Abaykitties has been working to get some of the cats from Queens’ Marketplace adopted after the nonprofit was told to stop its trap-neuter-release efforts at the shopping center.
The Department of Land and Natural Resource in April directed the owner of the Waikoloa mall to remove all cat-feeding stations on its property. The situation came to the attention of DLNR from concerned citizens who witnessed nene eating from the cat feeders.
Property owner Alexander &Baldwin has since removed the feeding stations.
Abaykitties and other cat activists have responded unfavorably over social media, stating that hundreds of cats will starve to death.
Director of Abaykitties, Dawn Garlinghouse, on April 25 met with DLNR Chair Dawn Chang during her visit to Waikoloa.
Chang reiterated that there would be absolutely no community feeding of cats under any circumstances, Garlinghouse said.
“I was under the impression from (Governor) Josh Green that she would be coming to discuss solutions, but that was not the case,” Garlinghouse said. “She was not coming to waive citations, she wasn’t trying to compromise, and she wasn’t interested in humane ways to provide food and water for the cats.”
According to Garlinghouse, Chang was just there to hear concerns and give her stance, which was contrary to Green’s earlier public comments about the issue.
Garlinghouse has reached out to the governor’s office, but has not had any productive responses.
“We were really disappointed, and were hopeful after Green’s comments that we could come to a compromise, but we’ve learned he is not going to respond to the cat issue. Anyone you reach out will give a canned response,” Garlinghouse said. “So, now we’re actively looking for places to place the cats and would love to talk to anyone with farms and ranches who may be interested in helping.”
Garlinghouse and volunteers have been working to find homes and relocate the cats that have been socialized to people, but Abaykitties has had to stop its trap-neuter-release program.
“It is crazy to me that the solution to helping the nene is killing all the cats, and that’s it,” Garlinghouse said. “This is frustrating, because there haven’t been any nene harmed in this shopping center.But they have been hurt at golf courses where there aren’t any harsh rules or regulations regarding nene.”
The DLNR has distributed flyers throughout Waikoloa and online to educate people about protecting native animals and warning against feeding feral cats and other nonnative wildlife.
While there haven’t been solutions to help the mass population of cats at Queens’ Marketplace, Garlinghouse and volunteers will continue to help get as many cats relocated and adopted as possible.
Abaykitties is working closely with the Hawaii Aloha Animal Oasis, which is a nonprofit dedicated to rescuing cats on the Big Island. The organization is raising money to open a sanctuary for socialized and unsocialized cats.
However, funds are still needed to make this goal a reality. Those interested in donating or learning more about Hawaii Aloha Animal Oasis can visit the website at hawaiiaao.org.
Email Kelsey Walling at kwalling@hawaiitribune-herald.com.