Olivia Vest
Managing Editor
A constantly growing population of cats can be bad for any neighborhood, park or wildlife area. Signs can be found in the strangest of places, warning against feedings strays. In fact, citations and fines have been known to be issued in certain cases of stray feedings.
One Kansas group, Friends of Felines, is helping stop the issue of feline overpopulation each year. By trapping cat colonies and having them spayed and neutered before returning them back to their homes and habitations, the group provides help to community members who want to take care of their strays—but do not want continued reproduction in such mass amounts.
Butler alumni Maryann White is a trapper for Friends of Felines. As an avid animal lover (and caretaker of 10 of her own animals), White’s involvement in the organization is one she feels very strongly about.
White is not exactly sure when her work for the organization technically began, although her first involvement took place around 2007.
“I didn’t really intend to [get involved], but I did it,” White said.
After walking her dog in Watson Park and noticing a few stray cats, she began to wonder when or if they would reproduce. When she noticed kittens for the first time, she became concerned about the impending population growth.
“I have friends at work who are animal lovers, so I started asking around about what I could do about it,” White said. “A gal here told me about Friends of Felines, and we got permission from the park to trap the cats and get them fixed.”
After her first trapping at Watson Park, White gradually began trapping more and more for the organization. Although she has lost track of the number of cats she has trapped, she knows that Friends of Felines traps and returns around 500 cats per year. This year, their numbers have already increased to 600 cats that have been trapped, spayed/neutered, and returned to their homes.
The trapping process is unique, involving trapping equipment and the bountiful patience of the trappers involved. This procedure is White’s favorite part about working with the organization.
“It is really fun,” White said. “I know that sounds crazy, but it’s kind of exciting because you know you’re helping them. You know what you’re doing is going to help them, even though they don’t. It’s very challenging to be able to kind of outsmart them and be able to trap them.”
The cats’ caretakers pay around $45 per cat to be fixed at the Humane Society. The cats and their colonies are then returned to their neighborhoods with the caretakers’ guarantee that the felines will continue to be supported. Friends of Felines will not leave cats at the Humane Society.
“We will not deliver a cat to be killed,” White said.
With the help of her husband, White saved a colony of 14 cats at Sonic on West Street in Wichita. Because the cats’ caretaker fed the cats at midnight, White had to begin trapping late at night. This type of circumstance can be typical of trapping.
If a colony of cats needs to be spayed/neutered to control its population, Friends of Felines can be reached at tnr4cats@fofks.org. Additionally, it is important to note that male cats that have not been fixed are very susceptible to testicular cancer.
