Community Update

2 Rabid Feral Cats Found On Same Street!

Posted by Robin , July 10, 2013 at 09:47 am2 Comment  Recommend  660Open letter to County Executive Rob Astorino:

It appears that the latest rabid feral cat in Ossining has been found on the EXACT same street as a rabid feral kitten that was found in 10-2011.

There were many feral cats in that area in 2011 and according to current news reports there are STILL many feral cats there today.  The Department of Health did trap and euthanize other cats in the area in 2011 realizing that where there is 1 rabid feral cat there may be more.

Since another rabid feral cat was just found on that SAME street and since there are STILL many feral cats in the area,  will the Department of Health be going in to trap and euthanize those cats as well?

Will they then test those euthanized cats for rabies?

Could it be purely a coincidence that 2 rabid feral cats were found on the exact same street?

I've been in contact with the Westchester County Department of Health and County Executive Rob Astorino, as well as my local Yorktown town officials, multiple times over the years about the dangers of, and prevalence of, rabid feral cats in Westchester...to no avail.

It's time to act - BEFORE someone dies of rabies transmitted from the out of control feral cat population throughout Westchester County.  Rabies transmitted from a feral cat to a child has already happened in California...8 year old Precious Reynolds who contracted rabies from a feral cat in her SCHOOLYARD.

Do you remember the rabid cat that was found in FDR state PARK in Yorktown in 2011?

Do you remember the rabid feral kitten that had roamed the grounds of a Westchester day CHILDREN'S CAMP and country club in New Rochelle, just last year?

Also, for more information and to see why TNR is most definitely NOT the solution please see my blog on patch.com, "Rabies Outbreak in Westchester County and the Connection to Feral Cats" as well as "The Magic Rabies Shot?"

A local well known veterinary hospital happened to see the former blog, then asked Patch for my permission to copy it and make it available to distribute to their clients.  It must have rung true to them as well.

Please do not simply forward this to the Department of Health and then wash your hands of it, County Executive Astorino.  You need to get personally involved...Do it for the protection of all the children in Westchester County.

While TNR is certainly not the answer to the huge ever growing feral cat population, euthanizing all feral cats is simply not the right thing to do.

It's time you work toward a solution that will protect cats, other wildlife, pets, and most importantly...people.

It's time to do the right thing.




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