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Cat project fuses compassion with commitment IN THIS By Tina Lesniak Correspondent
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be adopted into permanent homes. The organization’s success, Struck said, would not be possible without community support. “Our work would not be possible without the incredible support of local residents, businesses and community partners,” she said. Volunteers assist with everything from trapping and transporting cats to fostering kittens and socializing shy cats before adoption. Residents report colonies, monitor outdoor cats in their neighborhoods and often become foster families or adopters. Local businesses contribute through donations, sponsorships and raising awareness of the organization’s mission. Despite its accomplishments, ECCP faces growing challenges. Rising veterinary costs and limited access to discounted services have made it increasingly difficult to provide the surgeries and medical treatment community cats need. At the same time, demand for the organization’s help continues to grow. “While this shows that the community trusts us, it also means we are constantly stretched thin in terms of resources, funding and volunteer capacity,” Struck said. One rescue, however, continues to remind Struck why the work matters. She recalls receiving a call during one of the coldest stretches of winter about what was believed to be a feral cat in a resident’s yard. When she arrived, she immediately realized the cat, later named Smitty, was not
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SO THAT REMINDS ME — On the latest episode of So That Reminds Me, Managing Editor Dennis Hackett and Chicopee/Holyoke Herald Staff Writer Tyler Garnet sit down with Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia to discuss the status of current issues and happenings in the Paper City, including the city’s comprehensive planning process, the proposed sports complex, redevelopment of the Kmart property and the mayor’s approach to social media and constituent outreach.
feral cat colonies in Enfield, with volunteers feeding the cats twice daily, providing fresh water and maintaining winter shelters. The work is demanding, requiring volunteers to trap cats, transport them to veterinary appointments, monitor colonies and ensure the animals remain healthy. “It’s a labor of love that relies heavily on community support and understanding,” Struck said. Central to the organization’s efforts is Trap-Neuter-Return, a nationally recognized approach in which cats are humanely trapped, spayed or neutered, vaccinated and returned to the outdoor environments they know. Preventing reproduction not only reduces future litters but also improves the health of the cats while reducing behaviors such as fighting, spraying and roaming. For ECCP, the results have been tangible. “We have successfully completely managed two feral colonies, which is proof that TNR works,” Struck said. “By consistently trapping, spaying and neutering, vaccinating, and monitoring the cats, we were able to stop population growth within those colonies while significantly improving the health and welfare of the cats living there. Cats in our TNR program are healthier, and nuisance behaviors like fighting, spraying and roaming are greatly reduced.” Beyond helping the cats themselves, TNR also reduces the number of kittens entering shelters and allows rescue organizations to devote more resources to friendly cats and kittens that can
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ENFIELD — What started as a small grassroots effort to help a handful of cats has grown into a lifeline for hundreds of community cats across Enfield. Founded by Dawn Struck and a small group of dedicated volunteers, the Enfield Community Cat Project has spent nearly a decade working to humanely reduce the population of outdoor cats while improving their health and quality of life. “The Enfield Community Cat Project was founded by a small group of local volunteers who recognized a growing need to address the population of community cats in a humane and effective
way,” Struck said. Today, the organization’s mission centers on reducing the community cat population through TNR, providing medical care for sick and injured cats, and educating the public about responsible, compassionate coexistence with outdoor cats. Community cats, sometimes called feral cats, are often misunderstood, Struck said. Unlike lost pets, many are born outdoors or have spent most of their lives outside and are not socialized to people. “These cats are not strays in the traditional sense,” she explained. “They are part of a managed population that can live healthy lives when properly cared for.” ECCP currently manages five
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