In the Lake Lowell area of Boise, Idaho, USA, there are reports by a local resident that many hundreds of domestic cats are being abandoned. The resident, Melissa Blackmer, says that she moved to the Lake Lowell area two years ago. She began to notice an unusual number of stray cats. Many were friendly. She says that they are definitely pets because they are friendly and they walk up to you. They are also hungry.
In the past year she has rescued 40 cats from the area. These are the lucky ones. She says that they starve and freeze in the winter and that there are lots of predators in the area. She says that the number of abandoned cat must be at least in the hundreds. She stresses that this is probably a conservative number.
Her theory is that cat owners believe that there are mice and birds in the area so they assume that their cat will survive. We know that this is not necessarily true. It is rarely true because domestic cats have often lost the ability to survive in the wild especially under harsh conditions. Some will survive but a lot will struggle to do so.
She also believes that another reason why cats are being abandoned in the area in such high numbers is because the owners are worried that if they take their cat to the Humane Society they are going to be euthanized. They try and avoid that. They want to give their cat a life but they don’t want to look after their cat. It’s a very peculiar decision because they are putting their cat through a very harsh time with the distinct possibility of death at the end. They are mistaken if they assume that their cats will be automatically euthanized at a cat rescue organization.
A third reason is that sometimes neighbors who don’t like cats dump their neighbor’s cat in the area to get rid of him or her. That’s a crime of course but no one is watching. No one gets caught. This is one reason why outside cats are so vulnerable.
Because of the high number of cats that Melissa is faced with she has started a Facebook page to try and reunite them with their owners and if that’s not possible to rehome them. You might like to visit the page: Lost and Found Pets from Lake Lowell. I’m sure that she is looking for foster carers and partners with local shelters to house them. And she’s always looking for volunteers to help.
She says, “I can’t imagine dumping an animal where it may not survive,”
Well some people (a lot?) are slightly stupid or careless or unthinking. It is called the human condition.
“She also believes that another reason why cats are being abandoned in the area in such high numbers is because the owners are worried that if they take their cat to the Humane Society they are going to be euthanized”
So, instead, ppl just DUMP their pet~how stupid! Most of them will suffer, they’ll either starve or freeze to death. It would be better to just euthanize them!! Oh wait, that would cost $$ n ‘you’ dont wanna spend $$ on a pet you’re just tossing out!!!
Yes, absolutely Rudolph. I hope that you are keeping well and your cats.