LETTER: Clarification about USU’s feral cat program

To the editor:

    In response to the article by Adam Ward titled “Aggie Cat Society helps campus’ feral cats,” I would like to congratulate the author on an article well-conceived and well-written with excellent grasp and transmission of the facts.
    There are a few items I’d like to add by way of friendly amendments. First, the name of our organization is Aggie Cat Services (not Society). We are an authorized USU organization and a 501(c)3 nonprofit. We work with “feral” – that is, homeless – cats on USU property only. We have been successful in reducing the campus cat population from hundreds to dozens. However, we also cooperate with Logan City government and animal control to encourage the use of the humane and effective “Trap-Neuter-Return” method of reducing homeless cat populations as well.
    It is correct that you can see our cats outside the USU Junction around 5 p.m. Please
note, however, that these cats shun human contact and are only there to eat, not to be
petted. It is prudent to keep at least 40 feet away from them, both for your sake and for
theirs. An attempt to touch them could cause you pain. More likely, however, your approach will scare them away and they will miss a much-needed meal. Save a bird; let kitty eat kibble.
    Please be respectful of these cats’ lifestyles. They are “living wild” either because they were abandoned or abused, or are the offspring of the latter group. They live near human habitats because their genetic programming tells them they are “domestic” and should hang around humans. They’ve given up, however, on living as “pets.”  
    A word of thanks for our featured speaker last Tuesday: Dr. Kerry Rood, of the ADVS
department (veterinary science), was a charming and informative speaker on the subject of the differences between domestic and wild cat species, and their caregivers.
    Thank you, Dr. Rood!
 
ILona Jappinen