THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, January 4, 1997 TAG: 9701040004
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: 27 lines
Diane Tennant's article on feral cats brought back memories of three years ago when, as a volunteer, I was asked by employees of WVEC, the Jonathan Corp. and the Army Corps of Engineers to help remove the cats from Front Street.
Out of the dozens of cats that I humanely trapped there, at a time when the ``Meower Power League'' had been in operation for four years, only a negligible number had been neutered. Judging by the broken limbs, injured eyes and sickness I saw, very little veterinary care was provided.
Their program is a lot of wishful thinking. It is quite impossible to take proper care of large numbers of cats that live without shelter in an environment of heavy traffic and industrial machinery.
Cats are not wildlife. They need to be spayed, neutered and vaccinated against diseases, and they belong in a home or humane shelter, not in the street.
Moreover, a Norfolk city ordinance requires all cats over 4 months of age to be licensed and vaccinated against rabies. I wonder if the ``Meower Power League'' is in compliance with it.
PAOLA LYON
Norfolk, Dec. 23, 1996