But this month, City of Delta officials gave Heinzen 30 days from April 4 to stop setting out food and to remove the more than one dozen animals from the area.
“What we’re doing is working. But Delta has no tolerance for them,” Heinzen said. She maintains that fixing the animals will help control the population and allow for a natural die-off — a position plenty support and oppose.
  
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Delta does not currently have a trap, neuter and release, or TNR, program in place; and its existing animal control regulations prohibit people from keeping more than four dogs and cats. Local law enforcement is charged with executing the regulations.
Heinzen appeared before the city council Tuesday to ask that it consider changing regulations to address the issue and also adopt a TNR program. Newly elected Mayor Mary Cooper said she would direct staff to look into its regulations. Cooper said that in her three years on council, the issue has not been raised.
Delta Police Cmdr. Roger Christian said Heinzen must remove the animals because she has claimed ownership. As a pet owner, she must take responsibility for them, he said. If she is unable to do so, the city said it will help her transport them to an animal shelter for adoption. “The last thing I want to do is euthanize these animals,” Christian said.
The problem is feral cats are nearly impossible to adopt or move, Heinzen said. The only way to move them is to keep them confined for a few weeks in their new location. Otherwise, they’ll return to their old homes. The cats are well fed and are not disturbing anyone, so Heinzen said she doesn’t understand why they should be moved.
She said the city’s feral cat problem is compounded by a growing number of pets being discarded around the city. “I’ve noticed in the last year, a couple of litters of kittens and some domestic cats have been dumped on me,” she said.
One problem with maintaining a public cat colony is pet owners may view the area as a place to abandon their animals, Christian said. “We try to take care of them (the animals). If we can find and catch the individuals responsible, then we will cite them,” he said.
No one wants to take responsibility for feral cats, said Debbie Faulkner, board secretary for Citizens for Animal Welfare and Shelter, a Delta-County based nonprofit. In the fall, she said CAWS attempted to trap, neuter and release feral cats in Delta but were warned that they would be cited for abandonment if the cats were returned.
“Everyone needs to come together for a solution,” said Faulkner. “If you spay and neuter them, eventually they’ll all die out.” She said grants are available for TNR programs. Leaving the problem alone will lead to others, Faulkner said. If the animals are left unfed, they’ll start looking for food in Dumpsters.
For information on CAWS, visit www.caws.paonia.com.
Contact Lisa Huynh at lisah@montrosepress.com
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