Here in the Real World

Stray and feral cats are a little like the mice they love to hunt .... for everyone that you see there are ever so many more that you don't. As part of the process of refurbishing the old garden shed into suitably safe and snug quarters for Dora and Oscar, there is now a little 'kitty door' small enough to keep the raccoons from stopping by for midnight snacks.
Still, every morning, after the dogs have had their first inspection tour of the yard, I know that I'll need to bring a fresh bowl of cat food out for my two scamps. Raccoon proof doesn't deter other kitties after all.
One of the reasons I chose the garden shed to be the new 'cathouse' is that its close enough to the house to keep tabs on at least some of the traffic. Now some of the visitors are the neighbours' kitties, but there is at least one other feral for sure that I know is stopping by .... a battered old intact tom that I call Chuck ( for he is as battered as Chuck Norris after all those fight movies)
If I could ever get my paws on Chuck, I'd get him into to be tested, vaccinated and neutered. But Oscar and Dora may have told him there is 'no free lunch' and he may be purposely elusive on that score : )))
Everyone agrees that the stray and feral cat problem is huge. Conservative guestimates place the numbers at three hundred thousand in the province. Three hundred thousand! That means, in realspeak, that there is at least one stray or feral cat for every three people in this province.
Even a middle aged grandmother like myself can see that there are no simple solutions for something this big. Tomorrow is the Town Hall meeting on stray and feral cats . There will be presentations on both successful TNR and Low cost spay neuter programs in the hopes of inspiring interested individuals to develop similar projects in their communities.
While it is certainly a groundbreaking move on the part of the society, its important to realize that this is only the first step in what could yet be a fairly rocky road.
Why do I say that? Doesn't everyone have compassion for the kitties? Unfortunately not. There are some other stumbling blocks that still need work:

• Money ... it might not buy love, but politicians are quick to toss the responsibility around like a hot potato. The reality is that financial matters between the municipal and provincial levels are so interconnected that any meaningful solutions needs to be a joint effort. As long as the province controls so many of the purse strings for the municipalities, its just political passing of the buck for the two levels to keep insisting that animal welfare is the others' responsibility.
• Public relations .... if you are reading this blog, you ( and by extension your friends and family) probably care enough to be informed about animal welfare issues. Its time to stop 'preaching to the choir' and find more mainstream ways to get the issues out there for the rest of the province. Municipal websites and newsletters to posters in animal clinics are only a couple of the places that should be showcasing the issue. Just like the little private rescues, maybe its time to go 'tabling' at flea markets and fairs.
• Pet abandonment .... there was a very good letter, ( click here. to read) sent out by the society explaining in crystal clear fashion what is needed from the province in order for them fulfill their mandate ( the subject of the need to education our public prosecutors that animal cruelty to feral and stray cats is still animal cruelty is a separate rant for another day ) Until the deterrent of enough successful prosecutions of charges of animal abandonment exists, there are some who will just keep on dumping good pets.

In a perfect fantasy world, every pet would live its whole life being well cared for by a responsible guardian. But here in the real world, people will get pets and feed strays that they cannot afford to spay or neuter. Here in the real world, any meaningful solution needs to recognize that.