We love all animals, but in our area cats are suffering the most. For that reason our main efforts are dedicated to cats.

Many animal lovers do not only support animals. They pledge also to charity organizations.
For many elderly people a pet is the only companion they have. We think a rescued cat can give so much friendship and love back to a lonely person or a good family with kids.
We are not ashamed of our work!

Please check this website for the opportunity to become a supporting member.

I am the founder of The Welland Feral Cat Support Group and we have been a formal group for only about a year and are in the process of becoming a non-profit charitable foundation. I am responsible for all of the content on our website which is very capably designed and managed by one of our members, Helmut Ebert.

I was involved in rescue and TNR programs as a volunteer with other groups for about 5 years before forming the WFC.

Feral colonies and stray cats in general are a major issue and concern throughout the Niagara Region. They are a major part of the overpopulation crisis and cats that have been family pets are also being abandoned and adding to the population.

Feral cats are a human-created problem and may have been abandoned strays at one time; in any case they have been neglected, abused and treated as disposable commodities; true ferals are born and live outdoors in family groups called colonies.

Culling or killing is not only inhumane in a caring and compassionate society but has been proven to be ineffective in controlling feral populations because new colonies will form almost immediately after killing in any one area and breeding will continue; at the root of the problem is the continuing abandonment of cats into the community by irresponsible people who dump their pets and unwanted litters; programs designed to kill cats will not address the lack of human accountability for the problem.

TNR (Trap-Neuter-Return) is a program in which cats who live outdoors are humanely trapped and brought to a veterinarian to be evaluated, spayed or neutered and vaccinated; cats that have undergone the procedure are eartipped-while under anesthesia, a small portion of the left ear is painlessly removed for identification; kittens are put up for foster care and adoption and in some cases even adult cats can be adopted; cats returned to their colonies no longer breed and nuisance behaviours and roaming are almost completely eliminated; in all managed colonies volunteer caretakers will continue to feed, shelter and care for the remaining members of the colony family.

WFC has used TNR to spay/neuter at least 50 cats locally but has also assisted those who have adopted feral cats and kittens throughout the region by absorbing the cost of vet bills for those who show that they cannot afford the fees; when we are not in a position to assist financially we try to get help for people through other groups or organizations; we are actively promoting our petition for a low cost spay/neuter clinic to serve all of Niagara; another key component of our work is educating the public at large about TNR and other humane practices.

It is difficult to estimate the number of ferals because colonies can be widespread and often not easily visible unless they have become managed feral colonies with caretakers; also local humane societies have not been proactive in gathering statistics on the number of ferals they bring in to their shelters although we know that over 5000 cats are destroyed each year in shelters in Niagara and the vast majority of these are ferals; every community in Niagara has a feral cat problem numbering in countless thousands and the entire region would most certainly encompass hundreds of thousands

People can become contributing or supporting members for a $20 dollars membership fee and/or become volunteers who can assist in such areas as fundraising and actual TNR activities; the OSPCA in this province is badly in need of reform as are the local affilates or shelters,especially those which still have "kill policies" and, except for the Niagara Falls Humane Society, includes both the Welland and Lincoln humane societies; the public needs to support our efforts and join the demand for a High-Volume, Low-Cost Spay Neuter Clinic to serve all of Niagara as studies continue to show that the number one reason people don't spay/neuter their animals is that they cannot afford the vet fees; it is said that a civilized society is judged by how it treats the most dependent and vulnerable in its community, including its animals such as our feral cats;at this point we surely will be found wanting in our collective response; but we can have hope and faith that many of us still believe that our fellow creatures are deserving of respect and dignity and have the right to live their lives.