Some days I feel like we're getting closer to having a kinder, more humane community, and then some days, I can only shake my head about how far we have to go.
On Monday, Kansas City, MO animal control removed more than 60 cats from a house in Kansas City, North that were living in "deplorable" conditions. While most report that the cats were in very treatable, according KC Animal Health and Public Safety Division manager Patrick Egberuare the shelter veterinarian determined "euthanasia" was the "humane course". No opportunity for rehabilitation, no opportunity treatment....simply killed.
Meanwhile, in Lake Waukomis (a small community in the Northland), the city has begun using city funding to capture feral cats and kill them (not "euthanize" as the city tries to call it) in the city shelter. While the city used to operate a Trap/Neuter/Return Policy, they say that has gotten more difficult because residents are feeding the cats -- making the cats less likely to be baited into traps because they have access to other food. Huh? If they catch them to kill them, they can equally catch them to neuter and release them. Sigh.
Hopefully the city will work with the local NAWS group and others to efficiently run a TNR program in the community and take killing them off the table.
While we've been making a lot of progress in the metro in how we treat animals - -we definitely still have a long way to go.
I hear your sighs of frustration but the cat issue is HUGE and not improving in many places. One shelter in my area of PA took in 95 stray cats/kittens in one day this week. One day, one shelter. TNR sounds like the solution but 1) they don't have the dollars to pay for vets to spay/neuter the large number of cats that come in and 2) the surgery center is booked for months in advance just for the pets who have been adopted. There are organizations in the area who do TNR but they are just getting the tip of the iceberg. It's so depressing and causing a great deal of disappointment in our fellow human beings. The solution is evading us.
Posted by: Chris Shaughness | June 17, 2010 at 01:18 PM
When a Vet cites euthanasia as the "humane course", that makes me think these cats were medically hopeless and suffering. If it was a case of, for example - We can't afford to treat them and don't want to bother trying to adopt them out se we'll just kill them all, then I wouldn't think that would qualify as "humane". The odds that every one of these 60+ cats was medically hopeless and suffering seem extremely low to me.
Posted by: YesBiscuit! | June 17, 2010 at 01:42 PM
Great eye opening post. I live in a much smaller city than KC, but the problem is still the same just in smaller amounts. I agree, needless euthanasia needs to be curbed, somehow. A crystal ball would help here if anyone can come up with one. I don't have a good answer, just an open heart and mind to the problem.
Thanks again.
Posted by: Brian | June 18, 2010 at 02:24 AM
Brian's comment - "I don't have a good answer, just an open heart and mind to the problem." I think that IS the answer -
Posted by: mary frances | June 18, 2010 at 01:07 PM
I have seen the conditions of many cats in hoarding situations and many times they are very very sickly. I "heard" , no proof, that most of these recent cats where somewhat ok. I offered to have many transferred to SNKC to simply s/n for free and send out to any rescue that would take them. No one responded to our offer.
Posted by: michelle | June 18, 2010 at 02:14 PM
How about we get PETA to set loose hundreds/thousands of big Norwegian rats in Lake Waukomis?
btw, Stecklenbeg of Half Way Home is quoted in KCTV article as stating that lack of room was the primary reason for euthanizing those 53 cats:
"No. 1, we didn’t' have room, and No. 2, they were in such bad conditions," Steckelberg said.
http://www.kctv5.com/news/23940333/detail.html
Posted by: Appalled | June 18, 2010 at 04:52 PM
Lake Waukomis should know that the "Black Plague" started because Europeans killed so many cats, the rat population exploded and the fleas carrying the plague had a field day. The cats' revenge.
Much as dogs are under fire, cats have it far worse. People's attitudes must change in order for this problem to be reduced. Cats are not disposable.
Posted by: Social Mange | June 18, 2010 at 08:23 PM
There are just too many cats. Not enough adopters and never enough dollars.
Posted by: DrowningInCats | June 21, 2010 at 10:43 AM
It's so hard. I feel that with my time and square footage in my apartment it is only right for me to have my two dogs and I will soon adopt a cat from our local shelter. (lost 2 cats to 2 untreatable types of cancers within months of each other at ages 12 and 13 recently, very heartbreaking). There are only so many people with so many homes. We must put more money into spay/neuter programs. And it's true about the black plague although I have mixed feelings about cats being allowed to wander freely as they are often killed by cars, disease and other animals.
Posted by: Shannon Greene | June 21, 2010 at 12:49 PM
If people would be more responsible when they get an animal particularly cats that they let out have them neutered and spayed there wouldn't be the problem of so many ferel cats when those loving?!!! pet owners move and leave their animal abandoned.
Posted by: Josephine Blanton | June 21, 2010 at 12:49 PM
Irresponsible HUMANs are the cause of this problem. Sometimes i feel that Man"KIND" is an Oxymoron.
Spay and neuter your pets and keep them indoors or contained in an escape-proof yard. Come-on, would you let your 2 yr old baby run loose?
Posted by: A Attura | June 21, 2010 at 01:22 PM
Regarding specifically The Lake Waukamis trap and kill situation:
At the end of the day, let's keep in mind these are "feral cats". Feral cats can't live indoors, they already have a home, it's "outside". These are for the most part not house kitties that are being trapped and killed, these are "feral cats".
Many cities have successful TNR programs mostly supported through the blood, sweat, and tears of compassionate volunteers. From the caretakers who spend out of pocket to feed the cats, to the kind vets that are willing to work with ferals, and (if lucky) to the low cost s/n clinics that perform mass s/n surgeries; all of these programs together make TNR successful.
The city leaders already have in this metro area available resources that they can turn to for advise and for compassionate management of "feral cat" colonies. However these particular city leaders have chosen not to work with those experts within their community for a compassionate solution that does not involve "killing".
It's time to write, call, email or fax the city leaders and offers humane solutions.
http://www.lakewaukomis.org/CityOfficials.html
Posted by: KC KS Kills Dogs | June 21, 2010 at 04:18 PM
Michelle -- thanks for offering to help. I too didn't see the animals for myself but some people I know that spend a lot of time at the shelter said these were not in as bad of shape as many cases similar to this.
Appalled - at least the folks at Half Way Home were honest about the situation...having the head of animal control say the primary reason they were killed was due to health is disingenuous compared to other reports we've heard.
DrowninginCats - I know the KCMO shelter is receiving a HUGE number of cats right now -- particularly as the only completely open admission shelter in the metro. That said, a situation like this is a GREAT opportunity to share with the media the situation of a huge hoarding case, and the need to move cats -- and none of that appeared to have been done. The cats were just killed without reaching out first...which is too bad.
Shannon -- While I will grant you that the ideal siutation would be for cats to live in homes, it doesn't change the reality that there are millions of feral cats that live in this country that will never be able to live in homes. Killing them to keep them from living on the street where they could possibly die doesn't seem like a humane option to me...
A.A. - Sure there are irresponsible humans out there....but the shelter system should be designed to deal with the irresponsible human elements. Shelters making irresponsible decisions to kill animals isn't excused because other people were irresponsible first.
Posted by: Brent | June 21, 2010 at 07:45 PM
Josephine and AA--unlike dogs, there are in many areas multiple generations of truly feral, unowned cats. Unlike dogs, cats actually often do quite well without alot of human help. Real studies have shown that between 87% and 92% of owned cats are already spayed or neutered--and the reproduction rate of the unaltered ones is below replacement rate. So, where are all these cats coming from? Some are litters from unaltered, semi-owned "strays", but the great majority are from feral populations. All the MSN laws in the world won't do much to slow the rate of kittens entering the shelter.
Just killing the populations of ferals is not the answer, either. Cats will quickly reproduce to fill a population void. However, other studies have shown that a stable, managed "colony" of feral cats that are overseen by caretakers that periodically trap and alter newcomers eventually reduces numbers on it's own, by attrition. Cats are very territorial, and the presence of resident cats prevents the moving in of large numbers of new cats, and helps reduce reproduction. So, round up and kill of feral colonies is not only inhumane, it's bad policy because new cats will continue to fill the void as long as there is territory and food to be had.
Posted by: Janipurr | June 23, 2010 at 06:26 PM
Half Way Home Pet Adoptions (sic) killed 24 healthy cats this week. All were former pets.
WARNING: Surrendering your pet to Half Way Home "Pet Adoptions" = a death sentence
Posted by: Appalled | July 02, 2010 at 06:31 AM
Not to excuse HWH for their atrouciously poor leadership, but part of the reason they don't have room is they are the ONLY 100% OPEN ADMISSION shelter in the KCMO Metro. The accept animals at any time from ANY city - which honestly I don't think they should. Why are the KCMO tax dollars paying for Grandview's homeless pets? Oh yeah, so WW can call themselves No Kill.
Almost everyone else turns people away or puts them on a waiting list. KCK, Olathe will take in animals from their own city (which is appropriate) but others are limited admission and even the Independence Shelter is turning their own citizens away.
Posted by: PAMM - People Against Misleading Morons | July 02, 2010 at 09:06 AM
I know NAWS doesn't work with feral cats in the community at this time. They do offer a free spay/neuter program to tame cats and dogs, as long as the owner is on government assistance of some type.
Posted by: Annette | September 30, 2011 at 02:01 PM
I attended the court date of the 83 y/o lady who was cited for feeding "wild animals"; i.e., cats.
If she is not seen feeding any more "wild animals" (other than birds) for one year, than the charge will be dropped.
I have a whole different viewpoint on Lake Waukomis now. It's a very narrow minded little town without much compassion for the discarded cats that were once a human's responsibility.
Posted by: Annette | September 30, 2011 at 02:07 PM
shame on lake waukomis..... I could rant and rave about such a blatant disregard of any living creature but I'm sure it would somehow be justified by such narrow minde individuals that the effort is in vain....somehow someway their lack of compassion and diregard for life will come back to haunt them ....a rodent invasion would be the perfect payback and all the diseases the little rodents carry...oops maybe karma is a cat after all ....
Posted by: g heathman | December 23, 2014 at 09:00 PM