I get angry when I see all these dumped cats because people want that cute little kitten, but then they grow up and need things like vet care and sterilization and people just dump them.
I'm not kidding. People cat dump over here. They dont sterilize them so there are scrawny and sick kittens.
And the shelters here NEVER have room.
The ferals dont bother me. It's the strays that kill me. Dont take one out of the wild if you are just gonna dump it when it's not a cute kitten anymore and you've robbed it of its wild instincts.
We have some awful, horrid trash people down the road that abuse the cats, too. They are like trailor park Devil Rejects. I fucking HATE them. And their shitty, mean as fuck crotch goblins that are always in the road flipping people off.
They are like....8 and 10 ffs.
20 years ago at my local SPCA the process, when selling a cat or dog, was that the new owner would get a certificate that could be used towards (it would usually cover the entire cost) a spay or neuter at any local vet. The vets would redeem the certificates with us to get paid. We strongly encouraged anyone adopting a dog or cat to take advantage of the certificate, but we knew many people did not.
So I worked in animal care, but I also took care of the technology (updated the Web site, I wrote some applications (tracking medications in animal care, volunteer management, punch-in/punch-out software to track employees hours, etc.), I managed the server, I ran cable, installed access points, etc. etc.). I attended the management meetings. My desk happened to be beside the Education Coordinator who oversaw the school programs; she and her staff would visit schools and give presentations about animals. One topic was how fast cats can multiply when not altered. The Education Coordinator showed me that lesson and that got us talking about how we should be spaying and neutering cats and dogs
before they go home with their new owner. She did not have the insight, into how bad a problem overpopulation was in our area, that I had through working in animal care.
So we advocated for that at meetings.
The executive director shot it down. Do we drive every cat and dog to a vet to be altered?
Too much extra work for us. Do we bring vets in to do it (we already had a vet there 4 hours a day)?
The local vets (that we did not use) would be upset that we are taking some of their business away.
But we continued to spread the word. I talked about it a lot with animal care. We both talked about it with the admin staff. Pretty soon (it took a few years to build the pressure), everybody was pushing for it and the executive director caved. It all changed about 15 years ago. Every dog or cat that is sold is sterilized.
The result?
Way less unwanted pets. Way less stray cats.
We went from euthanizing upwards of 20 cats a day to being a "no kill" shelter. Not one animal is killed because we cannot handle the volume of animals. In fact, we reach out to other shelters and take their extra animals when they are over capacity.
I keep saying "
we", but I do not work there any more. I am just a volunteer now, but I still feel very much a part of the organization.
If anyone knows of an SPCA or animal rescue who does not ensure that all their adopted animals are altered, and you care about animals, you should remind them of the importance of it.