EATONTOWN, NJ, November 16, 2010 – About 75 cats who live under the Asbury Park boardwalk will be spayed/neutered and vaccinated by volunteer veterinarians from the Red Bank Veterinary Hospital. The cats will be humanely trapped by volunteers between November 17 and November 18 and will be brought to two mobile surgical MASH units where a team of veterinarians and technicians will perform the necessary surgery to address the burgeoning population of feral cats. Feral cats live lives of quiet desperation foraging for food and warmth underneath Asbury Park’s boardwalk. Trap/Neuter & Release (TNR) is used successfully across the country to humanely control the populations of “community cats” (including feral, stray, or abandoned housecats who form colonies for survival.)
The Monmouth County SPCA heads a consortium of support including Boardwalk Developer, Gary Mottola of Madison Marquette, Debbie Delisa of the Wonderbar, Best Friends Animal Society, the Red Bank Animal Hospital, the Animal Welfare Association of Voorhees, NJ, the Passaic County Mobile Spay Neuter Coalition and about 50 trained volunteers that will be involved in the life saving project. Additionally, actor and celebrity, Kevin Conway, from the CBS series “The Good Wife” will be on hand to assist in the trapping effort and at the “Yappy Hour” at the Wonderbar on Thursday evening, November 18. Mr. Conway maintains his own feral colony at his home and is active in animal rescue. He will be available for interviews on both November 17 and November 18.
A 6 month old unspayed female cat is capable of producing as many as 3 litters of 5 –7 kittens a year. These kittens then can go on to reproduce in similar numbers creating an unchecked population crisis in many of our shore communities.
To find out more about TNR, please contact Community Cat Coordinator, Francesca Alexander, francesca@monmouthcountyspca.org. In addition to the feral cat community, the MCSPCA has over 300 adoptable cats and kittens. Be sure to visit the MCSPCA Homeward Bound Adoption Center at 260 Wall Street, Eatontown, NJ 07724. The adoption center is open seven days a week, Monday thru Friday 1pm to 5pm and on Saturday and Sunday from12pm to 5pm. In addition, on the 9th of each month the Cat Adoption Floor will remain open until 9pm. You can also check out our kittens and cats online at www.monmouthcountyspca.org or call 732-440-1525 for more adoption details.
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