Cat plan divides speakers at hearing
Ulster County lawmakers took comments from 33 speakers, split nearly evenly, on a proposed law that would regulate trap-neuter-return programs intended to reduce feral cat colonies.
The public hearing Tuesday night included speakers who all were admitted cat lovers but differed on whether the proposed law would harm felines or humanely deal with a growing problem.
“The proposal here seeks to codify and strengthen the existing laws, rules and regulations of the [state] Agriculture and Markets Law,” Washingtonville resident Jodie Lomeli said.
Some supporters lauded provisions in the proposed law that would require organizations that trap cats to notify municipalities when the programs are being undertaken. Such a provision, they said, would give cat owners an
opportunity to find out if a missing house cat might have been taken as part of a feral cat reduction effort.
“This point ... reflect[s] established best practices in humane trapping across the country,” said Tillson resident Liz Wassell. “The law, as written, has three requirements — proper notification of the scheduled trapping operation, a mandatory holding period of [captured] cats, and careful record keeping.”
Feral cats are those that lives outdoors and have had little or no human contact. And they generally do not allow themselves to be handled or touched by humans.
Several speakers agreed trapping is beneficial as long as it is possible for cat owners to reclaim their pets. New Paltz resident Terence Ward noted it took some luck for him to learn where one of his trapped cats could be found.
“One of mine, Peregrine ... was lured into a trap during a trap-neuter-release operation,” he said.
“The only reason I found out what had happened to Peregrine is because the wrong person answered the phone at the apartment complex that day,” Ward said. “By the time I located Peregrine, he was in New Jersey. I have no idea where he might have ultimately been released.”
Objections to the proposed law came from several people who support Project Cat, a High Falls shelter that opposes returning cats to feral colonies. “It’s quite obvious that this proposal was created specifically to address the many unfounded and cruel accusations circulating about [Project Cat] for the past two years,” program founder Gail Mihocko said, “mostly by people who disagree with our policies and want to further their agenda of the ... trap-neuter-release community.
“Rumors led some to believe that I surreptitiously search neighborhoods for outdoor cats to trap and remove,” she said. “This is blatantly false.”
Accord resident Barbara Fornal was among the speakers who contended the proposed law would violate the Agriculture and Markets Law if captured cats were released back to colonies.
The law states “that trap-neuter-release is illegal and a misdemeanor,” she said. “Therefore, the proposed local law ... is illegal unto itself.”
Other opponents told legislators a law is needed that declares cat colonies to be a nuisance.
“Free-roaming cats and feral cats ... have become a bane to our home, defecating in our garden, ruining shrubs with repeated spraying, and killing rabbits and tormenting our own cats by sitting on the window sills,” Kingston resident Leslie Lansing said. “Our yard is fenced, and I have observed them scaling the fence with baby rabbits in their mouths, and [I am] continually finding the remains of birds . ... So while I wait for trap-neuter-release to reduce the feral population, the cats continue to annihilate wildlife.”
“Free-roaming cats and feral cats ... have become a bane to our home, defecating in our garden, ruining shrubs with repeated spraying, and killing rabbits and tormenting our own cats by sitting on the window sills.” — Leslie Lansing, Kingston resident