" Hello There: I think that it is a terrible thing when a city council decides someone is a criminal for feeding a poor stray cat. Compassion for homeless animals and for our fellow man is a good thing, not a criminal act. "

" OMG! I think this is horrible to get in trouble for feeding the stray cats. Why not do like what we do down here in Different parts of FL. There is a catch/spay program and then release the strays back where they were found. It does no harm. They can be identfided by one of their ears are clipped. They can not breed so there is no more litters. I think that they need to meet the used truck salesman to learn to have a heart, or the people in NY with the little cat stuck in the wall. Not all can be as lucky as you. "

" I am sure that you must have already received lots of email on your cat story already, but clearly the idea of criminalizing feeding strays is extremely irrational. I don't know the details of the hottub incident, but it makes no sense. Cats are the cleanest animals I know of, and they do not use hottubs as litter boxes. In fact, in the wild they are careful to widely scatter, hide, and bury their litter. The only possible explanation is that it was really racoons that are leaving the droppings, and since no one sees their nocturnal activities, they are incorrectly blaming it on feral cats. Besides, cats are the best possible animal to have an excess of. They are the only ones the benficially keep down rodents that really pose a health problem. I suggest you read about the vole problem in Utah, and consider your town lucky to have extra cats. Someone really needs to consult some animal experts before making such absurd conclusions about stray cats. It was the same sort of witch hunt mentality that reduced the stray cat population in Europe in the Dark Ages, that brought about the Black Plague. It is rodents that carry disease, and it is cats that prevent disease. Its as simple as that. "

" As thousands of feral cat caretakers already know, Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) programs are a highly successful solution for humanely controlling feral cat populations. After the "stray" cat population began to boom in my town, I began working with local animal rescue groups to have the animals spayed and neutered (and the kittens adopted). Within two years, a colony of 35 cats and kittens was taken down to a stable population of five healthy and vaccinated adults through the direct efforts of two people. We've spayed or neutered hundreds of cats locally. Instead of receiving scorn, these efforts receive praise. Mayor Rodney Wagner should educated himself on the effective alternatives. Too often, feral cat caretakers are labeled "crazy cat people." These people are actually the most active, responsible pursuers of effective solutions to problems created by other people. Instead of bringing an effective TNR program to the town, Wagner is actually criminalizing the most useful, volunteer workforce for bringing the problem to a positive solution. "

" Catch and release Spay/neuter is the common sense answer to this problem, but who thinks politicians have common sense? "

" ABSOLUTELY ABSURD!!! How much money do you think it would take to photograph citizens, mail them a letter of warning and pay for the administrative support to fine people for feeding a stray cat. I'm sure a comparable amount could be used to fund a program that will actually work. I agree with the previous posts, that Mayor Wagner really needs to do his research before he suggests such off the wall ideas. "

" Clermont - City of Clermont wise up!! How inhumane to starve this poor innocent creatures! Humans are to fault for cruelly throwing away these cats to fend for themselves...these monsters should be locked up! The people who feed these stray cats should be rewarded medals of honor for their compassion. Mayor Wagner: how would you like to go to sleep on an empty stomach? How would you like to slowly starve to death? Reconsider, please! "

" Shame on the Clermont City Council and Mayor Rodney Wagner who neglected to get themselves educated on the feral cat problem before they implemented the dragonian policy of punishing caring people who, at their own expense and time, feed feral cats. The citizens of Clermont should be embarrassed to have these people representing them; bringing such negative national media attention to their city in their irresponsible reasoning on dealing with this problem. While domesticated cats are sweet, cuddly and loveable pets, in most cases, feral cats are terrified and distrustful of humans, and rightly so. Many are second generation litters from cats that have been grossly neglected, mistreated and dumped by an irresponsible human owner. Humans are the problem, not innocent cats. I agree with a previous comment that a feral cat did not turn a resident's hot tub into a litter box. Anyone who knows anything about cats habits of dealing with their "litter" would agree that feral cats are being incorrectly blamed for the "smells" when racoons are much more likely to have been the culprits. I have been feeding and providing heated shelter for feral cats for two years; beautiful cats that have been dumped and left to fend for themselves in the wild. By the way, Mr. Spannegel, cats do have many predators in the wild. You might be surprised to learn that the average life span of a feral cat is about two years. They have a very hard life trying to survive in the wild. The most humane and sensible solution that can be done for feral cats is for some compassinate Clermont citizens to band together to get the City Council to withdraw these ridiculous threats and investigate and organize a local TNR program (trap, neuter and release) to decrease the feral cat population, not to criminalize caring humans who feed them. "

" Feeding bans are ineffective when dealing with feral cats because the cats don’t simply go away. Attempts to starve out cats only result in continued reproduction and hungrier and unhealthier animals who are more vulnerable to disease and severe parasitic infestations. Furthermore, nothing is harder than trying to stop caring people from putting out food once they know there are cats in need. We support managed Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) programs to reduce the numbers of free-roaming cats. A reduction in the cat population will mean fewer nuisance complaints (about overpopulation, fighting, spraying, and roaming) to animal control and city officials, fewer public health risks (bites, rabies), and less predation. Sincerely, Nancy Peterson Feral Cat Program Manager The Humane Society of the United States 2100 L Street, NW Washington, DC 20037 301-258-3129 (p) 301-258-3081 (f) www.hsus.org/feralcats "

" Ok I am not from your state I live in CA. and what your Mayor is trying to do is just not right. Find a vet that would fix the cat for a small fee and have the town or the state pay for it have cages that the people could use to catch the cat and then when they are fixed let them go your amount of cats would go down. I feed strays my self and have had a couple of them fixed. I bet your Mayor is a dog lover and can not stand cats do the right thing with them. Mike Walnut CA "

" about time this happened somewhere. It's like the first fundamental principle of economics, "you get more of what you subsidize and less of what you tax," but with cats. Over the course of several decades in various parts of the country I've trapped and killed hundreds of feral cats; I always think of it as doing a favor for the local bird species which are so helpful in keeping harmful insect populations down. Don't get me wrong. I love cats, always have, but I'm of the belief that indoor cats are house pets, outdoor cats are pests and fair targets. For me or the local coyote population. America, keep your cats indoors. -nb socialist occupied Maryland "

" I agree that Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) programs are the answer. Being from this quaint little town, I can attest that POSITVE efforts are being made to clean up and beautify the downtown area. My suggestion: instead of focusing the efforts on feral cats, start issuing fines for the junk cars and machinery that are prevalent in select properties in this area. "

" Are they considering fining people with birdfeeders too? or are they immune as wild animals because they have wings? "

" For more information on Trap-Neuter-Return programs, go here: http://www.alleycat.org/resources_ancare.html My last 3 cats were strays that I adopted. One was adopted right away, while the other 2 I cared for outdoors while I tried to determine whether they belonged somewhere, whether it was feasible to add another to the household, or whether I should take them to a shelter. All are now indoors-only, but what if I had been fined in the interim? That would have taken away money needed for vet care, not to mention really ticking off an otherwise law-abiding citizen and VOTER. "

" What a crock! Feral cats are vermin and should be exterminated. These are not your cute little Fluffy and Muffy, they are often diseased, always flea-ridden, and a social liability from any standpoint. Who released/freed/abandoned their great-great-grandparents is a non-issue, except from the point of view of citing them for offensive littering and/or animal neglect. This "how would you like to..." claptrap is the product of arrested development somewhere near age 7 before normal people learn that life ain't fair and the top of the food chain beats all the positions beneath it. Declare a $2 bounty on the pests and at least give homeless people something to do, trapping for a living. "

" The ignorance of people never ceases to amaze me! I don't know the history of your town's problem with cats, but why won't the City Council and Mayor just fund a spay / nueter program? They could use the money they were going to spend on their dumb photograph and fine program. Or, if your tax base is too poor to afford this (as is often the case when citizens are uneducated, unskilled, or obese) you might ask some nonprofits to help out. Don't organizations like the ASPCA and the Humane Society exist over there in podunk-ville? If not, I'm sure the national offices would be willing to help. Please see the earlier email from the Humane Society lady. Thanks, Margaret Santa Monica, CA "Just tax the stupid people!" "

" Wow, Michael Tenney, you really are bright! "The top of the food chain beats all..." You sound soooo educated... This is another example of why educated people have such disdain for the masses of ignorant slobs... "

" If the Clermont City Council really is interested in doing something constructive about the feral cat problem, they should consider using the funds generated by fines for a spay/neuter program. Feral adult cats generally don't make good pets but they do keep the rodent population in check. This is one way to create a win-win situation for all residents. "

" There is no excuse to advocate cruelty to any animal much less the nation's favorite companion animal. Surely the good people of Clermont can come up with a better plan than photographing those who commit the "heinous" crime of feeding helpless stray cats. That is sheer insanity. Surely the law enforcement officers in Clermont have better things to do with the taxpayers money. Surely the fine citizens of Clermont don't want to become the nation's laughingstock. While it may be a great American tragedy that "one guy won't be able to use his hot tub," it is very likely the priorities of the city can be revamped to include kindness and help for the poor homeless cats. "

" Fix and release is fine. I've done it on my own wooded property. Starvation is a more natural solution: If the population of a predator has increased to where the populations of prey have decreased, nature's way of decreasing the over-population of the predator is starvation. Personally, I like a managed population of a few wild cats to keep the populations of other small vermin in check. The larger predators that would normally keep the cat population in balance need to be kept at bay because of local farms - so in areas like mine where there is lot of livestock, people need to step in to maintain the balance of the populations of wild animals. "

" THE ANSWER TO THE CAT PROBLEM IS-A BOUNTY,ON CAT HEADS, NOT TAILS. 50 CENTS A HEAD. THAT WOULD GIVE THE BOYS WITH BB GUNS SOMETHING TO DO,AND TEACH THEM TO WORK FOR THEIR MONEY. I SHOOT THEM FOR FREE. "

" Who will put a stop to our throw away society? We throw away our pets, our children and even our elderly. Take compassion out of Webster's dictionary, it is obsolete. The only decent solution is a TNR program! I have captured and spayed over a dozen females in the last two years and our neighborhood no longer has a stray problem. The "fixed" strays I feed have eliminated the mouse problem at our house, and incidently they have also brought down the overpopulation of snakes we had been dealing with. My well fed strays are usually content to watch the birdies. Have a heart, TNR!! "

" The solution is to establish a spayed/neutered program. I see there are 44 veternarians within 33 miles of Clermont. If we could get these men and women to set up a free clinic to spay/neuter program once a month giving of their time I would be willing as I'm hoping others will be willing to help get this problem under control. At the same time an education program in all the surrounding areas about spay and neutering animals hopefully will improve this situation greatly. I am contacting the mayor of Clermont. Please make a difference. It only takes a little time and a great experience to teach younger lives love and compassion for creatures great and small. "

" Dear Mayor Wagner, Chief Sullivan, and Clermont City Councilors: Trap/Neuter/Release is the best practice solution nationwide. If it works everywhere else, then I am confident that it will work for your town as well. I urge you to spend your tax dollars on this type of program in a public private partnership with the 44 vets in your area. There are capacity building grants available to begin these programs. They usually cover 50% of costs the first year, 40% the second, and 30% the third with the stipulation that the rest of the money is provided by local resources. With in-kind donations of services from local vets, you could have a model program that will put you in a position of national honor instead of the national disgrace I fear is coming your way. Starving creatures who are guilty only of having been born to homeless parents is distateful and cruel. Do you starve homeless people and thier children as well in Clermont? I would be happy to assist your town to write a capacity building grant at no charge if you will encourage compassion for all living creatures and begin a photograph and fine program for those folks in your community who have admitted to shooting cats with BB guns. That is illegal nationwide if I am not mistaken! "

" The only sane answer to the ferel cat problem is Trap, Neuter and Release. I live in an area where people seem to like to dump their unwanted cats and kittens. These poor souls are left to survive on their own if they are lucky. If it weren't for a few compasionate neighbors who do TNR we would really have a problem. I, myself, have five unwanted cats and love them more than anything. To Carl in Ohio and Michael Tenney... what a couple of jerks!! You are a part of the problem....not part of the answer. By the way, the guy and his hot tub.... are the cats having hot tub partys all night long?? LOL "