Animal welfare organizations yesterday held a press conference calling on Taipei residents to help capture stray cats so they can be neutered, a process approved by the Taipei Municipal Institute for Animal Health (TMIAH).
The Taipei Stray Cat Protection Association (Taipei SCPA) and The Animal Protection Association of the ROC (APA) said they would lend special cages to the public that can be used to trap any stray cats in their neighborhood. The associations would then take the felines away to be neutered before returning the animals in a procedure known as Trap, Neuter and Release.
TIME-CONSUMING
The two organizations are calling on the public to help in their efforts because trapping cats can be a time-consuming activity and neither the TMIAH nor animal welfare societies have the manpower to trap as many cats as they would like.
Taipei's stray dog problem usually receives more attention from the public because dogs are more visible, said Yen I-feng (嚴一峰), director of the TMIAH. Cats, meanwhile, are less visible because they tend to be nocturnal.
"However, they still cause nuisance to many residents by making noise and going through trash," Yen said.
LIMITED RESOURCES
Yen said that there could be "hundreds of thousands" of stray cats in Taipei. The real number is hard to estimate.
"Unfortunately, the resources the government can devote to this cause are limited," Yen said. "Therefore, we hope that non-governmental organizations and the public can pitch in and improve the situation."
The Taipei SCPA neutered almost 500 cats last year. With the help of the public, they hope to double that number this year, said the association's secretary-general Huang Ching-yi (黃靜宜).
INEXPENSIVE
"It is not expensive to neuter cats and we have found vets who will help us do it at a discount," Huang said. "Manpower is what is lacking. So we are looking to train and recruit members of the public to help us catch cats for neutering."
Cats already neutered can be identified by a notch cut in their ear.
Those wishing to participate in the program can call the APA at 02-2704-0809.
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