Feline Youth Intervention Seeks to Control Fort Dodge Feral Cat Population

(Alpha Media – Brooke Bickford) – A passion to help control the cat population led a mom with a full-time job right to where she was needed. In 2020, Jen Liddell of Rolfe formed Feline Youth Intervention in an effort to help combat the cat population in our area. The idea stemmed from seeing a news story about an elderly man whose cat population on his farm was out of control.

 “Animal protection and education rescue were going out there helping to spay and neuter his cats before finding the rescue he had tried reached out for help from different people and organizations.” Liddell said. All of which told him they couldn’t help him. So then his population kept growing and there was nothing he could do about it. The state of Iowa throws the books at him  because he couldn’t find help”.

Liddell said setting up your own trapping operation is not a good idea for someone without experience.

The 8 year animal rescue veteran checks the fertile cats for microchips, has them ear tipped, microchipped and vaccinated and she always returns the newly spayed and neutered cats back to their original location:

“If you remove a certain animal or species, like cats from the area you’re just making more room for more cats to move in.” Liddell said.  “The cats are there for a reason because there is a food source, a shelter and there’s breeding. They are set up for the perfect environment. More cats are just going to move in even if you take some out of an area.”

Although it may feel like she is chasing her tail at times, Liddell continues her pursuit and said she could use help with transporting and fundraising efforts. You can find Feline Youth Intervention on Facebook.