Fear of rabies a concern for feral cats in my town

This story is all over our news right now:

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/l...?storyid=41718

I am a little bothered by it and was hoping someone could clarify a few things for me. I hope this is not a dumb question, and if it is I apologize in advance
Feral cats.... do they depend on human caretakers for food? And by this I mean, is that typically their only source of food or are they really able to find mice or other sources on their own? The article says that "colonies" of ferals usually refers to 40-200 cats. They have issued rabies alerts in our area and they are really stressing that they don't want people feeding the cats. If people quit feeding them they are going to die I guess I would have felt much better about this article if they had maybe put a line in it with a number people can call for information on how to get free traps for a TNR program. They just don't give out any info on how people can help. I am sure some are concerned about the cats since they say there are people feeding them.... I would imagine they don't want the cats to starve and would be interested in helping in other ways.
I know the rabies is an issue, but can you trap rabid cats just the same as you would any other feral cat?

Here's a link to Stray Pet Advocacy, which has links to information about ferals:

http://www.straypetadvocacy.org/html/feral_animals.html

Community leaders who don't have a clue about feral cats use rabies as a scare tactic to the community. Rabies is very rare and if it was in a colony, it would be obvious by the number of sick cats. Feral cats don't do well on their own - they catch their own food to some extent but do rely heavily on the droppings of humans. That is why so many live in back alleys or near dumpsters.

Animal control budgets in most towns is always small, and for them to go out and do TNR is something so few of them do. If they get funding it is to trap and kill. If they ask folks to stop feeding cats, many will die and it will help their budget problem. Sounds totally wrong to me on so many levels.

Go to the link that Christy posted, educate yourself, and write the paper and counter this story. It is absolutely ridiculous!

Christy thank you for the link! I was able to read some of it this morning and it is incredibly helpful.

And great idea on the letter! Once I started reading the site I was thinking the same thing. That article has really been bugging me, especially since they keep showing the report on tv.

Hi Tanya - I agree with Momofmany - it's the same old story cathaters/ignorant people use to "get rid of" ferals: get everyone riled up about rabies. Starving the cats WILL NOT work, more will move in to take their place. It is horribly inhumane. It's a shame that death is the first thing so many people will consider as a "solution".

Ferals in rural areas eke out an existence by hunting. Those in suburban and urban areas will hunt too, but do depend more on discarded food (that's why so many are found near restaurants and supermarkets).

A colony of cats can be as little as 3 cats. There is no set number that constitutes a colony.

You're absolutely right that the article should have given people information/alternatives to not feeding, but there are those who are still unfamiliar with TNR. Too bad the reporter didn't dig deeper to find out what else could be done for the cats. The way those first two paragraphs were written made it pretty obvious where this article was going. So much for fair and balanced reporting.

I agree that you should write to that paper, as well as any other local papers, and offer information about TNR, including resources where people can find humane traps and low cost spay/neuter. There's some great information at this site that will help you:
www.alleycat.org

Thanks for being an advocate for these cats - I'll bet there are others out there in your area feeling the same way you do about this!

Also, it is one thing to have a cat who has been fending for itself continue. But to expect someone who is managing a feral colony to quit feeding them, then you will have more problems. They will be fighting over the scarce food they can find, and probably spreading more disease.

And if a colony is managed, the cats are TNR'ed, and get a rabies shot!

The article definitely has a lot of misinformation.

I guess it's theoretically possible to have a feral cat colony of 200 but there would have to be one heck of a food source available. I've certainly never seen anything like it. There might be 200 cats in a fairly small geographic area (like a park) at the height of kitten season, but even then there will actually be smaller sub-colonies who hang out in a single area. Most colonies end up being between 5 and 20 cats once the adoptable strays and kittens are removed.

One of the observations that Darwin based his entire theory on is that while many offspring are produced, populations remain stable overall with seasonal variations. This is also the case with feral cat populations. This is the time of year where larger populations will be observed, but many of the 10-week-old kittens who are out right now will not survive to adulthood.

Feral cats are dependent on humans for food, either directly (by feeding) or indirectly (trash, etc). The overall population of feral cats depends on the availability of enough food so populations do decline if they're not fed because of competition for limited resources. But starving some of the animals to death definitely isn't the best way to control the population! It's not humane and it only leads to smaller stable populations. Besides, the cats are still not vaccinated. Fixing and vaccinating them makes a million times more sense.

Cats are often scapegoated for rabies but in truth they don't carry rabies. They're sometimes victims of rabies but there's a big difference. If a cat gets rabies he's dead in 2 weeks tops. And it's been 30+ years since anyone in the US has died of rabies from a cat.

Originally Posted by squirtle View Post

This story is all over our news right now:

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/l...?storyid=41718


I am a little bothered by it and was hoping someone could clarify a few things for me. I hope this is not a dumb question, and if it is I apologize in advance


Feral cats.... do they depend on human caretakers for food? And by this I mean, is that typically their only source of food or are they really able to find mice or other sources on their own? The article says that "colonies" of ferals usually refers to 40-200 cats. They have issued rabies alerts in our area and they are really stressing that they don't want people feeding the cats. If people quit feeding them they are going to die
I guess I would have felt much better about this article if they had maybe put a line in it with a number people can call for information on how to get free traps for a TNR program. They just don't give out any info on how people can help. I am sure some are concerned about the cats since they say there are people feeding them.... I would imagine they don't want the cats to starve and would be interested in helping in other ways.

I know the rabies is an issue, but can you trap rabid cats just the same as you would any other feral cat?

Click to expand...

If anyone wants to feed the cats, they can put the food away from the site and the cats will find it. This is how i am feeding a feral right now in my area. They are hunters, and run around at night in more places then we realize. I just read a study about feral cats who were watched over a long period of time and some lived 17 years and were fat and healthy. Rabies is real and deadly. I have studied this subject since i brought home a feral that had a bite. The facts about rabies need to be explored and taken seriously by every animal care provider. That way it will never come upon you or you loved ones as a surprize of death. FACT-if an animal is bitten by a rabid animal, the incubation period in cats is 2-6 weeks. Dogs and humans are different. During this period the virus slowly travels to the brain. FACT-the bitten animal is not contagious to others until they start showing signs of the disease;strange behavior, swaying, anger, there's more. When someone is bitten after these signs are present, they could contract the disease, and need shots immediately to prevent death. FACT-rabies is transmitted through saliva. If on claws and you receive a scratch, you are in need of shots. It would be great if heath care providers would give pre-rabies shots to people who help animals on their own time. I've been denied and told i would need to have been bitten first. FACT-cats have a reduved incidence of rabies, but they are not exempt. Bats are the biggest carriers. If they're in your area, be concerned. Be concerned and take all the information you can about your own safety along with you, and along with your love for this animal, when you go to try to help them.

yummy520 said:

If anyone wants to feed the cats, they can put the food away from the site and the cats will find it. This is how i am feeding a feral right now in my area. They are hunters, and run around at night in more places then we realize. I just read a study about feral cats who were watched over a long period of time and some lived 17 years and were fat and healthy. Rabies is real and deadly. I have studied this subject since i brought home a feral that had a bite. The facts about rabies need to be explored and taken seriously by every animal care provider. That way it will never come upon you or you loved ones as a surprize of death. FACT-if an animal is bitten by a rabid animal, the incubation period in cats is 2-6 weeks. Dogs and humans are different. During this period the virus slowly travels to the brain. FACT-the bitten animal is not contagious to others until they start showing signs of the disease;strange behavior, swaying, anger, there's more. When someone is bitten after these signs are present, they could contract the disease, and need shots immediately to prevent death. FACT-rabies is transmitted through saliva. If on claws and you receive a scratch, you are in need of shots. It would be great if heath care providers would give pre-rabies shots to people who help animals on their own time. I've been denied and told i would need to have been bitten first. FACT-cats have a reduved incidence of rabies, but they are not exempt. Bats are the biggest carriers. If they're in your area, be concerned. Be concerned and take all the information you can about your own safety along with you, and along with your love for this animal, when you go to try to help them.

Click to expand...

FACT-once the animal or human begins to show signs of the disease, death is within the next ten day period. Love them and yourself with knowledge and caution.

All makes me very thankful to be living in rabies free Ireland. I have been feeding and caring for strays and ferals since I came to Ireland. I refuse to let any critter starve or be killed if i can help it. Simple humanity. Life on a pension can be a challenge but cats get fed. Always. I have six rescues here now. each one safe. I know there are more around but my outdoor stray is very territorial and keeps them away. Six is enough for one old wan!