Feral Cats

I am a caretaker of over 150 feral cats. I've had 98% of these cats spayed/neutered/vaccinated. Most of the cats are in "friendly" places however, I still have some in areas where people don't want them. The cats aren't on these people property, they just hate cats and don't want to even look at them. Those of you who deal with ferals know what I'm talking about.

Anyway, my question is what do you say to people who yell at you "for feeding the cats". I've tried explaining the TNR program, I've tried to educate,I've cursed them out, etc., etc., but I still don't have a good answer for these "people". I don't want to call them names in this forum, so use your imagination. HA!

I'm always caught off guard and never know what to say because telling them the truth in a simple way doesn't get across. They still rant and rave and scream like crazy people. Is there a good answer for these people. Should I just ignore them altogether?

Also, the fact that I live in a city that does nothing, on the contrary, encourages people to starve and neglect strays, doesn't help the situation.

Any tips you can give will be greatly appreciated.

Hi Patsy,

Unfortunately you will find that whatever you do decide to say to these people, they will not listen. They have it set in their little brains their own preconceived ideas about ferals and no one can change their mind. Chances are they hate all cats, not just the feral ones.

The only thing you can do, is what you are doing now which is WONDERFUL by the way. When I run into these types of people I try really hard to just ignore them. I trap the cats as soon as possible and neuter and release into managed colonies in friendlier areas. These type of people are not part of the solution, they are part of the problem.