Originally published at: http://boingboing.net/2017/03/13/denver-clinic-plans-to-fix-10.html
…
#imnotbroken
Really? That’s so cool!
“An average cat has 1-8 kittens per litter and 2-3 litters per year. During her productive life, one female cat could have more than 100 kittens. A single pair of cats and their kittens can produce as many as 420,000 kittens in just 7 years.”
10,000 kitty fix surgeries? That’s gotta cost a lot of scratch.
This story needs updating. The Federal government, as part of the Hyde (and Seek) Amendment, defunded Cat Planned Parenthood. Apparently, fixing cats really just supports and sanctifies out-of-wedlock intercourse.
Je ne veux pas aller chez le vétérinaire! Je ne veux pas être castré!
Just think of how many adorably cute kitten videos they’re preventing, possible in the millions. Think of the opportunity costs people!
You are clearly already infected by the infamous brain parasite. I, for one, am not willing to take the risk of a tribble-like invasion with claws!1!
Calme-toi. Tu ne vas rien sentir.
Well this is a new experience : never has “no strings attached” had me cross my legs protectively before.
Toronto did this a few years ago, and now runs TNR clinics for feral cats (only) to be spayed/neutered.
It makes a huge difference since cats are by nature territorial. If you take a cat out of the territory, “fix” it, then put it back, it will continue to defend its’ territory, but now that territory will likely be kitten-free.
Toronto has been estimated as having some 100,000 feral cats, so keeping the population down is paramount here.
Is that number before or after the program?
Well, since the goal isn’t to reduce the number of feral cats today, but instead the number born into successive generations, I wouldn’t expect a change in number initially. The program’s been running for a few years now though, so I’d love to see another census done.
Of course, the problem is, you can’t just put up flyers and ask the feral cats to come out and be counted. The estimate the numbers from a combination of clinic reports, feral cat colony volunteers (those capturing cats in a region for TNR), feral euthanasia rates by the city pound, etc.
I heard there’s a talk show called, “Welcome to Me” that also performs this service for free.
Shit, as I was reading your comment on the train, I totally missed the stop at St. Ives…
If I could figure out how to do this so our neighborhood free range cats could get fixed, but not associate me with the procedure, I’d do it. I have a good working relationship with the 3 that hang out around our house, and would rather not have them run for the hills when I come outside. Sadly, all the 'free spay/neuter" programs here require you to catch and bring the cats in; grabbing the cats and stuffing them into a carrier without heavy personal damage would probably void the warranty.
I know that there are some very large live-catch humane type traps available.
If you go that route, I’d recommend only leaving the traps out for so long as you are available to watch them. Also, the cats may still be too smart to get caught, so your mileage may vary