For the last 15 years, several university faculty members have dwindled the number of feral cats on campus from nearly 200 to around 40. These cats, wild and potentially disease-carrying, are caught, spayed or neutered and returned or relocated.
A small group of Ole Miss faculty founded Feral University Rebel Rescuers in April 2002 when the campus cat population was high. Founding member Lisa Hartman said the group came together after school administration announced a plan to trap and euthanize the 200 homeless cats.
“Back then, I would notice as I would move around campus that there were kitty cats all over the place. They were not domesticated,” Hartman said. “I felt sorry for these little cats and started feeding two or three of them.”
Hartman said she felt there was a more humane way to handle the university’s cat problems. After some research, Hartman said she learned universities everywhere had the same issue as Ole Miss. She found a humane method of trapping, neutering and returning stray cats on campus. This “TNR” strategy is the framework of FURR’s work. Staff adviser Natascha Techen said taking care of stray cats goes beyond leaving food and water out.
“A lot of people that live in apartment complexes see a stray cat and they feel bad for them, so they’ll put out food,” Techen said. “It’s really nice, but people need to get them fixed because if they put out food the cats will come back and mate, even if it’s winter.”
Hartman and FURR capture cats on campus and take them to local veterinarians for treatment including spaying or neutering. If a veterinarian determines the cat is disease-free but feral, FURR releases the cat to where it was found. A feral cat is a cat raised without human interaction, so these cats can pose a threat to a curious cat lover. FURR takes the non-feral cats to an adoption center.
Biology major and FURR president Tobi Ku said the growing program now uses faculty and staff foster homes for non-feral cats waiting for adoption.
“Sometimes we’d find cats on campus who were not feral but very sociable, and they could be adopted out,” Ku said. “Whenever that happens, we want to make sure that they have homes and that they’re not just wandering around. It’s always better for the environment and for the cats to be safer with an owner.”
Students like Ku run the organization, even though faculty members led the group’s initial effort. The university recognized FURR as a student organization in November 2002 and sanctioned its TNR program on campus. Student members of FURR also raise funds to promote the importance of neutering and spaying pets.
