Volunteer group reports large feral-cat colony; mobile spay-neuter clinic scheduled after trapping operation

A volunteer animal-welfare group described a multi-hour trapping operation on East Ninth Street and said a mobile spay-and-neuter clinic is scheduled July 2 after the city meeting Wednesday.

A representative for Forgotten Cats read a field report from volunteer Tracy and told the council that volunteers trapped multiple adults and litters during one field operation at an East Ninth Street colony. The group reported that volunteers trapped “5 kittens in 1 trap and 4 in another,” plus adults and additional kittens; in total they reported 12 adults (11 female, 1 male) and 24 kittens (14 female, 10 male) from that operation and estimated a colony count in the 47–50 range when including untrapped animals and deceased animals encountered in the area.

The group said many cats showed medical needs: several kittens had eye infections or ruptured eyes, and many animals had fleas and worms. Volunteers attempted to reunite mothers with kittens; some kittens required bottle-feeding. The representative said that Providence Animal Center and Pastor Frank had helped arrange use of a church parking lot for a mobile spay-neuter clinic on July 2; the group reported the clinic’s 30 available spots were filled within 24 hours.

Speakers urged residents to spay and neuter pets and thanked volunteers and partners for the rapid response. The representative noted Forgotten Cats focuses primarily on cats and has limited capacity for dogs.

Ending: The group asked the council to publicize the clinic and help residents access low-cost spay/neuter services; volunteers said they would continue trapping and fostering animals in need until the clinic date.