Feral cat advocates present plan to Polk County

Let me preface the beginning of this by stating I am a Polk County girl. My great-great's, as I call them, were some of the first settlers in the area. Even though I have not lived there in over 25 years, I still maintain it is my county and I watch what happens there.

I have been following the debate in Polk County on the feral cat situation in Saddle Creek. You would have to know at one time Saddle Creek was a huge park which was created out of a reclaimed phosphate pit. There were huge holes filled with water to canoe on and stables with horses to ride or simply feed carrots to. It was a teenager's dream spot to hang out in the daytime or park with your boyfriend at night.

My understanding is now it has become much more settled and less rural. This has not stopped people from dumping their unwanted cats out there. Now the battle is looming between the bird lovers and the cat lovers.

Polk County initially supported trapping and euthanizing all the cats they could. They have now spoken to the Feral Fanciers, a group dedicated to TNR and are looking over their plan for the cats.

I hope they win this battle. I also hope they can begin some kind of educational program for spaying and neutering. It is time for the groups in Polk County to step up and take care of this problem.

Polk County is the 5th largest county in the state. It has huge tracts of undeveloped and agricultural land.Sadly, it has always been a dumping ground for unwanted pets. It has also had its' share of illegal dog fighting and cockfighting along with numerous hoarding situations and puppy mills. The county has always been consistent in trying to control these situations so they must step up to the plate and let this cat group try to get the ferals under control.

You can read the latest here and also check out the series of articles leading up to this point.