T.S. Eliot wrote poems about a colony of cats that eventually were compiled into the book Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats. Andrew Lloyd Weber adapted the poems into the musical Cats, which was the second longest-running show in Broadway history. I read once that the poems were inspired by an actual colony of feral cats that Eliot tended.
Much like the famous writer, I too am charmed and inspired by the antics and independent dignity of free roaming cats. Unlike pets that people keep in their homes, these animals live simply for the sake of being a cat.
So called feral cats are unsocialized to human contact, and they are often the offspring of abandoned and stray pets. Feral cats multiply much too quickly, though, and they become unwelcome pests in many areas.
As a volunteer with Peace for Pets, a nonprofit organization in Stark County, Ohio, I have been performing Trap Neuter Return (TNR) interventions with feral cats to reduce the overpopulation of free roaming cats in the area.
This summer, I have participated in TNR with several feral cats, and much as Eliot was inspired to write, I have been inspired to draw the cats in a new series of original drawings called “Fab Ferals”.
Each drawing is 5″ x 7″ and matted for framing in an 8″ x 10″ frame. I am selling the drawings in my Etsy Shop if you would like to purchase them. New drawings will be added daily, so visit often! 10% of the sales from the Fab Feral series will be donated to Peace for Pets.
Some of these cats have been named by the humans who feed them and manage their colonies. “Oreo” above is a male cat who has spawned many young kittens, but he is now neutered and will no longer contribute to the overpopulation of free roaming cats. “Mama Kitty”, a female cat who makes a pallet factory her home, will be a “mama” to no more kitties thanks to TNR.
You can learn more about the process of TNR at the Neighborhood Cats website. TNR is not only the most humane method for controlling feral cats, it is also the most effective method.
I hope that you enjoy the drawings, and I hope that you support TNR in your Community!
