taken out by shooting them with pellet guns. If can find anyone doing it and prove it, we will prosecute them,” she added.
“Young feral cats are not willing to be tamed and they are not re-homeable. We have to neuter and release and if there is no place to release them, we have to put them to sleep. They are all put to sleep by a veterinary surgeon,” added Tina.
If people out there have cats that they can’t cope with, they have to think about having them euthanised. “We need to get it through to people, that it is not something that is going to go away unless they take some responsibility for it.”
Tina was at the ISPCA conference in Dublin on Saturday and her colleagues from around the country also expressed concerns that the cat explosion is a national problem.
Tina’s number is 086-8916186 and the Cavan SPCA is also on facebook and online.
Mandatory spaying
Meanwhile, a Bailieborough woman, who rescues stray and abandoned cats, is calling for mandatory spaying and neutering of cats by the age of four months. Ann Drew made the call after she believes a number of cats in her care were poisoned.
Ann operates 'The Alley Cat Alliance Ireland’ from her home at Curkish Lane, Bailieborough, and currently has 17 cats in her care. Since July 9 last, she claims to have had the majority of over 200 cats coming through her home spayed and neutered. However, some were euthanised because they were very ill.
As well as that, Ann says that a number of cats died after being poisoned or contracting viruses and is sending two cats’ bodies to UCD and the UK for post mortems and toxicology tests to determine the exact cause of death.
She’s calling on farmers and householders, in particular, to take care when laying rat poison - that it is placed in a pipe or some sort of a container that only a rat or a mouse can access. Ann also says that pet owners should take responsibility to ensure their animals are spayed or neutered.
“I have seen cats who are nursing four-week old kittens getting pregnant again,” she outlined to the Celt.
She added: Spayed and neutered cats are much healthier. Feline Aids (FIV) is more prevalent in Cavan, than in Dublin or any other else.”
Ann Drew is modeling her 'Alley Cat Alliance’ against Alleycats.org in the USA where spaying and neutering reduced the cat population by 41 per cent over a five-year period. She can be contacted on 087-6274023.