We have a problem in society. We have many, but let's focus on one thing. Spaying and neutering of pets. We are a throw away society. We are self absorbed. Self centered. Just all about "me, me, me". Until we realize that it is not all about political sides, beliefs, and about our own wants; we will never hope to resolve anything or any societal problem.
We deal with community cats. I have said it before until a community takes care of its community cats it has no chance of resolving or working out other issues. Community Cats are a direct result of our community problems. There is a direct correlation with the blight of community cats and poverty, crime, and housing blight. Think I am wrong? Maybe, but you cannot deny that the community cat problem does coincide with problems in areas. Abandoned homes, people unable to afford to live in their homes and/or apartments. The unwillingness to care about people directly reflects to the unwillingness to take care of our community cats.
You can hate cats. You can not want them around your home. You can complain about the smell of urine, feces, and the yowling from fighting and mating. It will not resolve the overall problem. I have had people ask me to "remove" the cats. I often answer to where? I normally get a dumbfounded look. I believe that once things are explained to people they begin to understand the problem. I have had people tell me to euthanize them. That solves the problem. I often respond that it has been tried. It's a quick fix that resolves it for maybe a year or two. The amount of money spent on euthanization could be spent on a spay & neuter program in the area along with a TNR program. It is sustainable. Education is key. People don't understand and are unwilling to think about spaying and neutering cats and dogs due to cost, time, transportation. If these problems are resolved we have the first step to stabilization.
Again, there are plenty of quick fixes. They just don't last. They don't resolve the real problem. The self centered, uneducated self that we all see around us. Not just with cats. Everything. I am not your enemy if I am on a different political side. I am not here to take your rights. Turn the TV off and talk with your neighbor. We are in this together. Never have we been so divided. I blame all sides of the political spectrum. No one side is better than the other. It is a direct effect of how we are so self centered.
Let's try something we can agree on. Spay & Neuter your pets. Work with a TNR group to stabilize the cats you see. You don't have to like cats. It's ok. You do have to look at it as a direct effect of society degrading to something of hate, anger, and self centered. By helping community cats you get to know your neighbors. You get to understand that even if they are from a different political party they struggle like you. Find some common ground. Agree to disagree with certain issues, but agree that the cats are out there because we put them there. Ok your neighbor feeds and you believe they are the reason for the problem. No they just saw a cat starving and decided to treat them like they matter instead of letting them starve and dig through the garbage with the raccoons. It's compassion. Help them to work with a TNR group and stabilize their colony. Cats do serve a purpose in poor run down communities. They are key to rodent control. I'm not saying you have to have cats outdoors, but they do provide a service in our blighted, run down communities.
Let's focus on what we can do together. TNR works. Caring about the cats will follow with caring for the community and for people. Focus on what you can do to help the community. Don't focus on the negative. When you do, you paint yourself in a corner of its not my problem. I counter with if it's not your problem than who? Until we realize that community cats will survive because they work together to survive. We could learn something from them. They struggle and live by being a unit and working together. They will survive despite what we do to them. It won't be pretty, but they will not be deterred. We could use a bit of their determination. Courage. The ability to survive no matter what humans do to them. Imagine if we had that determination. We used to have that strength. It's time we find it again. It starts with the community cat...and a look at ourselves as the problem.
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