Cats of Roosevelt Island 29.08.2010

Roosevelt Island, New York: The cats.

There was a bunch of cats living semi-wild in the southern end of Roosevelt Island. At first they seemed to be on their own, abandoned, but then we spotted a few boxes and bowls of water lying around near the fences. I took photos, inspected the sleeping & feeding boxes they had, until a woman approached. She and her friend have been taken care of the cats for a (long?) time, bringing food and water.

They told us the nurses from a nearby hospital also bring food, but that apparently, they have no clue what cats really eat. So they often find noodles and salads and random lunch boxes lying around. I asked about the winter, and they told us about the southern park that was going to be opened again in a few weeks. They were planning to build some shelters there - not very warm ones, but a bit better than the ones they had now (plastic boxes with small holes, clothes and blankets inside).

She admitted it's really cold during the winter time, windy and chilly.

I know there are millions of animals in distress around the world, but I still worry about these cats a bit. I spotted at least five or six of them, and even those were hiding behind the fences and under the boxes. Who knows how many litters of kittens they already had this summer?

Now I'm wondering if I should inform the animal shelters of NY? I do think they know already, since there were a couple of those signs on the fence. But maybe I'd get a peace of mind or something.