Rose, A Story In Dedication..

When Rose Bauman talks about cats she helps in low income neighborhoods, you see the frustration on her animated face. In 2002 Rose Marie hit the mean streets of Maryland. It was clear to her, as it is to many of us, that TNR was not working. It was, not only failing, it was escalating the deteriorating situation for homeless cats. If you are looking for " forever homes" and "furbabies" with the word " rescue" mis-used several times in one paragraph....best to stop reading about here :) This is not a " feel good "furrykids" post. Rose Bauman is angry about the lack of focus on these communities which produce the majority of free roaming cats. This isn't citizen apathy, this is a lack education and funding. Subsidized spay-neuter is the long term answer for abandoned or owner surrender cats.  Intact cats are given up at much higher rates. Spaying is best accomplished by outreach into these communities. Rose's community outreach spay/neuter group is a non-profit registered with the state of Maryland, she is not a 501c. Over population begins in the home, with unaltered cats, and then spreads to the community, Overpopulation does not begin in the shelter.
Rose is pro abortion for pregnant animals, and very straight up about what she feels is ethical for neo-natals ( bottle babies ). Her attitudes and decisions are based in ethics, the ethics of quality of life versus sanctity of life. Her degree in nursing provides life experiences that she brings forward in her work with cats and the often impoverished people involved in TNR.

Like most people who respect life, Rose is against TNR and promotes spay/neuter as a solution to pet over-population. She is adamant that putting neo-natals in the system is unfair to them as well as  cats waiting for homes, I agree with her..There is no quality of life for a TNR cat, therefore the only cases that Rose will deal with are all private families (with existing strays ). Her "project" cats are kept on a parcel with the cat feeder. She know these cats will have a less than good life, and most will receive no vet care beyond what they get during their surgery. But, she quickly says, it's better than a life of pregnancy.

Bauman will not create a "cat group" hates the word colony, and takes solace in the fact that if the family gets evicted and leaves the cats behind, at least they won't reproduce. Rose has been helping her community and it's strays for 10 years, her goal is spay / neuter for all cats, and closing the spigot on kitten population. Period..

Rose does not see cat feti or bottle babies as viable animals that will be able to live a reasonable, healthy life. Her dismay at keeping such helpless creatures hostage , is intense. It's Munchausen by proxy.  Doing so only serves the needs of the cat feeder, not the cat.  So, we ask, what does Rose do that is TNR related ? Below is her answer.

"I get the call and they say Rose my cat had kittens ( or is pregnant ) can you come get the kittens. " Rose will take the kittens to the shelter where they are euthanized, or she will have the Mom aborted and returned to a private parcel. She has little use for " kitten mongers" who make themselves feel like heroes at the expense of kittens who will never have a life with any quality at all. As she says, every time she sees a starving, flea infested cat on the streets with an ear tip she wishes that would be the picture Alley Cat Allies would put up on their site. Rose has facilitated approximately 7,000 spay/neuter surgeries since starting in 2002, she doesn't feel she has made even a dent in the problem caused by TNR. The stray cat population in Baltimore was about 185,000 four years ago, it has grown expotenially since then... and most are friendly.

Rose's spay / neuter program is not part of a TNR program, nor does it support cats not kept on private land, her spay/neuters are never released on the public streets. It appears to me that Rose Bauman is one of the best spay/neuter proponents because she takes her solution to the community and doesn't redistribute cats like Johnny Appleseed all over Maryland.

It's not a perfect solution, but the best one I have seen in a TNR community..her feeling is Mr. Winograd destroyed the cats in Baltimore by leaving them on the street to die. When asked if the cats perhaps were better off not born, Rose offers a resolute yes.

Because cats are by nature " born to wander" thus impossible to keep in all the time, having all cats neutered is the only way to prevent population growth. You will not keep an indoor cat confined once the hormones kick in, so err on the side of caution and get indoor cats neutered before the first estrus, or as soon as they come to live with you. Don't worry, most cats are acquired unintentionally, so we won't run out.
Pictured is Rosie, a good cat who came to feed one day 11 years ago...