"There's a man over there with a look of surprise
As much as to say well now how about that?
Do I actually see with my own very eyes
A man who's not heard of a jellicle cat? " (T.S. Elliott)"
Andrew Lloyd Weber memorialized Jellicle Cats, the poetry and musings of a writer in England during Victorian Times. ALW set his performance and musical "Cats" in the setting of a junkyard, for theatrical effect. Nothing could be farther from the actual environment in which T.S. Elliot wrote. The cats he observed, enjoyed, and memorialized in poetry, later to become performance, were Community Cats. They were part of the streets, the taverns, the theatre, the church. A woman stopped traffic for Old Deuteronomy.
Everyday in Northern Virginia, we walk by the habitats of Jellicle cats. Once, there were only barns and fields of corn and cows, and very few cats, except the mousers in the barns. Then, the builders and developers and industry came, to make profit, and with them, came the pets, the cats. Cats are genetically programmed by the Creator to propagate. No one can fault them for the Creator's purpose. Cats are not, and never were, outdoor wild animals. From the time of the Pharoahs, cats were meant to be in a community, and to be cared for (if not also worshipped) by people.
The legacy of our decades of economic development is the ballooning population of felines who have been abandoned by human carelessness and economic hardship. Landlords exact onerous and excessive charges for each pet. I know, Graystar charged me $400.00 to live in their apartment, not a deposit, no refund, just a profitable fee they charge to increase their wall street profits, taking advantage of the love of a cat for profit.
The only solutions are adoption, or colony care accompanied by sterilization/spay/ neuter, and to care for the once-upon -a -time pets who are now consigned to survive in sewers, wooded abandoned lots, under trucks, and cars. To scavange in dumpsters or if an aware human has a heart, to have a regular meal of kibble. The respect and reverence shown by the great and renowned poet T.S. Elliot are devoid from the consumer and profit mentality that drive our human, frenetic existence in Northern Virginia.
Solutions: The Loudoun Community Cat Coalition is a 501c3 charity with a focus on population management and the health and welfare of community cats. Our goal is to help homeless outdoor cats and tiny kittens live! We fix and vaccinate them and pay for the medical cost when they are sick or injured. Have fun and help us raise funds to help care for hundreds of kittens that will come through our TNR programs as well as spay/neuter the moms and dads! Loudoun Community Cat Coalition | P.O. Box 1960, Leesburg, VA 20177
Resources for Community Cats:
Heated outdoor bed - https://www.chewy.com/kh-pet-products-thermo-kitty-cat-bed/dp/46573 --They are pressure activated. Stays cool and off until the kitty lays in them and activates the embedded heating pad... in the garages ...porch in chairs for feral kitties.
