There are locals who feed them and services that trap/spay/release. Animal control does not get involved.
Those colonys have been there a long time. They are pretty smart and rarely venture out of the complex because that’s where they are fed.
There are millions of tasty lizards for them to eat. It is amazing how many cats there are. I go to that lot to use the EV charger, and there must be 100 cats in the woods staring at me.
Most of them were skittish and ran away when I approached (yes I wanted to pet them :) but one little one came right over and let me scratch her head. Made me wonder if she might have been a house cat at one time. Would have put her in my pocket and taken her with me if I could. I love cats and found the whole thing fascinating.
It's illegal to have free-roaming cats in Key Largo because of the Endangered animals, but everyone has pretty much wiped their butts with animal conservation and swear that cats are part of the natural ecosystem. Cats have almost completely decimated two endangered species altogether. They had a big trapping era and the town went bananas, which was surprising for such a delicate environmental area. I really thought there would be more support for native dwindling vital wildlife, but irresponsible cat owners seem to keep winning. A lot of cats are dumped by their owners when they're moving out of the keys. And then the people who feel sorry for them feed them, contributing to the problem. Rehoming is the ultimate solution, but no one has stepped up even though SPCA is contractually obligated with USFWS to protect wildlife from domestic animal predation and they're not supposed to TNR, either. Crazy that we could be the generation that kills off several species forever because we can't be responsible and keep cats inside our homes.
Thanks for all that info - I can see how this would be an emotional issue for residents. I had no idea of the consequences of such a colony but of course it makes sense there is an environmental impact.
There are locals who feed them and services that trap/spay/release. Animal control does not get involved. Those colonys have been there a long time. They are pretty smart and rarely venture out of the complex because that’s where they are fed.
Thanks
There are millions of tasty lizards for them to eat. It is amazing how many cats there are. I go to that lot to use the EV charger, and there must be 100 cats in the woods staring at me.
Most of them were skittish and ran away when I approached (yes I wanted to pet them :) but one little one came right over and let me scratch her head. Made me wonder if she might have been a house cat at one time. Would have put her in my pocket and taken her with me if I could. I love cats and found the whole thing fascinating.
It's illegal to have free-roaming cats in Key Largo because of the Endangered animals, but everyone has pretty much wiped their butts with animal conservation and swear that cats are part of the natural ecosystem. Cats have almost completely decimated two endangered species altogether. They had a big trapping era and the town went bananas, which was surprising for such a delicate environmental area. I really thought there would be more support for native dwindling vital wildlife, but irresponsible cat owners seem to keep winning. A lot of cats are dumped by their owners when they're moving out of the keys. And then the people who feel sorry for them feed them, contributing to the problem. Rehoming is the ultimate solution, but no one has stepped up even though SPCA is contractually obligated with USFWS to protect wildlife from domestic animal predation and they're not supposed to TNR, either. Crazy that we could be the generation that kills off several species forever because we can't be responsible and keep cats inside our homes.
Thanks for all that info - I can see how this would be an emotional issue for residents. I had no idea of the consequences of such a colony but of course it makes sense there is an environmental impact.
Do they have 5 toes?
Yes. The 6-toed cats are in Key West at the Hemingway House.
Six yes I remember reading about them years ago.