In last week’s Reading Eaglewas an article that stated the council of Mohton has approved unanimously the trapping of feral cats using humane traps. The cats will trapped by a state certified trapper- Jeff Joffred- and will be transported to the Animal Rescue League where it most certainly presumed they will be euthanized. Joffred will paid $50 per cat.
This action stems from six people making complaints within the borough.
I’ve been contacted by one of two groups that offer TNR (trap, neuter, return) for feral cats. According to Dr. Jen Fry, “There is a PetSmart grant available in Berks County from No Nonsense Neutering to sterilize them via Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) for only $10 !! And, Fairchild, another TNR organization in Berks County, also performs feral cat sterilizations for $35.
When asked if Dr. Fry, president of Fairchild Foundation or No Nonsense Neutering had been contacted for their expertise on this issue, she gave me a resounding no.
Dr. Fry has begun a petition “to let the Mohnton borough council know their decision is not only inhumane, but a waste of taxpayer’s money and it will not fix the problem.” She continues to say “trapping and killing these cats just leaves more space for other cats to move in to take advantage of the available resources. She refers to it as the Vacuum Effect. You can read more at Alley Cat Allies here.”
https://www.change.org/petitions/mohnton-boro-council-stop-the-killing-of-the-cats-support-tnr
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/341/211/288/ask-the-borough-of-mohnton-pa-to-tnr-feral-cats-not-kill-them/?cid=FB_TAF
Ask the Borough of Mohnton, PA to TNR feral cats, NOT kill them! – The Petition Site http://www.thepetitionsite.com/
This is leter I had circulating for folks to sign…Stop the Killing of the Cats — SUPPORT TNR!Borough of Mohnton, 21 O’Neil St., Mohnton, PA 19540To Kerry Hoffman & Mohnton Borough Council:You voted to pay $50 to trap and kill a feral cat despite the fact that there are 2 local organizations that can help solve the problem humanely and for a lot less money. Fairchild “Feral Friends” will spay/neuter feral cats for $35 and No Nonsense Neutering received a PetSmart Grant to sterilize free-roaming cats for only $10 in Berks County. Now you are just wasting tax payers’ money! You made this inhumane decision without doing any research or reaching out to either of these organizations.The reality is that feral cats exist in EVERY community. These cats are the same species as domestic cats, but are not socialized to humans and can’t be adopted into homes. Feral cats are automatically euthanized at animal shelters like the Animal Rescue League, which is already overwhelmed and handles over 10,000 animals each and every year. Euthanasia should be reserved only for those that have an incurable illness or injury, not the homeless. Unfortunately, the mentality of “catch and kill” to reduce the number of free-roaming cats still exists in communities like Mohnton even though scientific research has been proven that it does not work! Trapping and killing these cats just leaves more space for other cats to move in to take advantage of the available resources. This is called the Vacuum Effect. Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) works! TNR is the effective and humane approach for handling feral cats. TNR makes feral cats healthier and ends the breeding cycle, which means no more kittens. Trap-Neuter-Return also improves relationships with the humans who live near them because sterilization decreases nuisance behaviors and naturally decreases the number of cats over time.The Boro should be promoting spay and neuter as well as educating the community about Trap-Neuter-Return, the alternative humane method of dealing with the cat overpopulation crisis. These cats did not put themselves out there; irresponsible people who neglected to sterilize their pets did this injustice to the voiceless and the helpless. We don’t kill homeless people, why should we kill homeless cats?In closing, I urge you to reconsider your decision and think about the welfare of these homeless cats. Take some time to educate yourself on the vacuum effect, the benefits of maintaining a feral cat colony and humane solutions to resolve neighborhood conflicts. Please allow the cats to live out their lives in nature instead of trapping and killing them because they are homeless.
Dr. Fry states “feral cats are automatically euthanized at animal shelters. The Kill rate for all cats at our local shelter is about 85% but the feral cat kill rate is always 100%! Euthanasia should be reserved only for those that have an incurable illness or injury, not the homeless.”
Trap-Neuter-Return makes feral cats healthier and ends the breeding cycle, which means no more kittens. Trap-Neuter-Return also improves relationships with the humans who live near them because sterilizing reduces nuisance behaviors and naturally decreases the size of colonies over time. TNR WORKS!
SUPPORT TNR, NOT TRAP & KILL!!!! Please sign this petition.
Thank you. Dr. Jennifer L. Fry Executive Director of Fairchild “Feral Friends” http://www.fairchildcat.org/
Basically, the decision is INHUMANE and wasting Tax Payers’ Money. They made an uneducated decision based on a few complaints that I doubt were investigated. One gal I talked to yesterday said she lives in that area and saw 3 cats, but she thinks they are owned cats. Dr. Brockmeier lives a block away from council and they know she is a vet but no one contacted her either. We do really need to stress that if you are feeding, you must spay/neuter and be a responsible care-giver by providing litter areas either with mulch, potting soil or playground sand and TALK to your neighbors. Explain WHAT you are doing and WHY. There are things like the Scarecrow & CatStop that can be used to keep cats out of your yard…we don’t have to resort to killing them.