Andrew, if you spay or neuter all the cats, there will be no future feral cats. That's how it works.

Obviously, that's not possible--nobody can catch them all--and there also will inevitably be future additions to the pack from idiots who discard domestic kittens. But the more of them you can alter, the fewer of them that will reproduce.

All of the major national animal-protection organizations, such as Best Friends (one of the very best of them) recommend exactly what is being suggested here: catch-and-spay. It's by no means a new idea, just a good one.

We have a million-dollar building that we can't use, major problems with the way the taxpayers' money is shifted around and we're losing nearly half the water we produce, and the mayor is worried about feral cats, village boundary signage. and how the website looks.

What's wrong with this picture?

The Mayor and the rest of the Board have the job of worrying about ALL the problems that the Village faces, big and small. If this is an issue, and from what I am told it is an issue in some neighborhoods, then a no cost solution sounds like a grest place to start.

OMG finally something I can agree with. I support this effort by the Mayor and the animal sanctuary. It is very hard to adopt out cats, so finding them homes is a fruitless task. But Stephen is correct, if we get as many of them fixed as possible it will greatly minimize their numbers. While you cannot fix them all, remember they catch mice and other rodents. Any population that stays within the means of its survival is not an issue. If we can keep the numbers down then why WORRY about the fact that they will be put back - At least they will be able to have all the life that they possibly can, while still minimizing how many extra lives they create.

But I heard that this program will cost $60 per cat - is that cost going to be absorbed by the animal sanctuary?

I live in the area where stray cats have been a problem for years. A few years back something was done like this by others.

My husband and I just discovered a few weeks ago one of the mother cats jumped over our fence into our enclosed back patio and had her 1 kitten (this is her 4th litter in a short period of time)

It is nice to hear we will have someone to work with now. I was going to just attempt to capture her after she was done nursing and spay her and attempt the kitten too.

There is a problem with people feeding them but lets start with stopping the family tree from growing its mangled branches. These cats are having 4th and 5th litters with their own offspring.

It becomes a problem.

While feeding feral cats is never a good idea, it is an even worse idea to institute an ordinance against feeding them. (Most) people hate seeing hungry animals. Study after study show that spay/neuter/release programs work. If the village can obtain this service at no charge, then why not take advantage of it?

Have to agree that just because there are bigger issues, it doesn't mean smaller ones can't be dealt with too.

House cats can actually be devastating to local environments. They will kill just about anything they can get their paws on, often just for the thrill of it. Cats can decimate populations of songbirds and small rodents, and have even been known to kill young rabbits and foxes.

If you have a cat that you let out of the house (especially at night) it should have a bell on it.

Nice to hear that the town has already taken steps to deal with feral cats (or at least their continued breeding)and that the Village is looking to be be proactive about it as well.

Mr. Wilkinson is absolutely correct. While you cannot catch them all, catching some, getting them spayed and neutered, and possibly finding them a home thru a shelter is a better idea than just letting them freely reproduce. Best Friends is a wonderful organization is is Pets Alive in Middletown.

Maybe the cats can move into the DPW bldg!

John/Dave - what would you LIKE to be done about the DPW problem? Maybe if we ask for that to be something the Board concentrates on, they will address it ... That issue seems to have died out on its own, yet it keeps resurfacing in every other random article ... We cannot expect clear answers from a Board that is not being asked direct questions - Everyone was so ready to go back to nice that they let the major issues drop ... Could this be (I hope) indication that there are still many people out there that want REAL answers?

Melissa Vellone writes:

"Maybe if we ask for that to be something the Board concentrates on, they will address it ... That issue seems to have died out on its own, yet it keeps resurfacing in every other random article ... We cannot expect clear answers from a Board that is not being asked direct questions "

Miss Vellone may have forgotten her own experience with the board, which is that the board, especially the mayor, refuses to answer questions, direct or implied, and there is no point to putting questions to them, because they will be ignored.

Yes, yes - that is why I asked what you would LIKE to happen ... Just humor me, in an ideal world what answers would you LIKE to get ... Ok, you have convinced me, I will draw up my own list of questions on the topic ... If anyone out there has questions regarding the DPW facility could you please email me at [email protected]. I would like to draw up a list of questions that the residents have regarding the DPW facility and need input from YOU, the residents. Indicate whether you would like your question to remain anonymous ... This way we can take the tangent away from this post

A large part of the problem is that there isn't "a Board." There's the Little Board--Gosda and Argenio--and there's the Big Board--Coyne, Edsall and Kane. Never the twain shall meet. What they basically concentrate on is contending with each other. The concepts of compromise and unity are utterly foreign to both.

The few people who bothered to vote got what they deserve.

You're definitely wrong, Stephan.
It's the people who didn't vote that got what they deserve.

Please go to the meetings or watch the videos. Most votes are 5-0. You are focusing on the points that that we disagree on. If you insist on 5 people walking in lock step like drones forget it. No five member board agrees on everything. We changed the residency law. We interviewed and completely agree on a course of action for the building inspector. We voted 5 to 0 for the hike and bike. On the DPW I said we have to get the process moving. If we get engineering in August and put it to bid in September then the bid comes back in October. This leaves us November and December to fix the building. No one disagreed. We are people with enough backbone to run for public office. We all have strong views on the problems we face. I don?t agree with my wife on everything, do you?

Spay Neuter Release SNR is the most Humane and Efficient way to deal with the issue. We would not have a problem if some people were not so cavalier about pet ownership. And to even think of stopping the feeding of these animals is just cruel.

"You're definitely wrong, Stephan. It's the people who didn't vote that got what they deserve."

You have a good point, Dave, though what I was thinking was that those few did elect the board they're stuck with.

"Most votes are 5-0. You are focusing on the points that that we disagree on."

And those, usually, are the important ones.