Stray cats in Austria
An underestimated problem
From May to September, animal welfare organisations such as Gut Aiderbichl are more in demand than ever, as this is when most kittens are born. Unfortunately, we are not talking about purring mum cats and babies lying in a warm basket and being lovingly cared for. The cats we are talking about in this article are stray cats. They live on the street, among rubbish, suffer from hunger and cold, are sick, have matted fur or parasites.
Austria also has a stray dog problem
Anyone who thinks that this problem only exists in countries like Romania or Bulgaria is mistaken. There is also a massive stray cat problem in countries like Austria. Stray cats live in rural areas – on farms, for example – as well as in cities, on industrial sites, in cemeteries, parks and allotments. Their everyday lives are characterised by hunger, illness and suffering.
Street cats suffer on the street
Pregnant mother cats and their babies are particularly affected. Depending on the weather, female cats come into heat from February and a second time in June. The gestation period lasts around two months – a very physically demanding phase for every mother cat. Pregnant cats need considerably more energy, especially in the second half of pregnancy – not an easy phase on the street, especially in the cold season.
When cats breed uncontrollably
As cats are already sexually mature at four to five months and each un-neutered cat can have up to twelve kittens a year, the number of stray animals quickly rises into the thousands. Once the babies are born, animal shelters and organisations such as Gut Aiderbichl receive numerous calls for help. Again and again, mother cats and their kittens are found on the street.
Animal placement with obstacles
Admission places at animal welfare organisations are limited, so we try to place the animals. We want a nice home for all of them – a warm basket, good food and affection. But this is not easy: stray cats are often very shy. The later the kittens are found, the more difficult it is to get them used to humans. This requires a lot of time, patience and effort – as with our office cats, which we recently reported on. All Aiderbichlers help to get the kittens used to people. It’s a feat of strength, but it can be done – as our experience shows.
One way out: compliance with the castration obligation
Far less effort is required if everyone complies with the neutering obligation, which is usually regulated by law. In Austria, for example, every male and female animal that lives outside must be neutered – including cats kept on farms. The only exceptions are indoor cats and breeding animals.
Anyone who lets their cat roam free but does not neuter it is deliberately contributing to the proliferation of stray cats.
How can I help?
It’s simple: report stray cats to Kastrationsprojekt@Gut-Aiderbichl.com
Gut Aiderbichl offers free neutering for stray cats. The project is currently mainly active in the Salzburg area, but an expansion is being considered.
The animals are caught in live traps, neutered by renowned vets and then returned to their natural habitat. Pregnant mother animals should also be registered as early as possible – so that their young can be born under the protection of an animal welfare organisation. In this way, they become trusting right from the start and can later be placed in loving homes.
👉 Report stray cats and pregnant mother animals in your neighbourhood to Gut Aiderbichl.
👉 Support animal welfare organisations such as Gut Aiderbichl through donations to our projects: Our commitment to stray cats or active help. This way, the project can also be extended to other areas!
👉 Please contact us for this: Kastrationsprojekt@Gut-Aiderbichl.com
