Record Snow Doesn't Phase Feral Cats

While roof-top shoveling has become a winter chore for many residents this season, a group of volunteers is doing their own kind of clearing; keeping open the small shelters that house a number of feral cat colonies in Cheshire.

Volunteers from Friends of Feral Cheshire Cats visit about a half-dozen colonies each day, trudging through the deep snow to bring food and water to the cats who live outdoors year-round.

“We’ve been shoveling after every storm,” says Kerry Bartoletti, who started the volunteer organization with Lori Ratchelous in 2006. “We’re making sure the feeding stations and shelters are intact and the food is accessible," she said.

“We see less of them when it’s cold. They come out to eat and go back inside, but we see their paw prints," Bartoletti said. A lot of birds also make a meal of the cat food, she said, since foraging is so difficult in the deep snow.

Some of the colonies are located behind commercial or retail  businesses but he towers and employees support the work of the volunteers and allow them to go on their property to tend to the cats, Ratchelous said.

One business handles the care of a colony on their property, Bartoletti said, while other store owners may look after the cats  during the week, asking the volunteers to take over on the weekends when the businesses are closed.

April Leiler, Cheshire’s Animal Control Officer, said she hasn’t gotten too many calls about cats in distress despite the harsh winter. “I think the people who are managing the feral colonies are doing a good job," she said.

Leiler regularly stops at the colony locations to make sure no new cats or kittens have been abandoned and that no cats need help. New feline arrivals would be easily detected, she said, because once the stray cats are spayed or neutered, their ears are tipped before being released back into the colony.

While animal control isn't able to accommodate cats, if a friendly cat is injured or winds up in Leiler's care, the feral cat volunteers will help find it a home. “We have a good relationship with them,” says Leiler.

It’s hard to know if the cats’ endurance in the harsh winter is due to the well-kept shelters and daily feedings but, “whatever it is, I hope it lasts," Leiler said.

For more information on the volunteer group, or to donate cat food, contact the Friends of Feral Cheshire Cats at (866) 811-2287 or at www.friendsofferalcheshirecats.org.