Passing in front of Cox or Wheeler at any given time of day, a Longwood student may notice something that doesn't quite belong. Two cats have been living there for at least a month. One is a younger tabby with white paws and a white chest, and the other is a bit older and is a tabby with no spots. Neither one is incredibly friendly, but that hasn't stopped animal loving students from taking a sincere interest in them.
Freshman Jenny Nehrt's excited explanation said it all: "There's the kitten that lives around Wheeler and Cox! I know at least half a dozen people feed her, myself included. She's really adorable!"
Averill Trapani is one of the leaders of the movement to help these cats. She took her quest to find them homes to Facebook and other social networking sites, but to no avail. As soon as she first noticed them about a month ago, she began feeding them, and has taken to calling them "Mama and Baby," though the cats have been given several different names by their various benefactors.
The students living near these cats aren't the only ones who have noticed them; Ashley Bowles explained, "I see them all over campus when my boyfriend and I walk our dogs. Naturally, the dogs love them."
Amanda Tharp, like Trapani, has been trying to find a home for the cats, but ran into several road blocks. The Southside SPCA has a strict policy against taking in feral or semi-feral cats. Tharp believes that the SPCA should make an exception. "The cat will let you pet it," she said. "They would be able to find homes if the SPCA would only take them."
The cats are currently living on a diet of which no veterinarian would approve. Students frequently offer them scraps of whatever they are eating. "I saw two guys near the Cunninghams feeding a cat a chicken leg once," said Trapani. "Tons of people offer them hunks of cheese or swipe food for them from D-Hall."
Several students have been able to pet the younger cat by using food as a bribe. Tharp was able to pet it for twenty minutes after feeding it pickle chips, which are "probably the worst thing to feed a cat," she admitted. Rumors even persist that one student smuggled the cat into her dorm room.
The fact remains, one student points out, that a college campus is simply no place for cats. "I just want them to be happy and safe," said Ashton Funkhouser. "It's good that people are feeding them, but they should really have a home away from crazy college kids."
As the weather gets colder and students prepare to leave for winter break, Longwood's cat lovers wonder what will happen to their feline friends. "Nobody will be around during winter break with cans of kitty food," said Nehrt.
Trapani put it a little more bluntly: "We'd rather not come back to dead cats."
Homeless cats are a problem all over the nation. According to the Humane Society website, there are over 50 million stray and feral cats in the United States. The few of them at Longwood are only a tiny fraction of a much larger problem. But hopefully, with the dedication of Longwood's community of cat lovers, these two will find a place more suitable than our campus to call home.