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Stray cat operations in Brittany and Occitanie: what should pet owners do?
Cats are caught and sterilised by local authorities
An operation to capture and sterilise stray cats is taking place in a Breton city this week, with residents advised to ensure their cats are not swept up in the programme.
The animal pound in Lorient (Morbihan) will carry out the operation this week (October 26 - 30), aiming to “manage stray cat populations while ensuring that the animals are handled with due regard for their welfare,” said the city in a statement.
Sterilisation campaigns are an increasingly popular operation for local authorities looking to reduce the number of stray animals on the streets, in both larger communes and smaller rural towns.
An upcoming two-week operation is planned in Agde (Hérault) between November 2 and 16, where animals will also be identified and potentially sterilised.
Stray populations kept in check
Sterilisation campaigns are seen as an effective way to control stray animal populations.
A small number of stray animals can be beneficial to communities and can reduce the risk of pests in communes (including rats), but numbers can quickly proliferate.
A single pair of unsterilised stray cats mating can indirectly create up to 20,000 descendents within four years, according to the animal association 30 millions d’amis.
Authorities have the right to carry out identification and sterilisation campaigns of stray cats under article L.211-27 of France’s rural code. These activities are usually coordinated with animal welfare groups.
Until 1999, authorities were allowed to euthanise strays captured during operations, but this is now a last resort.
Animals are instead sterilised and identified for future checks (including microchipping them), with euthanasia only taking place if after a holding period no one has come to collect or adopt the animal, and a vet gives their professional opinion that euthanasia is the best option.
By returning the animals to their previous territory, it prevents new, unsterilised strays from entering the area, controlling the population for a number of years.
Simply removing the animals is also not recommended by animal welfare groups, as locations providing favourable conditions will simply see new strays arrive.
Cats that are sterilised and microchipped during an operation become chats libres (free-roaming cats), under the protection and management of the local authority and / or animal welfare group responsible.
What should cat owners do?
Cat owners should regularly check local websites and notices for upcoming stray sterilisation campaigns.
This includes the mairie, local pound (fourrière animale), and local animal charities and associations.
All cats captured during these campaigns will be checked for a microchip or identification tattoo before being sterilised. Cats in France must be registered on the I-CAD pet database, which includes mandatory identification, so your animal should be able to be identified.
However, it is worth checking that the contact details on your account (phone number, address, etc) are up to date, so you can be informed if your pet is taken.
Pets that do not have an identifier on them (such as a name collar) are at higher risk of being misidentified as a stray.
If your cat goes missing during an operation, you should call the local pound. Contact information can be found online or through local resources and phonebooks, or failing that the local mairie.
