Letter Demands Trailer Park Residents Help Poison Feral Cats Or Face Eviction
A trailer park in Reeds Spring, Missouri, is divided over how to handle the increasing number of stray cats. The issue came to a head when some residents received a letter asking them to put bowls of antifreeze outside to “help clean up the stray cat problem.”
USA Today reports that at least two residents have produced identical letters outlining an “action plan” to get rid of stray cats roaming the trailer park. The letter notes that anyone found feeding the strays will immediately be evicted. The note read as follows.
“All Residents of White Eagle Woods….LLC,
“Each resident is allowed one pet per rental unit……Do not leave pet food outside of your rental unit…..The stray cats have become a major problem in the community…..They get under our homes and tear up the insulation creating water leaks and subfloor damage…Anyone found feeding the stray cats will face immediately eviction. Beginning the first of October we will begin an all out assault on all stray cats…So keep your one pet indoors…LAST WARNING….All residents can help clean up the stray cat problem by leaving a bowl of antifreeze out to poison these ever increasing problem…We have tried to trap these pests but they won’t even go in our traps….we would appreciate your help with the potential health problem. This stray cat problem if not eliminated will result in higher rents for all residents.
“WHITE EAGLE WOODS….LLC”
The trailer park’s manager, Mark F. Rich, told reporters he did not send the letter. He said there’s been a dispute in the trailer park between residents who want dozens of problematic feral cats removed and residents who feed the cats. Rich did complain to the News-Leader about damage the cats do to trailers, and said it’s difficult to catch them. He also complained that the county does not have effective animal control, and said the Humane Society wants $40 per cat to remove the animals.
Though residents cannot prove who sent the letter, it is apparent that some people are following its advice. News-Leader reporters witnessed a number of dead cats around the White Eagle Woods property, along with one cat who was burned on a lawn. Kim Pillars, who lives in White Eagle Woods in Reeds Spring, told the News-Ledger there are “dead cats everywhere” because someone has been putting out bowls of antifreeze, shooting strays, and burning them.
This isn’t the first time an area has come under scrutiny for the way they handle stray cats. Cats overran an Indiana Walmart looking for food, which resulted in the town being divided over how to handle the growing problem.
A complaint has been made to the Stone County Sheriff’s Office, and deputies visited the scene Thursday, as well as Humane Society representatives. The sheriff said his department discovered two dead cats, but a deputy couldn’t determine the cause of death or prove that someone had killed them. He told the News-Leader there’s not much more his department can do at this point in time.
