By Nicola Giorgi
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They are shaped like a small mountain hut. Made from reclaimed wood, they catch the eye immediately. But what are these small houses that you can come across in different areas of Beauvais, especially around certain residences, for?
For almost a year now, the City has had “cat sheds” installed. for stray cats. Stated goal: to prevent them from reproducing by the hundreds, knowing that a cat can have up to six kittens per litter. cold.
“On the streets, these cats are mistreated. They fight among themselves or transmit diseases. What we want through this campaign is to reduce as much as possible this state of misery and suffering in which they find themselves.”
With the help of the association 30 Millions d’amis
These houses, designed by employees of the association for integration through work Elan-CES, therefore aim to lure cats with food, to later catch them and have them sterilized. All without bullying them.
With this in mind, a sterilization agreement has been signed between the city and the association 30 Millions d’amis, which shares the veterinary expenses equally.
The city thus granted a subsidy on €4,200 for this campaign.
A total of ten of these huts have been scattered across the city since March. Cats can rest there, eat there and shelter from the rain. There is one, for example, behind Saint-Pierre Cathedral, another in Saint Jean districtright next to the technical services, but also a near Hotel Dieuor rue des Vosges.
Already 70 cats sterilized since the cabins were installed
Since March 2023 and the installation of these large cabins, 70 cats were thus captured, sterilized and then released.
Once the animals have been caught using a small wrought iron hatch, the volunteers hand over the cats directly either to partner vets or directly to the Cat School, in Mouy or to the Clara shelter in Beauvais.
“We don’t trap in these cabins!” »
The system was investigated in 2022 in response to a request from local residents who complained about nuisance (“marking” of territory, fights between cats, etc.)
“Feeding places already existed in the city, but were not very suitable. They were small shelters made by accident,” he says Patricia Hiberty.
For the sake of cleanliness and hygiene, the municipality has therefore considered installing small huts where volunteers could leave food and drink, and which would also give cats the opportunity to rest sheltered from the weather. “But we don’t catch directly in these huts! “, insists the chosen one.
Call for volunteers
Small iron hatches are reserved for this purpose. Armed with these boxes, the volunteers wait, sometimes for hours, for a cat to appear in front of the entrance to the hut to lure them.
One constant remains: the volunteers responsible for these trapping operations are short of hands. “We would like to install a few more huts, but we need volunteers to take care of them”, emphasizes Patricia Hiberty.
