I volunteer for a spay/neuter society in Victoria which for thirty years has provided low-cost or free spay and neuter to owners of animals who require assistance to be responsible pet owners.

For thirty years veterinarians have donated their services by giving our society a reduced rate which we appreciate very, very much. This reduced rate allows us to help more animals within our limited budget.

Our society often helps with feral cats as these are the most vulnerable of the cats. Most of these cats require ear cleaning for mites, defleaing, abcess cleanup in many cases and of course deworming.

These feral cats also often are past the point of taming and becoming house pets for the majority of pet owners, but they can live out their lives reasonably happily if provided with food, water and shelter. The majority of our clientele are happy to provide that food, water and shelter but just do not want a huge, growing population of cats in their back yards.

Feral cats however are also not easily brought in to a clinic on a specific date as trapping them is not always easy and keeping them for extended periods in the trap is very stressful for the animal involved.

The BC SPCA should be helping with the feral cat population on a continuous basis in my opinion rather than in a one time or sporatic clinic basis if the BC SPCA truly is interested in helping reduce suffering and over-population.