News
Ferals Need Your Help! Campus of Rancho Los Amigos in Downey!
December 10, 2007, 7:10PM MT
By Denise A LeBeau
A situation has developed on the campus of Rancho Los Amigos in Downey.
A situation has developed on the campus of Rancho Los Amigos in Downey. The Los Angeles County Chief Executive Office, Department of Capital Projects and Debt Management, ordered December 3, the trapping and mass euthanasia of over 100 cats which have called the campus home for over 10 years. The mass extermination is to begin in two weeks, just days before the Christmas holiday.
The cat populations on the Rancho campus is comprised mainly of feral cats which have been born due to people's lack of spay/neutering their own pets. A smaller proportion are household cats, which have been dumped by non-caring owners who no longer want to care for their pets, or pets that have been abandoned by owners moving from nearby housing tracts. These cats live in well managed colonies throughout the large campus, but mainly in the old, abandoned buildings of the campus south of Imperial Highway in what was at one time a nationally recognized center for rehabilitation of war veterans. The cats are well fed, vaccinated, microchipped, and receive veterinary care when needed.
Hundreds of cats lived on the grounds in years past, but with a concerted trap/spay/neuter return (TNR) program in place by Failsafe-4-Felines, Inc, nearly 100% of the cats living there have now been rendered infertile and incapable of reproducing. The population of cats on the campus is now less than half it was just five years ago. Without the TNR program, the numbers of cats on the campus would be staggering to say the least. But through natural attrition and the TNR program, the colony will continue to significantly reduce over time. It is proven that trapping and euthanizing has done nothing but burn a hole in tax payers’ pockets and KILL innocent pets. TNR has proven itself to work and be effective and this colony deserves to be left intact and protected.
The mass extermination was ordered because of a complaint received by the Chief Executive Office regarding fleas in a nearby building. Many other wild animals also call the campus home, including opossums, skunks, and raccoons. There is no known rat problem in this section of the campus.
Your Voice Needed
Make a difference and take a stand! Please let Mr. Knabe know that humane solutions are not only humane, but are part of the long term solution!
Los Angeles Board Supervisor Don Knabe 4th District
822 Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration
500 West Temple St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Phone: 213 974-4444
Fax: 213 626-6941
E-mail: www.knabe.com
Phone: 562 803-7087
To Email Mr. Knabe, you must contact the office contact:
Staff Contact:
David Sommers
Press Secretary
(213) 974-1095
dsommers@lacbos.org
Fail Safe 4 Felines may be contacted at lubuggalu@yahoo.com
photo by Molly Wald, Best Friends photographer