HPH -Free Spay & Neuter for Feral Cats

[JWFITZ]

Agreed.

But I don't see why being a non-profit agency gives you the right to dump animals, especially animals that cause economic and ecological harm.

[PaulW]

Spaying an animal and returning it to where you found it is not dumping.
It's the best current solution to an undeniable problem.

Even the Humane Society, which knows a lot more about these matters than most, supports it:
http://www.hsus.org/pets/issues_affectin...tions.html

If I had my way I'd remove all cats from Hawaii, but that's easier said than done.

If anyone can think of a better solution, let's hear it!

[JWFITZ]

Of course it's dumping. Defining a thing in a favorable manner to one's opinions doesn't change the reality of a fact.

I don't have cats out here except after the Human Society dumps them. I've seen the truck out here twice over the last couple of months. I'm going to have to start keeping the camera in the truck to document this nonsense. They dump them, then it is up to me to deal them and I don't appreciate it a bit. Perhaps the thing I need to do is to take up the issue in small claims court and return the nuisance. Last time they dumped cats I had four show up all at once, fighting under the house, and they killed my two of my 3 remaining birds and mangled the 3rd, which has recovered at this point.

Here's the solution. Trap cats like they do now, and put them down. If you have pet cats, spay, collar and bell them. They are an invasive species. This would be the responsible thing to do. At the very least those who spay and dump should also tag the cats so when they're captured again someone has due liability.

[Bob Orts]

Feral cats that are trapped, spay/neuter, and released under a recognized program are not considered being dumped or abandon under Hawaii law. Technically, they are supposed to be released in the same place as trapped. The rationale is if caught in a location spayed/neutered and return to that location it is more humane than letting them run free in that same location with full ability to reproduce.

[PaulW]

The Humane Society does not dump cats. It supports trap-neuter-release programs.
As does the ASPCA: "The ASPCA endorses Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) as the only proven humane and effective method to manage feral cat colonies"

I don't think the Humane Society actually does the trapping-and-releasing themselves, but by all means get some pictures of their truck and licence number.

If you'd do some reading on this you'd find that trapping and killing actually adds to the problem and in the long term increases the number of cats. Increasing the percentage of spayed and neutered cats also cuts down on the fighting and noise.

If the policy was to capture and kill the animals then the foundations doing this would get a lot fewer volunteers and contributions, so there would be less animals trapped.

As for the term "dumping", how can you dump something that's already there?

By the way, chickens are an invasive species too.

[Guest]

Going through the gyrations of catching a cat then taken it to a vet to get surgery, then taking it back and letting it go, makes as much since as finding and digging up land mines, taking them in the Bomb disposal unit, taking the fuse out and then taking it back and reburying it.

Why don't they just kill the fn things!

Or as I say blow them in place.

Think of all the environment damage you are doing by driving them around.

[JWFITZ]

No one seems to be paying attention to the fact that there aren't cats in my area, unless they're dumped here. I'm not impressed by the statements that dumping animals isn't dumping animals if the law says so. That's like saying marrying a 9 year old isn't pedophilia, because the law allowed it. Neither am I impressed by the the statements by the Humane Society which obviously has an agenda that may well condition and color their logic. How it works elsewhere on the island, I don't know, but twice I've seen the truck out here, with a load of cats and furtive looks. I'll take pictures next time.

[PaulW]

The Humane Society kills thousands of abandoned animals every year, they're not the pro-animal club you may imagine.

That truck may belong to some misguided souls who think capture and relocate is the solution, but they are mistaken. Just like the catch and kill proponents.

The comparison with land mines is a false analogy. They don't breed and their presence doesn't discourage other land mines from moving in.

Still looking for a better solution....

[JWFITZ]

So, you really expect when the park catches cats in Nene habitat they have the policy of catching, neutering, and releasing the cats in the same place. Really? with a straight face?

[Rob Tucker]

"No one seems to be paying attention to the fact that there aren't cats in my area, unless they're dumped here."

I really don't think the H.S. is actually going to burn gas and payroll to take a neutered tom cat out to the boonies. The Humane Society truck has been in my neighborhood picking up feral tom cats that were humanely trapped (by me). They then take then to their facility where they are euthanized. They charge me $5 for the pick up service.