The RSPCA are tackling the cat overpopulation in Sheffield by running a neutering event to urge cat owners to prevent unwanted litters and get their pets sprayed for free.
A scheme which has neutered more than 800 cats in an effort to tackle the cat overpopulation crisis is holing a free neutering event at Crystal Peaks shopping centre.
The neutering event is run by Cat Smart, an RSPCA-funded project – the charity believes that the key to tackling the crisis is to have cats neutered from four-months to avoid unwanted litters.
Members of the public are invited to take part in fun activities at the event, being held on August 18, where there will also be a quiet shop used as a pop-up neutering clinic for cat owners to get their cats sprayed for free.
The RSPCA receives a call about cats to its national control centre on average every three seconds, which is why schemes like this are so important.
Cat Smart, which has been running for 12-months, has neutered 884 cats and 460 of these were female. This means that the scheme has potentially prevented 8,280 unwanted kittens being born in just one year.
Carrie Stones, Cat Population Control Manager at the RSPCA, said: “Sheffield is significantly lower than the national average in terms of the percentage of owners who neuter their cats. Nationally, the neutering rate is at 91% according to the PDSA paws report 2018. This equates to about 999,000 unneutered cats in the UK, which is a very significant number in itself.
“In Sheffield the neutering rate is estimated at 86%*, which is significantly below the national average, this is why we wanted to set up Cat Smart in Sheffield and so far it has been very successful.
A number of charities and volunteers will help out on the day including vets and vet nurses, PDSA reception staff, RSPCA staff, volunteers for the Cat Smart scheme, The Sheffield Cat Shelter and volunteers from Cats Protection.
There will also be face painting, the RSPCA’s cat mascot and Travis the Cat, the Sheffield Cat Shelter mascot, as well as the sale of cat and kitten goods.
To find out more information on the event, you can visit www.facebook.com/CatSmartSheffied.
*According to a RSPCA study undertaken in Sheffield before Cat Smart launched.
