Non-profit holds purr-fect fundraiser to keep street cat population down

The milder winter has caused kitten season to come early, and a local group is trying to help keep the street cat population down.

They do that by catching cats, spaying or neutering them, then returning them to their homes -- but it's not cheap.

They came up with the purr-fect fundraising idea. Thinking of a good way to raise money can be harder than herding cats, which is actually what the group Meow Mission does every weekend.

They call it "Purses for Purrs", and tonight, they raised $2,225!

Shelves full of designer purses were all donated to be auctioned off at Meow Mission. The majority of the non-profit's money is needed to pay for spaying and neutering.

It costs $45 per cat.

“Our goal is to proactively and humanely reduce the stray cat population and we can do that through trap, neuter, return,” said coordinator Jodi Aker.

It's all volunteers, and Aker tells us it's really an art form. She gave us a demonstration back at the headquarters of how it's done.

“You put the food in and then slowly move it back so they get more comfortable every day, cover it with a sheet so the cat doesn't freak out,” said SOT.

After a cat has been treated, a small portion of their ear is clipped. The cats living at Casa Meow are like the mascots of the group.

Aker says this is the best way for population control because there aren't enough houses for every cat to be adopted, and if you relocate them, they'll just come back to their homes.

The group finds stray cats via tips from Animal Control or everyday people who start to notice reappearing strays.

“Someone will contact us and say, ‘Hey there's a cat outside, I know I need it get it neutered, what should we do?’” said Aker.

With the money raised tonight, the group can keep on doing their thing, one cat at a time.

“The goal is to get 100 percent of the cats,” said Aker. “If you leave one unaltered female, you are gonna be right back where you started next year."

The organization goes out to trap cats every Sunday. The cats recover in their facilities before being brought back to where the group found them.

Their location is kept secret because they are not an adoption agency and don't want people just leaving stray cats in boxes on their doorstep.