Feral Watch branches out to other towns
Supporters can support their programme by a virtual adoption of a feral where you pay for its neutering and monthly food.
HIGHVELD – Feral Watch TNR, an animal welfare organisation that focuses on the welfare of feral cat colonies, has now branched out to Ermelo and Standerton.
Ms Nicolette van Zyl founded this organisation to address the exploding feral cat problem in Secunda, Trichardt and the surrounding areas.
The well-being of feral colonies not only includes food and medical attention. The main remedy for any colony is to trap, neuter and return the animals to their own environment.
Neutering feral cats helps to keep the population at bay, which in turn means the colony stabilises, there are less fights and injuries, less in-breeding and their environment yields a sustainable food source.
Ms Van Zyl said attempts to remove cats from an area always fails, because of the vacuum effect.
Traditional catch and kill approaches which are cruel and futile, relocation which adds additional stress on the cats and cat sanctuaries are completely ineffective at stabilising the population.
The vacuum effect is a natural and scientifically documented phenomenon. Whenever cats are removed, new cats move in or the surviving cats left behind breed to capacity.
Feral Watch TNR tips the ear of every feline they trap, neuter and return.
“Although we promote, run and support adoption campaigns when it comes to ferals, this is a small percentage of cats we work with.”
Cats have lived outdoors for thousands of years, in fact, keeping cats indoors only became possible in the mid 20th century.
Outdoor cats are part of our natural landscape and provides an additional benefit of rodent control. This unfortunately does not mean all cats found on the street are feral cats.
Some are strays or have been dumped into feral colonies.
“Domesticated cats are mostly shunned by a colony, and have to fight for survival. Dumped kittens cannot survive on their own.”
Feral Watch TNR does not take in cats – feral or domestic, they do not remove any cat because the animal is an inconvenience to someone, they do not medically diagnose sick felines or treat them without the help of a vet.
“Please take any pet that does seem unwell, to the veterinary clinic. Cats especially, hide illness extremely well, but you should know their personality, and any change needs to be investigated. Please don’t hesitate to contact the veterinary clinics for further information needed.”
Feral Watch TNR is making it easy for anyone to get involved in the lives of the colony cats around them.
Supporters can support their programme by a virtual adoption of a feral where you pay for its neutering and monthly food.
For more information on Feral Watch & TNR – Standerton, contact Ms Riana Labuschagne at 082 629 1536.
For more information overall, contact Ms Van Zyl at 0827819435 or Ms Madelize van Zyl who a cat behaviouralist, at 0715196095 via WhatsApp.
