by Laura Simpson
January 9, 2012
Written by Sasha Lilly of Ontario, Canada
A few years ago, I lived in a rather rough neighbourhood in Toronto, Canada. There were many feral and abandoned cats there, the result of people “freeing” their unwanted pets or simply not spaying or neutering them. The cats suffered terribly througout the winter, and sadly, many died by freezing or starving or in cars as a result of trying to find a warm place to sleep.
The motor of the car would remain warm for a few hours after the car had been turned off, and the cat would crawl in from underneath the car, cuddle up to the warm motor and fall asleep. They believed that they were safe, but it only took someone starting the car to kill or maim them. This is how the mothers of many kittens died, which meant that many babies were left to survive the terrible Canadian winter alone.
No one really seemed to care. I think they saw the cats as some kind of nuisance. I decided to tell as many people as I could about the danger of cats in their car, hoping they would check before they started the cars in the morning. I also decided to put out as much cat kibble as I could, to keep the cats well fed so that they could stay warm enough to survive.