This is such an interesting post. My problem is at my Grandma's house in the country in Southern Illinois. She and my Grandpa feed all of the strays that come near their house, and that's a lot because people are so cruel and they just dump the cats (and sometimes, dogs) out in the country to fend for themselves, once they don't feel the need to take care of them anymore. It's ridiculous.

Anyway, my Grandma's cat population is just soaring at this point, because they all keep having full litters. They are the most adorable cats too - a lot of them are wild and won't stay around if people are on the carport, and they just come up for food. Most of them are at least partly long-hair.

At Christmas, it was soooo cold outside there for a few days, and while my husband and I were visiting for those few days, we took a couple of boxes lined with old clothes/blankets over there so they would have more shelter than just the open air of the carport. I think that probably helped them a bit. There was just soooo much more I wanted to do. It got me very upset. The fact is that in rural Southern Illinois, there is just no TNR program, and spays/neuters cost $35 apiece when they're discounted 1 time per month. There is a limit on how many you can bring to that event as well. They do have an adoption program through the Southern Illinois Humane Society, but only the most adoptable cats brought into the Humane Shelter get put in that program. The rest (the majority) have to be euthanized after so long. My dilemma is whether or not to help round up those cats and take them to the shelter, expecting that most will probably be put to sleep because they're so shy & feral, or let them be in the country, where for the most part, they'll live. The problem there is that sometimes coyotes can get those little guys.

I really wish we could just TNR all of them, but my husband and I (and my immediate family) are not wealthy enough to be able to handle the whole thing. It just breaks my heart that TNR and other programs like it haven't become widespread yet - I believe that could truly make a difference in the huge overpopulation problem we have.