Guilford County Commissioner James Upchurch recently put a new concern on the county’s radar – an alarming number of cats running free in the county.
“We have a feral cat problem,” he stated at a meeting of the Board of Commissioners in July.
Upchurch said the major cause was the return of people to work after two years of COVID-19.
“It started when a lot of people adopted animals during the pandemic when they were home – and now they have to let them go, unfortunately,” Upchurch said.
Pandemics are bad for humans but great for pets: In April of 2020, during the height of concern at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, former Guilford County Manager Marty Lawing informed the Board of Commissioners that there were only six animals left at the county’s animal shelter – three cats and three dogs.
At some times in the past, the county’s shelter has housed over 500 animals.
Upchurch said that, with people returning to work, many were apparently just letting their cats loose.
He said he had met with a local community animal group about the feral cat problem and there were a very concerning number of cats running loose around the county.
“The animal shelter can only take in so many,” Upchurch noted.
He said he had reached out to Guilford County Animal Services Director Jorge Ortega to express his concern and see what could be done.
Upchurch said that Animal Services and community groups were meeting to find ways to address the problem.
Are we sure that all of them “Identify” as cats?
I’ve seen one or two wombats.
People do a lot of sorry things. Abandoning your pet to the elements is one of them.
Sadly, too many people are irresponsible and think pets are “disposable.”
The shelter has been adopting out intact animals, including pit bulls, with only a voucher for the surgery. The Humane Society of the Piedmont whose mission is spay/neuter has had long periods during the pandemics, including the present, of suspending operations.
There is a nationwide shortage of veterinarians, especially for intensive spay/neuter services.
Recently adopted animals are being given up by owners who don’t know any better because of behavioral issues associated with not being fixed. And community cat trap-neuter-return efforts largely dependent on the Humane Society have been suspended.
So, yes, a lot of fertile dogs and cats roaming the county, and it doesn’t take long to undo the work of years of concerted efforts to bring down the population. It is heartbreaking for folks who have worked hard to stem the tide of animals streaming into the shelter to be killed at taxpayers expense
Unfortunately, there are too many people who believe pets are “disposable.” When people act irreponsibily, animals often pay the price. It’s way past time to stop blaming the Pandemic for poor behavior.
I love cats! I’m willing to swap recipes with anyone interested….