LOWER MACUNGIE TWP., Pa. — A crowd urged township commissioners to help get control of feral cat colonies on private land.
More than 30 people showed up at Thursday's meeting; many expressed concerns about the handling of stray cats.
- Some say they have set up shelters and fed the feral cats
- Property owners have asked the township for help in getting rid of the colonies
- The commissioners' president said there are no plans to establish a cat sanctuary, as some speakers suggested
They say they are advocating for the protection of the animals in the wake of recent township code enforcement efforts and actions by landowners in places like the Dunkin' Donuts and Walmart in Trexlertown.
Alburtis resident Donna Wentz marshaled support for the cat colonies on Facebook. She said she and others have placed shelters at various locations behind businesses such as Walmart and worked to find homes for some of the cats after rehabilitation.
Wentz said a group has taken steps to feed these cats, which they say are largely abandoned domesticated cats.
Code enforcement has removed the shelters they put in place, according to Wentz and others at the meeting.
"We're hoping that we can work together, save these cats," Wentz said. "We don't want you going in there and having a private trapper come in and extinguish the cats."
Janice Smith addressed commissioners and advocated for better rules surrounding microchipping cats and ensuring that owners who abandon their animals are responsible for their care. She and others have suggested the township use some public land to create a nonprofit cat sanctuary.
"If we use the resources — in the sense of a few teenagers — give them something to do, responsible for teaching them how to take care of pets, we can break a cycle," Smith said.
Smith said she worries that feral cats may be euthanized. Recent feeding and sheltering of the cats were paid for by a concerned person, she said.
Pastor Larry Vandever of Nazareth also spoke on behalf of his organization, The Coalition for Feral Cats of Lehigh Valley. He described how feral cat colonies can become hidden and how people are caring for colonies in other areas of the Lehigh Valley.
"We're hoping that we can work together, save these cats. We don't want you going in there and having a private trapper come in and extinguish the cats."Alburtis resident Donna Wentz
Commissioners' President Brian Higgins acknowledged the speakers and their concerns. But he emphasized that the township has to follow the law regarding enforcement issues on private property and said the township is responding to the complaints of the landowners.
"What I can tell you is all of this resulted from resident complaints about the condition of private property," Higgins said.
"The township is not looking to go in and kill cats. The township is not looking to hire people to take the cats away. It's a private land issue. We are responding as a township to complaints from residents about the condition of somebody's private property, and we have to follow the law in making sure that what is done there is correct and within the law."
He said the township could be more flexible if it was on public land rather than private property, and because of that, the township is addressing issues through the code enforcement process.
Higgins said there are other residents who want the cats removed from their property, and they don't want the animals near their children or other pets.
He also said the township has no plans to establish a cat sanctuary and doing so would not be feasible.
"That's not going to happen for a couple of different reasons," Higgins said. "The taxpayers in this township are not going to allow for that land that they have paid for to be open space to become homes for feral cat colonies. In addition to that, what happens when there's a feral dog issue, or you know, other animals?"
"It's open space for a reason — to stay open space. I do hope, personally, that there is a successful outcome to this. We appreciate your concern and your passion for trying to make this happen."
The management of the Dunkin' Donuts and West Valley Marketplace, where the Walmart is located, did not immediately answer requests for comment.
