Too many wild cats – When 132 wild cats are castrated – News


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Feral cats reproduce quickly and transmit diseases. Castration days are intended to curb this. For example in Thurgau.

How many wild cats are there in Switzerland? There are no exact figures on how many stray or stray cats there are in Switzerland. Animal welfare organizations assume 100,000 to 300,000 animals.

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30 volunteers help out at the Thurgau Cat Neutering Day. The operated cats are monitored.

zvg/Lisa Goldinger

Why should feral cats be neutered? Cats reproduce very quickly. Castration is intended to curb this. Feral cats are also considered a herd of diseases. In addition to mice, they also hunt many protected animals such as birds, lizards or slow-worms. When there are fewer feral cats, the other animal species are better protected.

Why is there cat castration day? There are castration days in various regions of Switzerland. They are usually organized by regional animal protection groups. In addition to being castrated, the animals are also vaccinated and, if necessary, have diseases or their teeth treated. “It’s a full service that the cats get here,” says Lisa Goldinger. She is president of the Animal Welfare Association in Steckborn, a veterinarian and one of the initiators and organizers of the annual Thurgau Cat Neutering Day.

Who brings the cats? The call in Thurgau is primarily aimed at farmers. This, explains Lisa Goldinger, because farms are particularly affected: “Because there is a lot of food and mice.” In some cases, farmers therefore bring seven to ten cats to castration day.

Expiration of the cat neutering day


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  • The animals are registered in advance.
  • They arrive individually in transport boxes.
  • On site, they are lured into a fixation box, in which they receive an injection with the anaesthetic.
  • The cats are neutered and treated for illnesses as needed.
  • They are constantly monitored until they wake up.
  • When they come out of anesthesia, they are returned to their transport box, which has since been cleaned.

What do the animal protection organizations say? Lisa Goldinger says that Swiss animal protection is committed to this task. He supports the castration days financially so that the castrations can be carried out free of charge. About 20,000 animals are castrated every year by the Swiss animal protection. This is of course a fraction, but this is the only way to prevent overpopulation.

What is the criticism? Lisa Goldinger says that she sometimes hears from other veterinarians that work is being taken away from them as a result of the castration days. But: “I think if you do the math, 100,000 to 300,000 cats in Switzerland that should be neutered and 132 animals that we made that day, then the ratio is such that there is enough left stay.”

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