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Cruel citizens are dumping neighbours' kitties
05/27/09
STORY PHOTO
Something nasty is happening far too much in the neighbourhoods of Clearview and Grandview.
Seems some, and only some, are waging spiteful and cruel little wars against their neighboursâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji] mischievous cats.
It is cruel because the irritated are taking it upon themselves to settle the dispute by kidnapping the felines and dumping them in remote rural areas.
Once there the urban cats have no access to food, water and shelter. Most likely they will soon meet their demise from starvation, coyotes and other predators.
Stacy Worobetz, president of the Whisker Rescue Society, said it is a problem that is growing in Red Deer, particularly in the neighbourhoods of Clearview and Grandview.
This month she personally came across a marooned cat on a remote acreage east of the city. She was looking for another lost feline when she came across a male tabby kitty in a field.
“He didnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t move. His eyes looked at me, and I said, ‘Hi, and he went, ‘meow,†said Worobetz. “The minute he knew I was friendly he talked, talked and talked. I picked him up and he was a little thin. I noticed he had a tattoo in his ear. I thought that was very odd for an acreage cat to have a tattoo.â€
After giving the starving cat some food to eat Worobetz went home and checked the catâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s tattoo against one that was from a cat that had been reported missing six weeks earlier.
The lost kitty was then reunited with its happy Rosedale owner. Sadly though the owner is still missing one other cat, a probable victim of another abduction and rural dumping.
“Many people will dump their own animals out in the rural areas but now others will start picking up neighboursâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji] cats and dump them in the country,†said Worobetz. “I think some people think it is an easy solution. They feel they are not doing anything bad to the cat because they think the cat will do well. And they donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t.
“Most cats are not equipped to live out there if they donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t have fresh food or water daily or a warm place,†she added.
The ongoing problem has prompted Worobetz and her society to launch a new program, one specifically designed to educate rural acreage owners, who far too frequently come across dumped cats, that there is humane options available to them and the lost felines.
“Iâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]ve wanted to do this for a while,†said Worobetz, adding that cats found on an isolated rural acreage with a tattoo, collar or who is overly friendly is quite possibly a feline that met its fate through its ownerâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s cruel neighbour.
“This has made me realize that a lot of cats are out there with a lot of owners looking for them. The acreage owners are going to love this because they get cats that are dumped all the time.â€
Worobetz said with the program society officials will soon have the means to reunite many lost felines with their rightful owners.
She said the society will be advertising the new program in many rural newspapers. Society officials will also be able to direct right-thinking citizens to the RCMP and Alberta SPCA if any case warrants an investigation under federal and provincial animal cruelty legislations.
The program will be posted on the societyâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s web site at www.whiskerrescue.com
For additional information and advice call Worobetz directly at 403-342-7298.
Now on to a big fish story: Seven-year-old Triston Marshall, of Red Deer, recently went on his first fishing trip ever with his dad Sean at Johnson Lake at Brooks.
Seems like the young lad had a classic case of beginnerâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s luck, one that was the envy of his dad and 14-year-old brother Brandon.
Triston landed a 46 in-long, 19.5 lb. northern pike.
What is remarkable is that Triston only stands 48 inches tall.
“Not bad for the first time, eh?,†said proud mom Marcia. “This one didnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t get away. Luckily Brandon was nearby to help him reel it in.â€
A fish story yes but one that rings ever so true – and a memory that will last a life time.
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