What Do I Do?

What do you do with a cat that nobody wants?  You are currently stretched in your capacity to care for him.  Boris has weak kidneys, has tested positive for FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency Virus) and does not get along with the other cats in the community.  This is my plight and my frustration over our consumer driven self-centered society.

I already have 10 cats.  My budget to care for these cats has increased to a point where I have to sacrifice on other items that would be nice to have.  I am unable to send Boris to an animal sanctuary.  The particular animal sanctuary I have in mind is barely coping with the animals under its care due to the recent passing of its founder.  I am now faced with the stark reality that Boris will have to go to an animal shelter.  It would be like putting him on death row.  If I tell the animal shelter administrators that Boris has FIV, he will be put down within the week.  Is that the right option?

As far as I can see, the various animal shelters, sanctuaries and rescue groups are overwhelmed and short of funds.  There are too many feral cats and dogs in the Klang Valley.  Every time we rescue a cat or dog, another 2 or 3 pop up to replace the one that was rescued.  This is a society that uses “pets” the same way one would use a resource.  When the resource has outlived its usefulness, i.e. cuteness, the resource is ejected into the streets.  This is what I believe happened to Boris.

Through the years of rescuing and losing countless cats and dogs, I have learned that most adult feral cats have a healthy fear of human beings.  These cats will eat the food that you offer to them only when you are a safe distance away.  Earning the trust of a feral cat, in order to capture it, takes a very long time.  Sometimes the bond of trust never happens.  I have lost several adult cats that refuse to be rescued.

However, an adult feral cat that does not fear humans is an abandoned cat.  It breaks my heart to see Boris each morning waiting for me to get his morning meal.  His eyes plead for me to take him in.  I am unable to do so.  I do not know of anyone that is able to take in another cat.  I comfort myself with the knowledge that Boris will be better off in an animal shelter, dead or alive.  If he were left to his own devices, he might end up in a ditch, dying slowly and painfully.  This is not an end that I would wish on any cat or dog.

I will have to find a permanent solution for Boris by this weekend.