I will be posting accurate updates and information as well as answering any questions.
Following are some arguements made by Aaron Nevarez from Don Knabe's office (213) 974-4444 when a Rancho cat supporter called to protest their actions.
Aaron Nevarez: Fail-Safe 4 Felines didn't take care of the cats-there now are 5 litters of kittens.
My response: According to Alex Moto, the animal control officer who was trapping at Rancho, there are 200 cats at Rancho. Don Knabe's press release referred to the colony as "unmanged". How can an unmanged colony of 200 cats only produce 5 litters?
Furthermore cats are dumped more often then ever before. Many cats have escaped from THEIR facility, the LA County Downey Shelter located only 35 feet from Rancho adding to the number of cats and perhaps making the 5 litters theirs.
2 weeks ago one cat was spotted with a pink paper collar used by their facility. Many people surrendering their pets to the shelter turn their animals loose at the end of the driveway when asked to go to SEAACA instead and those animals also could make their way to Rancho.
There are also many residential cats that have been spotted making there way onto the Rancho Campus.
Aaron Nevarez: Place filthy-poop all over-totally unsanitary...that's why they moved in.
My Response: Caregivers go to Rancho everyday including weekends to feed and pick up any trash. There are brooms and brushes at the main feeding stations to facilitate daily cleaning. Caregivers pick up the trash and the cats take care of the poop by covering it. Individuals passing by sometimes leave cans of wet food for the cats at different feeding stations, they are picked up the following day by the caregivers.
Aaron Nevarez: School nearby...health reasons for kids.
My Response: Fail-Safe 4 Felines offered to buy a tarp to cover the sandbox and also to cover any openings that the cats might be using to get in. Their feeding stations were moved across the street and far from the school. There is a high chain linked fence around the school yard. Cats are scared and will run away instead of attacking children.
This is a good opportunity to sit the kids down and educate them on the humane treatment of all the animals surrounding their play yard. This includes the feral cats, raccoons, and opposums to name a few.
Aaron Nevarez: There are barns that can adopt out the cats.
My Response: They initially claimed to have over 40 barns but when pressed repeatedly and forgetting to bring the address information to the meetings held between Fail-Safe and LAACC they came up with a short list of coyote infested barns. After Fail-Safe contacted the barns there was only 1 barn that we considered safe.
Cat Supporter: Questioned Nevarez at length about the county's inability to determine feral from social. She expressed her concern that they might kill a cat without knowing the cat is domesticated because they are scared.
My Response: Cats that are not microchipped are being held for 5 days and LAACC will not release them before. During this time a temperment test will be administered rating the following: Hissing, growling, spitting, pupils dilated, ears flattened, charges, hides. Heck, my indoor cat has done all those things to me at one time or another. Right now the cats are under strays, and I don't know if they will be classified as ferals if they fail the temperment test because they are utterly terrified.
***A cat trapped on Saturday was quickly examined by a vet tech because it was foaming at the mouth when it arrived at the shelter. Aha, rabies they thought. Nope the cat was just extremely stressed and very very scared. He is neutered and has an ear tip but since he doesn't have a microchip he isn't being released yet.***
Cat Supporter: Told Nevarez she thinks Rancho cats are marked.
My Response: One "solution" outlined by LAACC is called House and Treat- The offer was to house the cats for a very limited time and at the end of their term in their facility (which would be dictated by them) Fail-Safe would be given the opportunity to remove the cats if they were not adopted but could not return them to Rancho, otherwise, they would be euthanized.
If Fail-safe had a place to take them they would have moved them by now and avoid the cats stay at the shelter, which will cost them money everytime they retrieve a cat from the shelter.
Rancho Cat Supporter: Nevarez attempted to convice her that they will try their best not to kill the cats...she wasn't conviced.
My Response: Try? Last time I checked they weren't a no kill shelter. These facilities are the least equipped to handle feral cats. For feral cats there is only one outcome as statistics show that 100% of ferals that enter shelters are killed.
So the points above are some angles that LAACC will use to try and convince the public they are doing the right and humane thing, but they are not. A group of cats have been without food for 3 days because LAACC came in and zip tied the gate leading to these cats. Marcia stated that Rancho staff are feeding the cats but that is untrue. David and Linda East have been at Rancho, watching over their babies every single day, from sunrise to sunset, and have not seen anyone feed the cats.
Today, October 30, Peter Stevens (818) 368-9008 from the company Board-Ups Unlimited came to Rancho. He got a call to come by and see about completely boarding up one of the buildings and erecting a fence around it. This has been done in the past and it didn't matter if cats were trapped inside without any water and food. Fail-Safe excerted some pressure and SOME were opened. If this happens again what assurance do we have that all animals will be out from the building if a fence will be erected to keep us out? Besides, if they are concerned about protecting the Crime Lab and the school why not put a fence around that area instead? Why waste taxpayers money to erect a fence around an abandoned building?
Board-Ups Unlimited IS NOT the same company that boarded up the buildings in January 2008.
