It’s rewarding to see Alley Cat Allies receive the recognition they deserve in The Washington Post.
These cats are not the ones that come running when you call, “Kitty, kitty.”
They are stray and feral cats — darting through the nighttime shadows, keeping their distance from humans. Most of the time, people don’t even know they are there. But the alleyways, vacant lots and back yards of the Washington area are full of them.
For 17 years, Becky Robinson has cared about these elusive creatures in a way that many people and, historically, many overwhelmed animal shelters, did not.
When feral cats — the untamed, usually unadoptable offspring of lost and abandoned cats — are taken to shelters, they almost always end up euthanized. With her group, Alley Cat Allies, Robinson has worked locally and nationally to encourage a different approach: Cats are trapped, neutered or spayed, then released back to the outdoor life they know best.
