Anchorage Daily News

Feisty. Itty Bitty. Emo. And Fuzzy.

The kittens and cats stuck their paws out and swatted passers-by from their cages. Some meowing. Some glowering. Others just taking in the crowded scene inside the Alaska SPCA's spay and neuter van, parked in Mountain View on Saturday.

In a few hours, the cats would be sedated and sterilized as part of a new citywide effort to reduce the overpopulation of felines.

"Instead of just building more cages, this is a proactive way to address the problem," said Toni Diedrich, spokeswoman for the Alaska Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

The Fix-A-Feline program, funded by a $7,500 grant from the city, takes the mobile spay and neuter van to neighborhoods across the city and offers low-income owners free sterilization of their cats. The SPCA says the money will fund operations for 200 animals.

Animal Control last year processed 4,160 cats through its doors. Of those, 1,945 were euthanized. That's more than the 1,553 adopted out, said Scott Gower, Animal Control spokesman.

About the same number of dogs were processed by Animal Control, but far less -- 545 -- were euthanized.

"They are not valued like dogs. They are treated like second-class citizens," Diedrich said.

Nationally, in 2005, the latest year for which figures are available, animal shelters took in 8 million to 12 million companion animals and euthanized an estimated 5 million to 9 million, or 60 percent of dogs and 70 percent of cats, according to the American SPCA.

Veterinarian Liesl Lewis, who performed the operations Saturday in the fully-outfitted vet van, said cats are particularly fertile and often present more of a problem than dogs.

"Their reproductive systems are identical to rabbits," she said. "It only takes one encounter and they will likely end up pregnant."

Cats are also more apt to roam neighborhoods, which, according to Anchorage municipal code is not allowed. Cats and dogs are subject to the same city laws, Gower said. Both must be restrained when outside of their owner's property. On their owner's property, they must be restrained or respond to voice commands.

Normally, to spay or neuter a cat can cost more than $150 in Anchorage, Diedrich said.

"That's expensive," said Lindy Tubb, owner of Fuzzy, formally known as Fuzzy Bumpkins The Fluffy Bringer of Doom.

Tubb came to the clinic with her neighbor, Raelene Old, who owns a svelte black cat named Emo.

"We live right next door to each other. And, with her having a boy, and me, a girl, well, neither of us wanted kittens," Tubb said.

The van will be visiting neighborhoods across Anchorage over the next couple months, including Spenard, Muldoon and Eagle River. To make an appointment, call the SPCA at 230-2171. Because pre-operation instructions need to be followed, owners cannot just show up with their pets.

Find Megan Holland online at adn.com/contact/mholland or call 257-4343.

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