Happy International Day of the Cat!

If you are a Leo like me maybe you feel this is your day. If you have allergies like me, perhaps you have mixed feelings.

So here are some mixed feelings for you.

Cats have lived with humans for centuries and their wild forms evolved from the same common ancestor (Miacis) as dogs. pretty cool. And like dogs, Cats can be trained! no, really check out the video.
Unfortunately a single female with her suitors can produce hundred of cats over her lifetime and the cats are often pregnant around the same time. In the USA this leads to Kitten Season. It can be similar in the Bahamas due to the rainy season. Here’s a graph!

cat pregnancy-rate-chart USA
Cat pregnancy rates in the United States of America

Those cats and their kittens kill millions of little birds, lizards, and other small animals every year and when they get to the Human Society or another shelter, overcrowding leads to lower standards of care and euthanasia for those that make it to the shelter. Those that do not make it to the shelter suffer worse including sickness and disease like the distemper outbreak in the Bahamas that affected dogs in 2014, drownings are common during hurricanes and of course we see cats run over in the street regularly.

But, cats can be friendly and nice as companion animals and they often help to control animal disease vectors such as rats.

Jill the Cat and a Rat
Jill and the rat she brought to Alma in 2006

So, please go and have your cat neutered. Let’s take care of the cats so that their babies would not have to suffer.

-Leno