I was just about to let my huge dog run outside for a little while when I saw five tiny faces peaking through the fence in our back yard. To me this was a complicated moment. I saw five innocent little creatures who, except for their own mother, were unloved, uncared for, and in constant environmental danger. I also felt protective of my own dog.

I am an avid dog-lover. I resented the abundance of feral cats in our neighborhood ever since I my dog was old enough to run loose in our fenced-in yard. You see, there’s a danger for dogs being exposed to feral cat feces. The diet of most uncared for feral cats is very high in protein. Much too high for a young puppy. The second danger I see is that the ferals do not receive veterinary care and are not dewormed.

The day I saw those little faces was the day that I decided I could continue to complain, or I could plan to do something about this situation.