Feral cat control - La Oliva

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

The City Council of La Oliva starts a campaign of control of colonies of cats
The Department of Environment invites citizens and animal groups to collaborate, reporting areas with high density of specimens to prepare the census. Contact: medioambiente@laoliva.es

The City Council of La Oliva has initiated a campaign of control of feral cats, whose first step will be to prepare a census that allows programming subsequent actions.

This program is important for public health reasons, given that some of these animals that live in urban areas may carry parasites or diseases, and for the protection of native fauna that may be threatened by a species of predatory nature.

From the Department of Environment "we invite citizens to contact us, informing us of the areas where there is a greater population of these animals, or of the places where the cats are being fed. Thus we can prepare the census with greater accuracy, and plan with assurances the next steps of the campaign, always ensuring the integrity of the animals, "said the councilor of the area, David Fajardo.

The Department of Environment has made available its email address, medioambiente@laoliva.es, so that neighbors can inform about the location of the colonies, or also by contacting the town hall through social networks.

David Fajardo stressed the importance of collaborating with institutions and animal groups, explaining that this campaign begins "after meeting with the College of Veterinarians of Las Palmas, who will guard the program, the Cabildo de Fuerteventura, which provides funding, and with associations for the protection of animals. "

Capture, sterilize and return

The collaboration of animalist groups is essential, "because they know the situation better than anyone else and because we want to make this campaign ensuring that no animal is damaged."

"We have already informed you that this campaign of control of feline colonies in no case contemplates damaging or sacrificing animals," recalls the councilor. In this sense, the method established by the College of Veterinarians is the CER protocol (capture, sterilize and return), which allows progressively reducing populations of stray cats without harming any individual. "

Veterinarians will also proceed to clean up captured individuals, for public health reasons, and in parallel to this campaign, the City Council plans to develop a vaccination program aimed at cat owners.

Why is this campaign important?

Colony of stray cats can be a public health problem when, due to lack of care or feeding, some of these animals are sick (can transmit toxoplasmosis) or infected by other parasites.

At the same time, the situation of the municipality of La Oliva is particular in that the majority of rural locations limit spaces that have some type of environmental protection, such as natural parks or spaces of the Natura 2000 Network such as ZEPA areas or ZEC zones.

As the cat is a species of hunting nature, feral individuals can easily move from urban areas to surrounding rural areas, affecting populations of native fauna such as birds, reptiles or rodents.

Cats are animals domesticated by humans, and "as a species there is no danger, because it is present throughout the world." However, wild cats "are a serious threat to the native fauna.

Numerous studies of global environmental organizations warn of the damage caused by feral cats, especially when we talk about protected species such as shrew, lisneja or hubara, among many other bird species, such as the canary tarabilla, which is a unique endemism in Fuerteventura ".

That is why "we request neighborhood collaboration to develop this campaign," said David Fajardo.

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

Radio Sintonia:

Municipalities have to manage cat colonies in urban centers.

Gloria Moreno, defender of animal rights, explains the need to capture feral cats in the natural environment to protect species in danger of extinction.

We interview Gloria Moreno, defender of animal rights. Known for her work at the SEPRONA in Lanzarote. We talk about the subject of cats that is part of the group of domestic animals.

“His experience, -explains-, implies his division first in the felines with a home (which must have chips and be kept in the enclosure of the house). Its care and control depends on its owners. Second, the cats of the urban colonies (they are the responsibility of the city council and entail the care of the municipal authorities, they do a service to the community by keeping rodent pests, such as rats in urban centers, at bay). However, their diet in most cases falls on the city

 

years of cat lovers who buy food for them, and even deworm and sterilize them, by abandoning the administration; when these resources should come out of municipal budgets. It would be important to carry out at least two sterilization campaigns a year so that they do not become an inconvenience due to their reproductive capacity. Finally, there are the feral cats in the natural environment that prey on protected fauna and are a serious problem for endangered species such as birds, reptiles, insects ... Therefore, it is necessary that they be captured and delivered to the shelters of animals to see if their reintegration is possible. "

It is a complex issue, cats are domestic animals and their abuse is punishable, says Moreno. A Constitutional ruling of July 15, 2020 implies the validation of the La Rioja Law, which indicates that sterilization will be mandatory in the face of the problem of overpopulation of cats, due to abandonment. So in the Islands the Canarian law should take up this matter.
The lifelong stray cat is the responsibility of the City Council that must feed and take care of it, and not the neighbor who feeds it out of pain and on top of that it may receive an administrative penalty because it is forbidden to feed animals on public roads, for the inconvenience of bad smells or dirt. We must reflect because it is an ethical issue, you can not fine the person who does your job.

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

Radio Sintonia:

Noemi Gutierrez seeks to reduce the population of cats to avoid stray litters in Lajares.

Noemí Gutiérrez explains on the radio the situation of litters of cats in a situation of vulnerability in the town of Lajares, in the municipality of La Oliva.

According to Noemí, she has been working for more than four years to offer better conditions to cats living on the street, however, she is unable to cope with all the needs of the litters, which do not stop increasing. Recently he has launched, with the help of other people who have offered their support, a collection to, at least, finance basic food care, to which veterinary expenses are added. From the radio, Noemí Gutiérrez requests help from the City Council of La Oliva for the cession of a place where cats can settle without invading the neighborhood properties as well as collaboration with the population to be able to continue taking care of the stray animals.

link to original article and recorded interview