I can't sleep. I'm actually shaking with anger and despair. And I've just had a large glass of wine to calm my nerves (and I don't drink). I'm so fed up and rather drunk. It's actually a rare cat rescue job that isn't buggered up by horrible, horrible people.
So this particular one that's causing this upset. Last Summer I had a call from someone who had seen posters I had put up asking for info on another cat colony. They said they knew people who were feeding a colony in their garden and could I help. So I put a note through their door, and heard nothing, for two months.
Then I got a call from them to say that they had my note and that they had 10 kittens that had been born to two mothers in a kennel in their garden and could I take them away. So I took the kittens and trapped the two mothers plus one extra pregnant female. But there was a large colony (probably around 15 cats) so I said I would need to come back to trap and neuter the rest. I kept trying to arrange it and they kept saying they were busy. So eventually I gave up, but it gave me sleepless nights wondering what had happened to all those cats.
Then yesterday they called out of the blue to say that one of the cats was injured and could I come to get it. When I got there I saw there was a heavily pregnant cat, plus quite a lot more unneutered females. They agreed I could come back that evening to try to get the pregnant one. Which I did but she didn't go in the trap. I talked about making a plan to get all of the cats once I had her, and they agreed.
I went again tonight. Again I didn't quite manage to get her (all the others had gone in the trap but I had to get her first so as not to scare her). And then they said that I couldn't come back as now they would be 'too busy' until August. All they have to do is to open their front door and let me sit in their conservatory. That's it. But that's too much trouble and now there will be approximately another 20 kittens born in a few months time, and probably another 40 by August.
They feed the cats. They care enough to do that, but they don't care enough to open the front door for me occasionally. Fuck me I hate people. This sort of shit happens all the time.
Only a few months ago I was 'kidnapped' by a maniac who didn't believe in neutering but had wanted me to trap the (feral) cats in his garden to give to his friends and refused to let me leave with the cats (Police were called and everything). I won that one by shinning over a very high fence with a trap full of cats. To this day I don't know how I did it.
Another job recently. We put leaflets through letterboxes asking if anyone was feeding a cat colony as we wanted to neuter to 'stop numbers of cat multiplying out of control'. We got an answer that a man was feeding but was 'happy for them to breed for now'. Then what? When there are 50 cats then he wants us to come to neuter them? So we have to spend the time catching 50 cats rather than 20? So we have to pay for 50 rather than 20 to be neutered?
I fucking hate people.
Another recent one - again feeding a colony. But they believe that all the females should have at least one litter. So they refused to let me take the young females. I pointed out that most of the litters born in those gardens were eaten by foxes, but they wouldn't believe me.
I fucking hate people.
I love the trapping jobs that are in public places, were people can't obstruct. But most are in back gardens. Those terraces that are all one big lump of back gardens with no access but through houses. Then you have to rely on people's goodwill. And people are selfish, stupid, thoughtless fuckers. Well the ones I seem to meet are anyway.
I fucking hate people.