What is wrong with people?! We live on a farm near Sylvan Lake and in the last year and a half we have had five cats dumped on our property.
What makes people think that if they do not want the responsibility of the cat, we do? Cat number one was affectionate and sweet, however he was a full grown male who tried to attack our male cat through the window.
Our cat was so scared he wouldn’t go outside so we had to lock the stray in the shop periodically in order for our cat to go out. Eventually a spot was found for the stray at the SPCA.
Cat number two was a kitten and our cat liked him so we kept him as an outdoor cat.
Cat number three arrived three weeks later and was no bigger than a teacup. She was extremely skittish and we couldn’t catch her. Three months later we still couldn’t get near her. She got along with the other two, and she was sleeping every night with our outside cat in the insulated house, so we kept her too.
We then spent a good deal of money at the vet having the male stray vaccinated and neutered so that there would be no unwanted kittens. We now have two extra cats we were not planning for.
Eight months later a full grown male arrives that we can’t get near. Numerous times I have had to run out of the house to chase this cat away because a fight was happening.
A month a go he attacked our cat and we subsequently spent $300 dollars on vet bills for the damage he did to ours.
Last night I went out to run the cat off because he was meowing at the top of his lungs, and what do I discover? – another cat has been dropped off.
Now we have two cats prowling our property that we don’t want and didn’t ask for. Today I managed to catch our female cat and take her to the vet and guess what? – she’s pregnant, obviously by one of these two strays.
I realize that we should have had her spayed, however, it is only the last couple weeks that we have been able to get close enough to touch her and we also took the precaution of making sure both our male cats had been fixed.
In a few weeks I will have more that six cats and only one of them was planned and chosen by us.
Animals are not disposable and people do not have the right to drop them at our home and make them our responsibility.
Noranna Schultz-Krebs
Red Deer
