Sisters area faces cat overpopulation

Spring…the season for bounding lambs, new growth in the garden — and cages full of mewling kittens in the animal shelters.

There is an epidemic of cat overpopulation that lurks in bushes, alleys, and backyards all over Central Oregon. The chances of all those newborn kittens finding homes are pretty slim. More likely they will end up at a shelter where the cutest may get adopted, the rest euthanized.

Some consider euthanasia the number one killer of pets in the United States. The start of the solution, the “vaccine” for the killer, according to Sara Dice, executive director of Bend Spay & Neuter Clinic, is to get the cats sterilized, ending the cycle of reproduction.

Lynne Ouchida from the Humane Society of Central Oregon in Bend says she polls groups she is speaking to about the status of pets in their families. She gets quite a different reaction between dog and cat owners. When asked who considers their pet to be a part of the family, most dog owners raise their hand. The number goes down considerably when the same question is asked about cats.

“I think cat overpopulation will continue to be a problem until the status of felines is elevated in our society,” she said.

Exact numbers are difficult to calculate, but at press time, each shelter in the area had around 85 cats, some ready to adopt and some undergoing treatment. And kitten season is just beginning.

Some statistics from the Humane Society of Redmond show that over the course of just five years, an unspayed female cat, her mate and all of their offspring are capable of producing nearly 12,000 cats.

There are low-cost options here in Central Oregon for getting cats to stop reproducing. SNIP House in Prineville has been operating since late 2003. Originally a mobile clinic, a permanent site was opened in June, 2004. The Bend Spay & Neuter Clinic opened in January, 2005. The purpose of these nonprofit, 501c3 clinics is to end pet overpopulation by providing high quality, affordable sterilization services for cats, dogs, and rabbits. Recently, they achieved the milestone of 10,000 spay/neuter surgeries between the two clinics.

Cost for cats is $30, and the clinics are using some innovative programs to stop the “first litter” effect, said Dice.

“The program offers a spay procedure for any mother cat for $30 that includes the spay or neuter procedure for the entire litter of kittens at 8 weeks of age,” she said.

Gift certificates are available and for anyone who has one that hasn’t been used, now is the time of year to redeem it. “Furry Friends” gift certificate holders are encouraged to use them.

Feral cats are also served by the clinics. For those folks who are clever or lucky enough to trap them, the clinic services are offered on a donation basis. The cats are sterilized, dewormed, given shots, and an eartip as a universal sign that they have been altered. The cats are examined for general health while anesthetized. Those who have brought the cats in are encouraged ti set the cats up with food and water in barns and outbuildings on their properties.

However, some feral cats are turning up in subdivisions and semi-urban areas these days, as Central Oregon cities expand their boundaries. There aren’t always outbuildings for these non-socialized, independent hunters to settle in.

Amada Rector, public relations representative of the Humane Society of Redmond, admits there are two sides to the issue of unwanted cats, whether they are feral or domesticated. On one side is the belief that every animal born deserves a loving home; on the other side is the thought that humane euthanasia is an option that should be available with no questions asked.

Euthanasia services are provided at the shelter for minimal cost. Rector says the biggest cost is the emotional toll on the technicians administering it and the volunteers and staff who deal with some sort of animal crisis daily.

The fate of the Central Oregon cats and kittens awaiting adoption depends on the cat loving public. Local animal shelters and the spay neuter clinics are always in need of donations of supplies, dollars or time.

For more information call Bend Spay & Neuter Project at 617-1010 or the Oregon Humane Society Bend Shelter, 382-3537 or the Redmond Humane Society at 548-3453.