STATE GRANT FINANCES CAT ALTERING PROGRAM.

Byline: Sylvia L. Oliande Staff Writer

Hoping to control the population of unwanted cats, several local veterinarians are participating in a state grant that enables them to offer free spaying and neutering of felines found in the wild.

The Feral Cat Altering Program, offered by members of the California Veterinary Medical Association, was designed to reduce the number of cats roaming city streets or killed in local shelters.

``We recognize a great number of kittens that are brought into this world, and that unfortunately die after too short a life in this world, are born to these wild cats,'' said Al Schwartz, president of the CVMA, and a Moorpark veterinarian. ``Our hope is to reduce the number of kittens being born in the wild. That in turn will affect the pet overpopulation problems. With less kittens ending up in animal shelters, more of the adult cats will be adopted.''

More than 500 veterinary offices statewide are participating in the program, which hopes to alter 60,000 cats over the next three years through a $3.2 million grant from the philanthropic Maddie's Fund.

Participating veterinarians receive a partial reimbursement from the VCMA for their time and equipment.

Among those participating locally are Schwartz's Moorpark Veterinary Hospital and the ACS Veterinary Clinic in Moorpark, as well as Valley Veterinary Clinic, American Veterinary Clinic and Alamo Veterinary Clinic in Simi Valley. In the Conejo Valley, participants are the Animal Hospital of Thousand Oaks and Anza Animal Clinic in Westlake Village.

A cat owner would normally spend from $30 to $100 to neuter a male cat and from $75 to $250 to spay a female cat.

The program is limited to feral cats but not strays - officials said the difference is that feral cats resist human contact, even if they accept food left out for it, while stray cats are domesticated enough to eventually become pets.

They suggest catching the animals in traps if they are to be brought in for treatment.

Diane Bentz, a registered veterinary technician at Valley Veterinary Clinic, said in most cases a wild cat problem is compounded by people feeding the animals, which in turn allows the colony to flourish.

``It's great if people are feeding them and everything, they're not necessarily doing a disservice,'' she said. ``But if they're going to do that, they need to take the extra responsibility to make sure that they are disease-free and altered.''

Officials said feral cat colonies are common in wash areas, near schools and industrial parks throughout Ventura County. Schwartz said colonies are known to live behind certain stores in Simi Valley and among the rocks and hillsides near Oxnard and Ventura.

The Humane Society in Ventura County welcomed the CVMA's program and the benefits it could provide for animals.

``Animals live longer and are healthier if they have the operation done,'' said Tim Dewar, director of public relations for the Humane Society in Ventura County. ``They are less likely to roam or have medical problems down the road.''