A lady, Maria, living in the Albert Park vicinity has fed feral cats for most of her life and has also paid to have them sterilised, although she now lives on a grant. There are about a dozen ferals in the group she looks after, and she phones Jacqui when she has a problem.

Building operations are currently going on in the area, and some workers have been stoning the cats and otherwise abusing them. Schoolchildren are also treating them badly, but Maria has been unable to identify the culprits. Water bowls are also emptied and precious food thrown away.

Alfred and Jacqui have visited the area several times. One of the problems is that the caretaker doesn’t want cats in the area, despite the fact that they keep down rats.       
At one time, someone in the neighbourhood put down snailbait in the courtyard to poison the cats. Maria is under great stress because these feral cats are, she says, her life, and they adore her. She sometimes even goes out at night to feed them. .... more reports »