Let’s Chat: Let us be feline responsible

By Linda Tooth on April 10, 2024.

Cats have always been part of my life. Growing up in Crescent Heights, our neighbour had a cat that had kittens. One of them came to live with us and we had Benny for an amazing 18 years. I remember driving to the vet with my mom to have Benny fixed when they announced on the radio that Elvis Presley had died.

That was August 1977. She was an amazing indoor/outdoor cat who loved Dilly Bars from Dairy Queen.

When I purchased my home in 2007, I adopted a cat. I wanted the company and began scrolling on the Medicine Hat SPCA website when I saw an orange/white tabby named Dublin. I was immediately drawn to him, as I had visited Dublin, Ireland, and felt he was the one.

It was Thanksgiving 2007. He was a one-year-old neutered male who I was fortunate to have for an amazing 17 years. He was an indoor cat that would visit the backyard on a leash but was more comfortable living indoors. My heart was broken the day I lost him to illness.

I remember the day I found a young cat living in my backyard, it was October and the weather was starting to cool down. Maybe they lived close by and had decided to explore the various yards in our neighbourhood looking to see who had the best living conditions.

My niece and I decided to leave some food out for them in case they came back as we would see them for a few days and then they were gone. I decided to leave a bed outside as it was getting colder, and in good faith, I could not leave them with nothing.

When it became clear this cat was not leaving our yard, I took her to the vet and had her checked over. The vet said she was in good health and had not been fixed. It was decided that if she would live with us, she had to be spayed. It was the responsible thing to do. Lily has been living with us for the past eight years and I cannot imagine a day without her.

As a former Medicine Hat SPCA board member, I often visited the shelter and spent time with the cats. It was during this time I met Jackson. He came into the shelter battered and abused and I could not leave him to a life of wondering if every person was horrible. He was neutered when I brought him home and again, he is an indoor cat who goes out into the backyard on a leash for a bit of fresh air.

On Friday, April 5, I got a message from the Community Cat Caregivers, which I am proud to be part of, to tell us that a pregnant mom who had given birth to four kittens a few days ago had died. Her kittens were also dead.

Our hearts are broken. We do try our best to look after these cats. They do not ask to be put into the situation of being homeless.

A lot of times they are dumped and when they are not fixed a female can have multiple births in a year, leading to 100 kittens in her lifetime.

Help me help them. Have your cat spayed or neutered. It is the responsible thing to do.

Linda Tooth is a communications instructor at Medicine Hat College

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