Note:Our Gabrielle was in a program like this. Her right ear was notched to show she was a spayed female, but instead of being released back into the wild, she was adopted by us. What a sweet mostly orange kitty!
Lauren Merryfield,
editor/publisher,
CATLINES
(note:yes, the ezine is CATLINES and the website is catliness.com.)
The Daily Californian
News
As Mating Season Approaches, City Considers a Spaying Center for Cats
BY Kyle Crawford
Contribution Writer
Tuesday, October 25, 2005
With Berkeley’s feral cat population expected to explode this spring, the City Council will consider a resolution tonight that attempts to curb the growing
number of wild felines by transforming the empty former headquarters of a gun club into a pre- and post-sterilization center. If passed, the resolution
would authorize City Manager Phil Kamlarz to negotiate a license with the nonprofit sterilization group Fix Our Ferals to use the vacant Rod and Gun Club
at Aquatic Park as a temporary neutering center for stray animals. The city-owned location would stay open for five months before cats go into heat. The
plan, written by the city manager’s office, would send the cats back to their natural environment after a three-day recovery period, said Berkeley Waterfront
Manager Cliff Marchetti, whose department owns the empty gun club building. Before the animals are released, they will be tagged on one ear to signal to
residents that they have been neutered, said Suzie Algarva, a Berkeley veterinary technician and former volunteer with Fix Our Ferals. During the cats’
mating season, the spike in population numbers often results in animal care service centers being overwhelmed with demands to house and care for wild cats.
As a result of overcrowding in shelters, according to Fix Our Ferals, the city’s Animal Care Services is often left with no choice but to release some
cats back onto Berkeley streets. With sterilization, however, the resolution claims the number of cats impounded at the Animal Care Services shelter would
drop and the city could save money by avoiding high veterinary expenses and overtime salaries. Spaying wild cats would also calm their aggression, Marchetti
said, limiting territory brawls with domesticated cats and subsequent complaints from residents about catfights. The new program is also expected to reduce
the number of diseased or dying cats staying at shelters or roaming near residential areas, according to the city manager’s proposal. The plan would identify
the sick animals during the neutering campaign and remove them from the wild. “One of the main problems is, if the stray cats are unvaccinated, they will
spread feline leukemia or other diseases to domestic cats,” Algarva said. “It will separate the infected cats and place them in a colony apart from the
community.” If the resolution is passed, Fix Our Ferals would renovate the Aquatic Park building and install a disabled access ramp in return for the right
to operate within the structure. “The building will be more accessible for Berkeley locals rather than having them travel a further distance to a temporary
sterilization center,” Algarva said. However, some Berkeley officials are concerned that the sterilization effort may stretch into a year-long operation,
which would prevent other local groups from using the empty building for activities or meetings. “Several nonprofits asked about the property,” said City
Councilmember Darryl Moore. “Berkeley Boosters might have been a more appropriate choice.” However, Moore acknowledged that there is a large problem with
feral kittens going unwanted. Supporters of the resolution added that the plan would not just benefit owners of pet cats, but the stray animals themselves.
“Fix Our Ferals is a great program for stray cats and will allow them to lead healthier lives once spayed,” Algarva said.
Contact Kyle Crawford at [email protected].
(c) 2003 The Daily Californian
Berkeley, CA
[email protected]
Printable URL: http://www.dailycal.org/particle.asp?id=20132
Original URL: http://www.daiylcal.org/article.asp?=20132
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