CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – When people hear the phrase “cat colony,” they often imagine something informal or self-sustaining – cats living independently, largely taking care of themselves. In reality, there is a critical difference between managed and unmanaged colonies, and that difference directly impacts the health, safety, and survival of the cats involved.
At Caring For Creatures (CFC), we’ve spent the last four years working closely with a nearby unmanaged community cat colony, and what we’ve learned has reshaped how we think about community cats – and how urgent proper management truly is.
What Are Community Cats?
Community cats are unowned or loosely owned cats who live outdoors. They come from many different circumstances:
- Some are born outside
- Some once had homes and wandered off or became lost
- Some were abandoned when families moved or faced housing challenges
- Some were left behind because they didn’t get along with other pets
What they share is vulnerability. Despite common myths, cats living outdoors do not reliably thrive without human support.
Unmanaged vs. Managed Colonies: A Clear Distinction
An unmanaged colony is one where:
- No one provides consistent food
- Cats are not spayed or neutered
- Vaccines, including rabies, are not administered
- Medical care is unavailable
- There is no appropriate shelter
- No long-term plan exists to stabilize or reduce the population
This was the situation we encountered not far from our sanctuary.
The property owners involved cared deeply about the cats – but caring alone isn’t enough. They simply didn’t have the financial resources, medical access, or infrastructure needed to manage a growing population. Over time, the number of cats increased rapidly, health declined, and conditions became unsafe for both the cats and the people trying to help them.
Why We Stepped In
When we first became involved, the colony was struggling:
- Cats were reproducing unchecked
- No rabies vaccinations were in place
- There was no routine medical care
- Shelter was inadequate, especially during winter months
- Food was inconsistent
The situation wasn’t sustainable – and without intervention, it would only worsen.
What Management Looks Like in Practice
Over the last four years, CFC has:
- Worked with 185 cats from this colony
- 80 cats were successfully adopted into permanent homes
- Provided complete medical care, including spay/neuter, vaccinations, and deworming
- Built two large, roofed feeding stations
- Installed 15 insulated dog houses, filled with clean straw that is replaced multiple times each winter
- Transported all shelters back to the sanctuary twice a year for thorough cleaning and disinfection
- Supplied 150 pounds of dry food every week
Today, 50 – 60 cats remain at the colony, now stabilized and monitored…