Priests Allow Cats To Remain
by Elisa Black-Taylor
(USA)
The priests at St. James Parrish in lower Manhattan (Chinatown area), New York, have come to an agreement with the caregivers who care for the eight feral cats.
A lot of information is now available since my last update. My first article on this situation is at Priests Starving Cats.
Elizabeth Ellen, a caregiver to the eight cats since they were trapped on church grounds and tamed as kittens, should be commended for her part in keeping the cats in familiar territory and fed. These cats have lived on church grounds for three years now and are proof that TNR works. The initial number of cats hasn’t changed. Had the cats been ordered removed from St. James, the church would likely have experienced an increase in feral, disease carrying cats.
St. James representatives met last Tuesday with the New York City Feral Cat Initiative, the Mayor’s Alliance For New York City Animals and caregivers for the cats. They worked out a sixty day trial plan for the cats. This included regular feeding stations for the cats along with a litter box. A schedule for feeding the cats was also discussed at the meeting.
For those readers who don’t believe outdoor cats will use a litter box, I believe they will. It’s advised to put a cat litter box outside should an indoor cat escape as a cat is naturally drawn to a litter box. Along with food and water, it’s a good method to capture an escapee.
The same logic holds true with a small feral colony. They will be marking their territory by using a litter box.
Everyone is in hopes the priests will see the need for the continued care of the cats past the sixty day period. Let’s all send a word of thanks to them as a show of support for the colony of feral cats. You may contact Archdiosese Joseph Zwilling at communications@archny.org or by phone at 212-371-1011.
