We know everyone knows there is a huge cat problem. Every shelter in the state is feeling it. Our streets are overloaded with cats and every day, we get 10 calls from people wanting to get rid of them. These cats do not ask for this life … to be here and not wanted. We as human beings, we are the cause of this by not spaying or neutering. Therefore, we owe it to the cats to try and fix it.
I know having a cat altered is expensive. But there are programs out there that can help. All shelters have information on these programs or you can search it online. They are out there to use, people just need to make the first step and call. If people would do this, the amount of cats roaming and unwanted would be cut in half. This would be a huge start.
If this situation continues, the strays will double. People are dumping them outside, as a way to get rid of their problem. Well, when you do this, you are just creating a bigger problem for others, such as your neighbor or the town you live in.
In the month of August, we took in 41 stray cats. We can only house 65 comfortably and already had 40 in our care. These numbers hurt us and what we do. Some of these strays that come in are in bad shape. They are thin, flea ridden, starving or worse. To try and help these animals costs us money we do not have. But we have to treat them, so we scrape around and beg for help. People dispose of them like garbage, like they don’t matter, leaving them to fend for themselves. This is when they get sick and hurt, getting in fights and eating garbage to survive. This is not a life for a living, breathing being.
Out of those 41 strays, over 10 were in bad shape. One in particular is Tiny. She came to us from the town of Houlton. She was so matted, she could not stand. We shaved over 15 pounds of mats off of her. She had infections, sores and even maggots, due to being left to die outside. To look in her eyes and see her pain is heartbreaking. This could have been prevented. Another preventable one was a kitten we took in with such a bad upper respiratory problem, he could not open his eyes. His nose was filled with mucus and he sneezed so bad, he was bleeding. He was hungry, cold and so little. Sadly, he did not make it. All he had wrong, could have been prevented had his mother been spayed.
To own an animal is not a right, it is a privilege. You do not have the right to throw an innocent animal out. You do not have the right to let them have babies time and time again. It is our responsibility as their owners to care for them, to love them and treat them like they matter. Ones like Tiny and Peanut never knew this feeling. If you are reading this column, you are an animal lover. Please if you see abuse or a cat suffering outside, call your local animal control. You may not think you can do anything, but that one call could change everything.
The Houlton Humane Society is located on 263 Callaghan Road in Houlton. To contact the shelter, email animal@pwless.net or call 532-2862 or visit www.houltonhumanesociety.org.
Heather Miller is the executive director of the Houlton Humane Society.
