Last night a call went out from the Cat Haven in Perth:
“Abandoned” kittens in “distress” needing immediate help. Further updates told us the cats weren’t just in distress – they were also “diseased”. Of course the public (the irresponsible masses) were quick to rally in support. The kittens must be caught!
But what no one was asking – after trapping, what happens next?
The Cat Haven, although the ‘Getting to Zero’ representative for WA was unapologetic – sure the cats may have to be killed, but they’re *not* a No Kill shelter:
So what’s the situation? Are the cats really suffering?
Well this is them today. The first little cat is a white and orange kitten. She was quite young;
Second was her little grey friend. Around the same age;
A water bowl:
Food bowls:
A feeding station;
Chicken Treat, Dominos, Red Rooster;
Food rubbish;
Lots of kitty footprints;
Later that day – a kitten at the feeding station;
Joined by her baby brother;
Mum comes back;
Another young cat ventures out into the carpark to eat;
Mum & kitten;
A young black and white cat on the way to the feeding station;
Mum;
Cat super-highway;
The ‘natural environment’ of Joondalup;
Playing;
Why post these pics? Because these cats deserve a voice. They have lives and families. Although I only snapped photos of the younger cats, there were three other adults that were just too quick for my camera. This is a multi-generational colony, not ‘abandoned kittens’ as the Cat Haven claimed. These cats weren’t starving. They weren’t suffering. Did it break my heart to see them? Of course. Should they be killed rather than live this way? What cat lover could possibly think so.
This post is a reminder to the Cat Haven;
– It’s not a ‘rescue’ if the cat ends up dead. That’s a cull.
– The remedy to ‘disease’ or even ‘suffering’ is treatment – not a barbiturate overdose.
And as you start trapping;
Cat Haven, you are now accountable to us. We want to know Mumma cat, these kittens and any other cats you trap tonight are safe with you.
We are watching.
See also: Solutions, not killing; cat management in New Zealand
Yes Cat Haven, we are watching……. and hoping for the best outcome for these kitties
I have to disagree with your blog, there is no place for unowned cat colonies in Australia. Even if they were desexed and left to live there who would cover any ongoing vet treatment for 30 cats for the next 15+ years? Not to mention tha fact that people wanting an easy way to get rid of their cat would be more likely to dump at the site if they knew the cats were being fed. Also, if cat heven wasnt no kill i suspect that the sheer number of cats in WA needing new homes would far exceed the number of homes, foster carers, and places available in other shelters.
Well said. No doubt this will fuel an argument…and I have points of view on both sides of the fence…but I like how you have expressed you points and agree with them. Good job.
‘No kill shelter’ simply means – when they are full they say no to anymore cats…Then the animals are either:
1. dumped
2. killed inhumanely
3. OR given to an organisation that will hopefully rehome them OR facilitate a humane euthanasia if they inappropriate for rehoming eg. Cat Haven.
It is a fallacy to say they ANY shelter is no-kill because ultimately their inaction/no-kill policy means someone has to take on the unfortunate role of population control.
Rehoming well adjusted, healthy cats is hard enough, sadly rehoming feral/unsocialised, potentially unhealthy cats would be near on impossible. What annoys me is there are HUNDREDs, of beautiful cats wanting a home yet people are focusing on a very small pocket – putting up their hands to help. You cannot encourage a ‘colony’ – the wildlife implications are obvious.
How easy it is to be so black and white… there are so many shades of grey. I hope all these cat lovers are fostering cats, writing to government representatives to ask for change, educating friends and family about population control – thus making real change.
The problem here with “leaving them be” is they will be unable to get medical assistance, be predating native fauna, and survive by scavenging junk food, which isn’t even healthy for humans. Yes, it’s likely some will be put down. This isn’t a good thing. But rereleasing them is, in my opinion, perhaps *worse* for their wellbeing. PTA admitted they had found two kittens dead on the trainline running through that land; are you advocating rereleasing them to face that death again? Or potential starvation if they suffer an injury that prevents them hunting (presumably native fauna)? Or other illnesses from a diet of junk food? It is a terrible thing if they need euthanising – but life isn’t always fair, and sometimes the right thing isn’t the happiest thing.
This is definitely not a black and white situation, but capture, desexing and releasing the older cats back into the area and rehoming the kittens is a more humane option than blanket euthanasia of all captured cats. So the older cats will be living near train lines, plenty of homes back onto train lines do we say these homes should not be allowed to house cats just incase the cat may wander not to mention roads, these cats are likely to be more train savvy than we are, with regards to native fauna being hunted can you argue that you have never seen a domesticated cat bring home a bird?? Perhaps here in Australia we need to rethink our attitudes and how we tackle these situations……