Feral Cat Colonies—Prevalent and Growing in
Hill County
Feral cats are the offspring of lost or abandoned pet cats that have grown to be
unaccustomed to contact with people—growing too fearful and wild to be handled. Female cats can have a litter two to
three times a year, and their kittens, if they survive, will become feral without
early contract with people. The exponential
growth rate of cats is astounding—two cats can potentially produce over 420,715
offspring is just four years! This
total balloons to 10 million cats after 10 years! Feral
cats typically live within colonies and defend a specific territory where food (restaurant
dumpster, person who feeds them) and shelter (beneath a porch, abandoned building)
are available. The lifespan of feral cats is short (2-3
years) because of their stressful existence due to malnourishment and disease. Females may become pregnant as young
as 4-5 months of age. Half of the kittens
usually die. Feral cat colonies cause
potential health risks to humans and other animals because of rabies and insect
borne diseases. Other problems create
a nuisance and include frequent, loud noise from fighting and mating behavior, foul
odors from unneutered male cats spraying to mark their territory, and flea infestations.
The visible suffering of malnourished and dying cats and their kittens is a heartbreaking
experience for those living nearby, especially when few resources are available
to help.
Some people believe that eliminating feral
cat colonies can be as simple as removing them for euthanasia but this would be
quite expensive and has proven to be not effective.
One of the main reasons is that it is nearly impossible to remove every cat—leaving
the remaining to breed. Also, other
feral cats would simply move into the vacant territory.
Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR)
is a strategy best suited in controlling feral cat colonies.
They are spayed or neutered, vaccinated against rabies, and surgically ear-tipped
in one ear (universally-recognized sign of a cat who has been TNRed).
Without proactive action, feral cat colonies will continue to increase. When feral cats are TNRed, their health
improves because they no longer have frequent litters and fighting over mates diminishes,
and their nuisance behaviors are greatly reduced or eliminated while reducing the
number of cats over time.
Paw Pals would like to introduce an initiative to bring
correction to feral cat colonies that remain prevalent in Hill County by seeking
interested people who would like to become involved and help us with this new program. If you are interested in helping set
up a Trap-Neuter-Release (TNR) program please contact us.
If you would like to contribute money, Paw Pals has established a dedicated
fund for this program. Please email
hcpawpals@yahoo.com
or call (254) 580-0679. To learn more
about our organization, please visit :
www.helphillcountyanimals.com.