May 2002

Polly Khater, left, and Colleen Bauer, two of the many Cat Coalition members, hold the Cat Coalition t-shirt which is available to purchase for $15. All proceeds go to the Cat Coalition. Contact Bauer at x32462 for details.

One of George Mason’s many stray cats sneaks out from behind a feeding site maintained by the university’s Cat Coalition, a group of dedicated current and former staff members and others from the community who volunteer their time to ensure that the animals are healthy.

Campus Volunteers Take Care of Stray Cats on Fairfax Campus

By Jeremy Lasich

Colleen Bauer, assistant registrar for student system conversion, spends at least $700 on cat food a year. Her car's trunk is filled with bags of cat food, as is the space under her desk. All this food, and not a single ounce goes to her own four cats. Instead, as a member of the George Mason Cat Coalition, Bauer distributes the food among the six or eight strays that live near the Chesapeake modules on the Fairfax Campus.

The coalition, formed in December 1994 by former Director of University Publications Joan Ziemba, is a group of dedicated current and former staff members and others from the community who volunteer their time to ensure that these animals are healthy. Ziemba modeled the coalition after the Stanford Cat Network, which has been recognized nationally for its care and management of homeless cats. There are currently about 20 universities across the nation with similar programs, according to Bauer.

In addition to tending the eight feeding sites around campus seven days a week, coalition members trap the cats, have them spayed or neutered, test them for feline leukemia and feline AIDS, and give them inoculations, including a three-year rabies shot. The group works closely with Little River Veterinary Clinic, which donates its services, and many of the local free spay and neuter clinics. Approximately 40 to 50 cats live on campus, and those that have been treated have the tip of one ear clipped. Returning the cats back into their campus territory helps control the feline population. The costs for repeatedly trapping and killing feral colonies are far higher than promoting stable, non-breeding colonies in the same location. Vacated areas are soon filled by other cats who start the breeding process over again.

Bauer became aware of the cats' presence on campus while working in Krug Hall, when she tried to help a "momma cat get her babies out of a window well." In the process, one of the cats bit Bauer, who hadn't had a recent tetanus shot. When she went to Student Health Services, the incident was reported to the police.

"I didn't want to tell the police where the cats were, but they said if I didn't, they would trap every cat on the campus to test for rabies." Bauer cooperated and was told the cats would be held by Fairfax County Animal Control for 10 days for observation. A week later, after calling Animal Control, she learned the whole family had been killed even though none had tested positive for rabies. "I was devastated and wanted to make sure nothing like that ever happened again," says Bauer.

Bauer became active in the coalition in spring 2000 after the Registrar's Office moved into the North Chesapeake Module and she saw kittens that had been born under the building. Bauer even adopted one of the kittens.

"Once I saw these animals, I couldn't pretend they weren't living here," says Bauer. "I could wish they had homes and were somewhere else where they were warmer, safer, and less afraid, but that's not the case."

One of Bauer's most memorable experiences happened a few months ago with a black cat named Inkjet. Even though most cats on campus stay around their feeding sites, Inkjet followed Bauer everywhere, but he never let her touch him.

"One night, some raccoons around our building had Inkjet pretty excited. He started Œtalking' to me. I spoke softly and offered a hand, and he eventually let me pet his face. It was as if this made him remember what people are good for, and he followed me all the way to my car that night. After that he lost much of his fear of people, and we determined this cat really needed a home." Shortly after the encounter, Inkjet developed an abscess and an eye infection and had to be trapped to be taken to the vet. Bauer tried to adopt Inkjet, but he didn't get along with her other cats. The story, however, does have a happy ending—Inkjet now lives with Bauer's parents in Florida.

"So now he is living with two retired people who give him lots of love and attention," Bauer says. "He is lounging in the Florida sun and is the happiest kitty in the world."

The organization has helped more than 300 cats in eight years, Bauer says, and is always looking for volunteers or donations. The coalition will accept food, building materials, or shelters (such as an old dog house), but money is the best donation. Faculty and staff can donate through the George Mason Foundation via payroll deduction or as a one-time gift.

"We do this out of love and the experience is so rewarding," says Bauer. "It's one thing to have stray cats on campus, but it's another to have hungry, desperate cats. They didn't ask for it, but they are part of the George Mason community."