I have a question

[lionessrampant]

It's extremely good for the cats....my Raphael sports a HUGE 15 cm long and 3 cm wide (at its widest point) scar all the way down his back that he got at just 10 months old as an un-neutered wandering tom. Had we not trapped and neutered him (we would have returned him, but he turned out to be a big lovebug once his boys were removed), he would have died out there, fighting on the streets. He had an abscess and a huge infection and 7 years later, the hair on that scar isn't coming back any time soon.

Even if you say 'well, I'm going to keep them indoors,' it becomes an unhappy arrangement for owner and cat alike. You are denying the cat something that it has made it its sole business to seek out, and you're paying the damages with all of the spraying, aggression, caterwauling, etc. You have a very frustrated and unhappy cat on your hands.

Not to mention that fact that 3 to 4 million animals die in shelteres every year (at the hands of people, mind you) because there are so many extra, unwanted pets that could have been prevented through S/N.

Human overpopulation....well, that's its own problem which has a whole different set of ethical concerns. Apples to oranges.

 

[solaritybengals]

You also have to remember cats and dogs do not have a psychological attachment to their parts. We as humans do because it defines who we are. People who have to have operations to remove these (ie hysterectomy) often mourn the loss and can go into depression from it. Cats and dogs do not sink into depression after this surgery. One of the biggest reasons they don't is because they do not know what has happened (they don't know their uterus was removed, and often times a tom won't really care that there is something msising). They merely stop cycling into heat and they don't miss that, because the urge is completely gone. A male will become very loving and affectionate after being extremely aggressive.

Thats my take on it anyway.

 

[solaritybengals]

Originally Posted by Marin

Well i was afraid someone might say that.It is indeed a shame that this hapens.But you know what the prob is;people also drive them away and abuse them.So it's naturall their afraid and stay way of human presence.Dogs are not in teh same stituation.They get more atention.In my country almoust every apartment block has these sorta 'comunity dogs',sometomes more than one.But do you ever see cats arund?No
THEY JUST DRIVE THEM AWAY!
Seriosly,i'm pretty ashamed of that.It's kinda a vicios circle.Humns drive them away and then we expect to take care of them

Oh well...

Sometimes unhomed cats are seen in such a light which is unfortunate. However, the only way to help the problem is to cut down on the unhomed animals. I don't know if they do this there but here they will go and do massive spay/neuter of feral communities (then rerelease). This does not make the cats go away, it merely stops the procreation. Its much easier to manage the stray cats if there aren't as many of them. Cats breed VERY easily and by spay/neuter it helps control the masses of animals that are unwanted and end up starving.

Its great you are taking care of a couple communities already. However, before long these communities will grow and it will be harder and harder for you to maintain by yourself. People who deal directly with feral groups can easily get overwhelmed. Spay/neuter operations can at least put a hold on things.

I'm not sure I said that very well

.