Spay-neuter clinic tackles city's boom in feral cats
The Edmonton Humane Society had dozens of feline friends on its hands Saturday morning as the organization held its first trap-neuter-return clinic to address an overpopulation of feral cats.
Veterinary teams spent the day spaying and neutering a colony of 94 feral cats found on a rural property northeast of Edmonton. About 58 adult cats were to be returned to their habitat after healing from the surgery. But 36 kittens will be kept by the humane society, which hopes they can be socialized and adopted.
Humane society CEO Liza Sunley said the organization was happy to work with the Canadian Animal Task Force on the clinic. It hopes to tackle other large feral-cat colonies in the Edmonton area.
The cats are also vaccinated, treated for parasites and get permanent identification to support the health of the large populations.
“While feral cats do not thrive in a shelter or home, it's important that we ensure their welfare and ability to live safely in the outdoor environment where they are most comfortable in coexistence with their surrounding communities,” Sunley said.
“We want to make sure the animals living in our community are healthy and safe, and that we're protecting wildlife and the environment, and so it's important that we help to control that overpopulation. So events like this help us to humanely provide that spay and neuter service.”
The task force, formerly known as the Alberta Spay Neuter Task Force, is a volunteer-driven charity that provides care to animals, both for community safety and the animals' well-being. Task force executive director R.J. Bailot said these clinics will help control feral-cat populations across the province.
“While people understand the importance of spay and neuter, it can be overwhelming when you are dealing with an entire colony of cats,” Bailot said. “Through these clinics, we can support communities experiencing feral-cat overpopulation and make it possible to facilitate their humane and safe care.”
Communities can contact the task force at cataskforce.org to explore options for animal management.
The adult cats, which were trapped humanely on Friday, were scheduled to be returned to their home on Sunday. The humane society will remain in touch with the cats' designated caretaker near their habitat, who provides them with food, water and shelter.