Let’s Chat: One man’s trash is another man’s treasure

By Linda Tooth on November 8, 2023.

It has been a bit of a trying week for me. I’ve spent months advocating for a Trap, Neuter and Release program in Medicine Hat.

After a few months, we were successful in having the City of Medicine Hat allow an existing bylaw to be amended so TNR could come to the Hat. We then had to move an existing colony of feral/community cats from a location they had called home for years due to the sale of land.

Thankfully a couple donated their camper trailer to this colony so they would have a warm place to be this winter. I then spoke with someone who is also feeding cats at their business in this same area.

They feel these cats were dumped and now have taken on the responsibility of feeding them and giving them shelter from what we know is coming in the form of cool temperatures.

Things in Medicine Hat are progressing for a better life for these animals due to the kindness of citizens living here.

The problem we are now facing is the cruelty of an individual(s) in Redcliff. I received a call Wednesday night from a family member who discovered two kittens in a plastic bag in a dumpster.

Thankfully they had decided to take their garbage out earlier and were able to rescue these kittens and bring them indoors. Had they been later the result would have been horrific for these kittens who were only born because of negligence on the part of owners who failed to have their cat spayed or neutered.

I was ready to put my head into the toilet and vomit at the anger I was facing over the cruelty and lack of compassion someone felt over these living and breathing kittens.

As a resident of Redcliff, I know of the challenges people face with the feral/community cats living within our town. I promised that once we got things rolling in Medicine Hat for the community/feral cats, I was going to approach the town council and the residents on the need for a TNR program to exist within the town.

I’m now ready to take on that task. We must come up with a better solution than treating these animals like garbage. Spaying or neutering is the responsible thing to do as a pet owner. Also, TNR is the responsible thing to do as a community.

Town council you will be hearing from me.

Linda Tooth is a communications instructor at Medicine Hat College

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