Trapping cats is always bittersweet. For one, you’re helping a customer get rid of cats that have become a nuisance for them and their property. On the other hand, whoever is feeding them is going to be furious. The ones feeding them have gone as far as following me in their vehicle, sabotaging traps, freeing trapped animals, death threats, etc… I had a person tell me that the cat I trapped was hers. Knew it wasn’t and could tell by the cats behavior that it was feral, but I was curious to see how it would play out.

I told her to prove that the animal was hers. She reached down to get it’s attention and the cat scratched her pretty bad through the trap. I didn’t think that that was possible as the animal was in the trap, but wild animals are wild animals. I apologized to the lady and my customer demanded that I didn’t. She actually kept rubbing in the fact that the cats were no one’s pets. And they weren’t. The problem with feral cats is 4 can turn into 14 pretty quick if you don’t do something about it early.

In Los Angeles, we’re required to get a cat trapping permit from the city before we can start. Other cities have their own policies. Either way, we make sure to abide by the trapping laws because not doing so can result in huge fines and having your license revoked. Cats were on my mind today because I received my permit and set traps at a senior citizens home yesterday and got chewed alive by fleas. I can only imagine how the patients must be dealing with it. I know some of them love the cats, feed them and have some sort of companionship with them. But the flea issue is so crazy!

To think that someone would deal with these crazy fleas to have a feline friend that you see twice a day is very sweet. I know they want the fleas gone, but that means getting rid of the cats too. Sometimes, you can’t have it both ways. Bittersweet. On the next one…