The number of stray cats roaming around East London’s popular hangout spot Ebuhlanti is showing a steady increase.
That’s according to braai vendors, who say feral cat colonies have been seen scavenging for food in the area in recent weeks.
Andile Mntuyedwa, a braai vendor at Ebuhlanti, said the cats were frequently in the area, but numbers had grown since the festive season.
“I have been working here for the past nine years. The cats have always been here but lately there’s been a huge increase. They mostly come out during the night and hide in the bushes during the day time.”
However, the cats were not impacting on his business, he said.
“They do not come out when there are people around, but once it empties out, they come. They do not cause any harm, they just walk around looking for food.”
Mntuyedwa said there could be more than 50 feral cats in the area and according to him, he had encountered four that died.
“Some die here and we just put them in garbage bags for the municipality to collect,” he added. Chairperson of the Ebuhlanti braaiers committee, Nonqubela Gobinduku, echoed his sentiments that the strays were not a risk.
“They do not cause any harm to our businesses, but there are quite a lot of cats now in the area.
“They are coming from the bush situated right next to our working area. We would accept any assistance in preventing them from growing in large numbers as this could be a problem if it is not attended to,” Gobinduku said.
East London SPCA admin manager Susan Holmes said the increase in feral cats could be due to the area being utilised as a recreational braai site with its leftover food, bones and scraps attracting the animals.
“Dirt bins not being emptied regularly at the site and small rodents are other contributing factors.”
She said the animal welfare organisation had a sterilisation drive for cats and dogs but due to lack of funding, had to stop the project a few years ago.
“The SPCA does not obtain any government funding and relies solely on public donations to care for the animals. If we could obtain the assistance of BCM marine and coastal staff and the public for donations, the SPCA could trap, neuter and return the feral cats to the area,” she said.
Holmes added the cats did not pose a threat or harm to the public as they could not pass diseases onto humans...