The Story

I've decided to start this blog because I have been trying to help a neighbor of mine who has a feral cat problem. On any given day she probably has any where between 10 to 20 cats in her yard looking for food and a safe haven .... which she dutifully provides these beautiful but wild cats. A feral cat is not a stray .... they were born in the wild and have had no contact with humans except for the minimal contact of being fed. Someone who cares for these animals is called either a humane care giver or colony manager. My neighbor, who has become a bit of a hoarder ..... she now has about 10 to 15 cats inside her house along with all the outside creatures. She is a wonderful and caring woman who is a bit over her head with all the cats.

I told her I would help her out and at first, while trying to research feral cats, came across alot of negativity and closed doors. While going through the mail, I found an article in my Anti-Cruelty Magazine .... ok .. for those that know me, I am a huge cat lover ..... an organization called Allie Cat Allies that gave workshops on managing feral cat colonies. The only effective way to manage them is to TNR (trap, nueter and release) ..... any of these beautiful creatures that end up in shelters are doomed to be euthanized due to their inability to be placed in a home and tamed. They are similar to a racoon or squirrel ...... yet they look just like the average house cat.

My oldest son, Ian, and I went over this spring and plucked out six of the feral kittens we found in her yard .... determined to give them at least a chance. The kittens that were so frightened and hissey ... (some bit the crap out me) .... turned out to be the sweetest most loving ... human needing animals. We found homes for them and are so happy they are not destined to be wild cats roaming the streets of Oak Brook.