A lot of people protest about people feeding feral cats. They often consider them to be crazy. There is a divide in society. But it is wholly unrealistic to insist that people stop feeding feral cats. Some local authorities have created or want to create laws which makes it a crime to feed feral cats. This is absurd.
This is because many kind and tender-hearted people cannot stand by and see animals suffer. They are compelled to act. It is instinctive and part of the human psyche and it is one of the better aspects of human behaviour. Why stop people being decent and kind?
It is unreasonable and not in the power of people in authority to try and stop kind-hearted people responding to animal suffering. Especially when feeding feral cats is very often accompanied by trap-neuter-release (TNR) programs designed to humanely reduce feral cat numbers.
Feral cat feeders are both being kind to animals, who were put in a precarious position by irresponsible humans, and simultaneously carrying out a public service. Leave them alone or help them but don’t criticise them.
If people want to criticise and complain about feeding feral cats they should redirect their anger or annoyance at the law makers, the politicians and councillors and at cat owners who are simply unequipped to provide adequate care for their cat or cats.
All energies should be channeled towards reducing the number of abandoned cats and to ensure all domestic cats are spayed and neutered. This means setting up educational programs and supporting charities who provide discount neutering services or even supporting vets in general. It may mean instigating local laws to restrict cat ownership but this is not the best way forward. It is best to educate and let cat owners self-regulate.
Focus needs to be on the source of the problem and not at the other end of the problem. The good people who feed feral cats are picking up the pieces left by the bad people.
When local authorities try and punish animal advocates who feed feral cats the usual response by the residents of the area is to reject it. The broad mass of citizens see the real issues, which I have stated above.
I fully support the community cat system. In the urban areas the minority of intolerant’s need to become part of the community. Many are uninformed, misinformed, biased or just not studied at all. I believe animal welfare should be put on top of the as list we humans scorch the earth and keep destroying animals and their habitat.
I completely agree with you James.