Corregidor is a small rocky island in the Philippines about 48 kilometers west of Manila, which is strategically located at the entrance of Manila Bay. This island fortress stands as a memorial for the courage, valor, and heroism of its Filipino and American defenders who bravely held their ground against the overwhelming number of invading Japanese forces during World War II.
Today the island has become a tourist destination and with the efforts of Sun Cruises (tour operators that organize ferry services and tours from Manila) and CARA we hope to make it into a haven for cats.
In April 2011, CARA was approached by Ms. Doris Magsaysay Ho of Sun Cruises to implement Trap/Neuter/Return to address the increase in the cat population on the island. On April 19 CARA conducted a survey on the island and put forward a proposal for conducting Spay/Neuter.
A day before the scheduled surgery, CARA members went to the island and trapped 19 cats. Cats were captured from different areas of the island and held in separate holding cages so that they could be returned to their respective areas. They were left for the night to await their surgery .
On May 31st, a team of 2 vets and 5 representatives of CARA went to Corregidor for conducting the surgeries.
All 19 cats were operated on:
Females: 12
Pregnant Females: 4
Males: 7
It was a hot and tiring day for all involved but a successful start to addressing the population issue. In time we hope to organize another Spay/Neuter day. Being an island, with no new introduction of cats, this is a perfect opportunity to demonstrate the effectiveness of T/N/R as a feral cat management plan. We hope that the cats can live amicably amongst the people in a peaceful territory and help eradicate any rat population.
To read more about Trap/Neuter/Return please view: TNR