I get around….

A number of years ago, the BBC made a programme about cats and feline behaviour. The programme had many interesting segments; one of which was a piece on a cat named Hamish McHamish of St Andrews. Hamish was featured because, despite having an extremely loving home, he’d become a familiar face to a lot of people in his home town. Hamish had chosen to become a community cat and had a series of places and people around the town he visited or spent time.

This was an interesting case because it brought up questions regarding what was considered core and extended territory. The piece illustrated how much that can vary for each cat, and how in some environments where people are accepting, a cat can live a healthy, happy life having a number of boltholes they regard as safe-havens. Sadly, Hamish passed away in September 2014 at the age of 15 with his human mum by his side.

Unfortunately, there are other community cats that aren’t as lucky as Hamish. These cats are generally stray cats, that a number of people in the area feed but take no other responsibility for. Each home knows the other is visited, but aside from the occasional warm in the house, or a portion of daily biscuits, there’s no long term assistance.

While this sounds like an idyllic lifestyle, providing the cat with unlimited levels of freedom, it’s actually highly unlikely to prove beneficial. A lot of the time, when a community cat becomes ill or sustains some kind of injury there is no one person responsible to care for them in the sense of covering veterinary costs. This is key, as even smaller health-related costs, such as flea and worming treatment are essential when caring for a cat.

What the segment featuring Hamish illustrated was this; community cats can absolutely work. They can have wonderful lives with many people who love them. But ultimately, there has to be one individual willing to take responsibility for all aspects of their care.