Dear Hideyo: You really have yourself a can of worms there, don't you? I have a friend here in San Jose who is faced with a similar problem of feral cats proliferating around the company she works for...fortunately a pack of marauding dogs is not also part of the problem.
Because of your fear of losing your job, which is very real, you have to be very careful. If you know of anyone in your area with an animal welfare group who could speak to the management on behalf of the cats so you don't have to be directly involved, it might help. They need to be enlightened about feral cats and how to deal with them humanely. I will redouble my efforts to get a copy of the info from the SF Humane Society...they may even have a web site. They have info to support the fact that just trapping and removing the existing cats is not going to solve the problem in the long run...as soon as those cats are removed, others will move into the territory and the best solution is for an aggressive TNR program to spay/neuter the cats so they won't continue to reproduce and the population will then stabilize and gradually reduce though attrition. Cats will control any rodent populations in the area as well. Perhaps if they will listen and learn and understand there is a reasonable solution, they will be less antagonistic. One can only hope. But, if the company won't listen to such an approach, then perhaps this person can at least get permission to com in to trap and remove the cats, humanely. Is there some other, safer, area these cats could be released after they are S/N?? The dogs are far more of a problem than the cats. And this needs to be pointed out to the company's management, as well. Marauding dogs are much more of a danger to humans (to say nothing of the poor cats) and unless there is a dog rescue group willing to get involved, you will probably have to contact Animal Control. It will be hard for you to realistically trap the cats with dogs running around loose to complicate things. I do hope you can enlist the support and assistance of others in your area to address the situation. See if you can find the e-addresses for other rescue groups (sometimes Animal Control will have a referral list) in your area and contact them and perhaps you will find others there with sympathetic hearts and a sense of responsibility who will help, so you don't have to jeopardize your livlihood to help these unfortunate cats. By any chance are there any celebrities or people in the news media in your area who are animal lovers and might lend their clout to your cause?? In S. Calif. there is an animal welfare group called Actors and Others for Animals...I don't know if they might be able to help you in any way or not. I had their phone no. at one time...will see if I can find it. You might be able to get it (or numbers of other rescue groups in New Mexico) by doing a coputer search. Bless you for caring so much, Hideyo. I wish I were close enough to be of some real help. Feral cats may never have the benefit of a loving home and human copanionship and protection, but their lives deserve consideration and they should not be treated like unwanted trash. They didn't get to be where they are on their own...ultimately it was irresponsible humans who created their plight. I do hope you will be able to find others who are able to help you resolve this unfortunate situation without losing your job. Sally in San Jose
