Not all the cats brought to the B.C. SPCA in Kamloops are lost

KAMLOOPS – There's a saying — if you feed a cat once it will come back for more — but what do you do if you've never fed any felines and you have one that's started to use your flowerbeds as an outdoor litter box?

There are a few things that can be done, and with the weather getting warmer, Kamloops B.C. SPCA branch manager Charleen Holloway wants pet owners who let their cats roam the great outdoors to know some of the risks their cats might run into while they're outside and make sure their pets aren’t causing a disturbance to neighbours.

“If you’re going to (let cats out) there could potentially be conflict and it could also jeopardize the health of your cat,” she says.

Around this time of the year, Holloway says they to see an increase in the number of stray cats brought into shelter. Some of these cases are because the cat is lost, but sometimes outdoor cats who do have a home might wander onto someone's property one too many times where they are not welcomed.

"They could bring it in and say 'oh I found this cat' and they could know it's their neighbour's cat three doors down the road, we don't know unless they disclose that information,'' she says.

Holloway says it's not uncommon for people to get frustrated with an animal that keeps coming to their property and take matters into their own hands and relocate the animal themselves.

However, this is not a solution the shelter recommends.

“(People) are not supposed to relocate animals from an area and dump them somewhere else, that’s not appropriate to be doing, does it happen? Sure it does,” she says.

Holloway says people might resort to this option as opposed to bringing the animal to a shelter to avoid disclosing where the animal was found and potentially having the cat return to the same area and continue the same behaviour.

“What happens is people get frustrated and they think by relocating the animal somewhere else it will deter the problem but what really happens is by removing them from their homes or habitat, they are creating more problems elsewhere,” Holloway says.

If a person is aware of who the owner of an outdoor cat is that might be causing a disturbance, Holloway encourages them to talk to the owner.

“The biggest thing as a responsible pet owner is we need to make sure we are doing everything we can to make sure our animals are safe, and everything comes down to communication,” Holloway says. “The best thing to do is communicate; go over and explain to them the situation."

Holloway says other ways pet owners can let their cats enjoy the outdoors is by leash training them or setting up outdoor kennels, that way cats are protected but can still be outside.

If a person does witness somebody dumping an animal, Holloway says they can call the B.C. SPCA cruelty hotline.

"The more information people can gather on things like that, cruelty, neglect, any information will help in these situations," she says.

Holloway asks pet owners to keep their cats up to date with microchips and tattoos, in the case an animal is picked up another person and brought to a shelter, they are able to reunite them with their owner.

"If animals do roam, we are able to trace that information and reunite them," she says. "Vet clinics have access to those things as well if your animal does get out, having identification is the way to get reunited."

For more information about how to report animal cruelty to the B.C. SPCA go here.

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