In the Wednesday, Oct. 23, edition of the Butler Eagle, we learned about a relatively new effort to control the cat population in Butler County, and at no cost to the public.

When Susan Eleanor Andre died in June 2021 she left the Butler County Humane Society a large bequest. It was given to help support a program that would spay or neuter cats for free.

Cari Ciancio, executive director at the humane society, said for more than a year, the organization has been working with Mars Animal Depot, Moraine Grove Veterinary Clinic, PetVet 365 in Cranberry Township, Animal Friends in Pittsburgh and Cats in Knead in Butler to spay or neuter hundreds of cats.

Earlier this year, things kicked into a higher gear with the start of the S.E.A. program, named to honor Andre’s donation. Operation Spay Neuter, which started in 2004, works with a team of mobile veterinarians with Fix’n Wag’n of Allison Park, Allegheny County, to perform the surgeries for the S.E.A. program.

While there’s plenty of argument about the amount of harm stray and feral cats cause, they can prey on wildlife and be a nuisance to humans. The spay or neuter process can help with those problems — if enough people participate.

“We need those people who aren’t yet trapping their cats or who have cats on their property to start bringing in their cats,” Ciancio said. “Until that happens, we’re not going to see a decrease in the cat population.”

And as spaying or neutering is now free for Butler County residents, there’s less of a reason than ever to avoid it.

— JK