Plight of feral cats improving in AZ

[applesmom]

Yesterday I met one of the EAMT from the Arizona Humane society. I'd called them to pick up one of the cats that appears to be dying and was surprised that they'd come out for a feral cat. In the past (before Animal Cops Phoenix) they've told me "we don't do cats". She's probably been hit by a car because she's not using one leg and is nothing but skin and bones and there's blood in her stools!

Precious a once beatiful Siamese had been laying in one spot when I left and when I returned four hours later she hadn't moved.

They asked me if she was contained and I told them no, but she couldn't move. Wouldn't you know it, when she got here the cat was gone!

She was very nice and concerned about the cat having to spend another cold night in her debilitated condition. Hopefully I'll be able to find her today and contain her until they can come back and get her.


If she's frightened by being confined, I'll stay with her until they get here. Even though they don't want to be touched they seem to respond to a soothing voice.

These cats aren't pets in the traditional sense, but situations like this are still very painfull.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Update on Precious the gravely ill Siamese cat and the Arizona Humane Society.

Today we managed to get her into a cardboard cat carrier lined with soft towels that belonged to my neighbor. A different EAMT arrived in less than an hour after we called. Since they only have 4 ambulances in an area with a population of 4 million that was quick! Precious was humanely euthanized since there was absolutely no shred of hope for recovery.

The plight of sick and injured unwanted and homeless animals has certainly taken a huge turn for the better around here. The EAMT spent quite a while filling us in on the options we have for situations that might come up with the feral cats and that they could help us with. A far cry from a couple of years ago when the only response when they were called about cats in difficulty was, "we don't do cats".

Public donations including a huge bequest from a wealthy benefactor are what has made the tremendous difference!

Now if we could just find more volunteers to agree to participate in the TNR programs all across the country! All they have to do is provide, food water and some sort of shelter for the feral cats (if none is already available). We also need to educate all pet owners to spay and neuter and keep their cats inside. :( TNR really does work. We've seen a tremendous drop in new ferals due to the abscence of new litters being born every kitten season.

In addition to the services of the humane society, our county Animal control department will also provide free food for anyone that wants to participate in the TNR programs but can't afford to buy the food.

[catmandu]

I wish I lived near you so I could help you with the homeless Cats , and help make thier lives a little better.
We are praying for Precious, that she can recover.

[applesmom]

I wish I lived near you so I could help you with the homeless Cats , and help make thier lives a little better.
We are praying for Precious, that she can recover.

Thank you catmandu. Precious isn't suffering anymore, but there are thousands of feral cats suffering even worse fates all over the country. For the majority of them there is no hope of ever finding a healthy nutritious meal, a drink of fresh water or a moment when they don't live in fear.

Thanks to the TNR programs, Precious had a far better life than most feral cats during her short time here on earth. She had two square meals a day, a constant fresh supply of water and shelter from the weather. She was also spared the stress of producing a litter of unwanted kittens every few months to further drain her strength. And she had someone to care when she was dying and in need of release from pain! The EAMT was so gentle and caring with her it brought tears to our eyes.

As word of the sucess of the TNR programs continues to grow, we can only pray that more areas of the country will become involved.

The proof of their sucess is in the math. In the 23 cats we trapped and speutered 2 1/2 years ago, there were 14 females. If each of those females and each female that they produced had continued to breed unchecked the numbers would be overwhelming by now. As a result of the TNR the feral cat population in our neighborhood has not increased at all! In fact it has actually decreased! Thats the goal of TNR groups! No more feral cats through humane treatment--not mass euthanasia!

[Catsnclay]

Where in AZ are you located??

Do you know there are many groups in the Phoenix area that help out feral cats? If you need a list of them, please PM me and I will help you out.

What you are doing is GREAT, but education about TNR is very important. If people don't "see" these cats, they don't realise they even exsit or the need to help them out.

[applesmom]

Where in AZ are you located??

Do you know there are many groups in the Phoenix area that help out feral cats? If you need a list of them, please PM me and I will help you out.

What you are doing is GREAT, but education about TNR is very important. If people don't "see" these cats, they don't realise they even exsit or the need to help them out.

I'm in the W central Phoenix area and we've been working with AzCats. They are great!

You're correct. If people don't "see" the cats they don't even know they exist. Prior to our involvement with the feral cats we had two old German Shorthaired pointers who I'm sure kept the cats away. Other than the noise at night, the spraying and the poop, we wouldn't have known the cats were there, much less that they were feral.

Our colony began with abandoned pet cats as I'm sure many do. Until then we had no idea that feral cats existed within the city limits.

[catmandu]

I Am Sorry To Hear About Precious , And My Precious Is So Sad To Hear About That Little Stray.
Precious Is Now With The Pet Angel Army, And Will Be Youe Special Angel When You Meet Again In A Happier Place.
One Fine Day.

[moosmom]

The TNR Program is a great program. Cats, as you know, become feral because of irresponsible humans. It's one of the great tragedies of this land. I've trapped many feral cats and kittens and socialized them so that they may be rehomed. It is something I've enjoyed doing. The challenge and the final result when you get that wet nosed head bumpie letting you know that you finally got through to them that we all aren't bad. We owe it to these beautiful animals to care for them when humans have let them down.

I wish they had an EAMT program in CT. I'd love to be apart of it.

Poor Precious :(. At least she is no longer in pain. RIP Sweet Precious. Play hard at the Rainbow Bridge.

[K & L]

What a small world! We also work with AzCATs and have been maintaining a feral colony for 9 years now! Keep up the good work.

[applesmom]

:D
What a small world! We also work with AzCATs and have been maintaining a feral colony for 9 years now! Keep up the good work.

Wow! 9 years! I'll bet you could write a book about your experiences with the feral cats during that time... :cool:

It will be three years in April since we became involved and we've sure experienced our share of tragedies and triumphs.

In that nine years, how many trappings have you had to do, and has the size of the colony remained fairly stable?

Our first trapping caught 23 cats for TNR plus a large number of kittens that were able to be adopted out. While we were waiting for the ferals to take the bait and enter the traps, the ladies from AzCats took that opportunity to educate the neighbors at every household where they saw outside cats. As a result of their efforts, many kittens were saved and other pet cats in the neighborhood were taken in to be speutered in the following days.

Our colony is now down to about 12 cats--no new kittens since the TNR.

Littles, (pictured below, and the great grandma of the bunch) is the one that started it all. She had her kittens in an aquarium my neighbor had set outside. We didn't know they were there until she heard Littles crying during a storm. The aquarium had begun to fill with water and 3 of the 5 one week old kittens had already drowned before my neighbor could save them. She raised the other two by hand and still has the scars from the wounds Littles inflicted while trying to protect those kittens. As a result of the trauma of having her kittens taken away, Littles is much more wary of her caregivers. Even at feeding time she maintains a safe distance until there are no humans close by.

To read this you'd never believe that I'm not a cat person would you? :D

[K & L]

When we first hooked up with AzCATs they trapped around 60 plus cats for us. We've been maintaining it since (on our own), and have done well in the 100's. We have around 40 - 50 cats that have stabilized, and some have been with us since the beginning, which is quite a life span for a feral. We feed and water every evening and watch for any newcomers. Sadly this area people dump off cats frequently so we can never be 100% with our spay/neuters. We now have around 6 newbies we need to trap.

We were in Cat Fancy back in January 2002 and have a few awards from the City. I believe our names are mentioned on AzCATs website. They're a wonderful organization and we couldn't have done it all without them.

I've gotten the program started where I work and AzCATs helps me there. Because of this we received the George award from AzCats. Good luck maintaining your colony and keep up the good work.

[applesmom]

60????? That's a lot of cats and a lot of cat food! :eek: You must live in a more rural area than I do.

I just checked AzCats website and was heartbroken to see that even with the sucess of the program; 50,000 unwanted cats a year are still put to death in Maricopa county alone.

It seems that this is a problem that won't be solved without a lot more education and increased awareness on the part of pet owners. :rolleyes:

[K & L]

60????? That's a lot of cats and a lot of cat food! :eek: You must live in a more rural area than I do.

I just checked AzCats website and was heartbroken to see that even with the sucess of the program; 50,000 unwanted cats a year are still put to death in Maricopa county alone.

It seems that this is a problem that won't be solved without a lot more education and increased awareness on the part of pet owners. :rolleyes:

No we live in the heart of the City - Glendale!