If you happen to visit the Hardee's in Greencastle, driving past the dumpsters you'll see an interesting sight: a clan of feral cats, some under a year old, watching your car and any pedestrians that may be wandering too close to their haven of free scraps. These cats are beautiful animals in good shape, able to fend for themselves. Unfortunately, without human caretakers, they will continue to multiply. Without being spayed and neutered, these beautiful strays could eventually put stress on their own resources and be at further risk of spreading communicable diseases.
Feral cats are having a hard time finding a comfortable place in America. They can be burdensome to some people, especially if the creatures are constantly breeding. In many metropolitan areas around the country, such as Detroit or Houston, when a group of ferals is seized, the shelters don't have the time or the resources to properly house these animals. If these cats find themselves in these certain shelters, they have the rotten luck of being euthanized because they are deemed "unadoptable." This is often the case for unsocialized felines seized from hoarders. Of course, this is not the fault of these cats. Because cats are both predator and prey, they have equal flight and fight drives, making ferals challenging... but not impossible. If people knew where to find help for the stray and feral cats in their area, perhaps the number of strays could eventually be diminished, and the strays would not need to be forced out of the streets or killed.
Many cities have started to implement the "Trap-Neuter-Release" method of managing stray populations. Since many ferals have found successful niches in human neighborhoods, it is unreasonable to rip these cats from their established environments and relocate them. Some strays will simply risk their lives traveling miles and miles to return to where they came from. The compromise is to allow the feral cats to stay where they are, but spay and neuter the cats so that they cannot breed. Indianapolis and DC have already established successful TNR programs. Luckily for the strays of Harrisburg, there is an organization that has also established a TNR program, by the name of Castaway Critters. Centre Hall and Camp Hill also have TNR programs through Hundred Cat Foundation and PAWS of PA. Hopefully, people who have located a colony of strays will contact the right people and move forward with a TNR, instead of calling animal control. Calling animal control will ensure the animals are removed, but will not ensure that the cats have a good future. Landing in the wrong hands could mean euthanasia.
What remains uncertain is how cities and states will deal with hoarding seizures. The socialized cats will certainly find homes, but when seizures include over twenty cats, only a small percentage of the felines will be socialized enough for immediate adoption. Perhaps more metro areas should implement barn cat programs. In states like Maine, feral cats are not euthanized, but housed at the shelter under their barn cat program. When an approved applicant with a barn or outbuilding appears, the adoption fee is waived, and the cats find homes. In Pennsylvania there is a plethora of barns, outbuildings, warehouses, and factories that could certainly take in strays and ferals that wind up in shelters. Believe or not, experienced cat people could even adopt a feral cat. With time and understanding, much like with stray dogs, a feral cat can learn to come around. Unfortunately, finding enough of these special cat people is difficult and time consuming. Whatever the methods implemented, these cat friendly options are certainly better than other town ordinances created such as feeding bans.
If you would like more information on the organizations mentioned or TNR programs, please visit these sites:
http://www.alleycat.org - Bethesda, MD
http://www.castawaycritters.org/ - Harrisburg, PA
http://www.pawsofpa.org/ - Camp Hill, PA
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/hundredcats.html - Centre Hall, PA
You can also contact your local shelter to find out their individual policies on feral cat management.
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