On Jan. 27 two Bernville residents will appear before District Justice Andrea Book in Jefferson Township to face public nuisance charges stemming from ongoing feeding of a trap-neuter-return colony of feral cats near their homes.

Stephen W. Wise and Marguerite "Margie" E. Clay of the 200 block of Garfield Road in Bernville were cited Dec.12 under Bernville's disorderly conduct/public nuisance ordinance for continuing to feed feral cats after being asked to stop. Clay along with Wise's wife and daughter, Cindy and Kristen,  have been maintaining a feral cat colony, currently numbering nine, through a trap-neuter-return program.

"They cited me because I am the only one home during the day because I work third shift," Stephen Wise said.

Neighbors of Clay and the Wises, Bruno J. and Kimberly A. Quanquin, filed complaints with Bernville Police Chief Brian E. Thumm because of the fecal material the cats have left on their property. The Quanquins had complained to the Bernville Borough Council in June that there were more than 30 cats roaming the neighbors' yards and defecating in their yard.

The Quanquins, who purchased their semi-detached home in 2008 according to county records, are currently trying to sell their home. Their home and the Wises are connected.

The Quanquins could not be reached for comment. A phone number listed for them had been disconnected.

Cindy, 48, said there has been a feral and stray cat problem in the neighborhood for all of the 25 years she has lived there. Cindy and Stephen, 51, purchased their home in 1987.

“This past summer, when all of this (the problems with the Quanquins) started, there were a lot of cats here with kittens," Cindy said. "We tried to take them and nobody would accept them. I took the mothers, while they were pregnant, to the Animal Rescue League and they couldn’t take them, they were full. I ran them up to Lebanon and they wouldn’t take them because we’re out of their district. I called up in Schuylkill County and we were out of their district. I had no place to take them.”

Cindy said that with the intervention of Chief Thumm, the Animal Rescue League of Berks County finally took some of the cats they had captured, homes were found for a few and others were trapped, neutered, vaccinated and released.

Cindy said that Clay, 89, said there has been cat problem for the 65 years Clay has lived in the neighborhood. Clay did not return calls seeking an interview. Her late husband, Stanon H. Clay, was mayor of Bernville from 1951 to 1996.

Cindy said her daughter Kristen started helping Clay with the feral and stray cats when she was 8 years old. Kristen is now 25.

"We've taken away anywhere between 150 and 200 cats; they still kept coming," Cindy said.

She said the area creates an attractive habitat for the cats.

"We have Game Commission land right aside of us, we have farms, the borough park -- Umbenhauer Park -- is in my back yard and across the street is no homes, just garages, a hill and farm," Cindy explained.

“Unfortunately, the mentality of 'catch and kill' to reduce the number of free-roaming cats still exists in communities like Bernville even, though scientifically this has been proven not to work,” wrote Dr. Jennifer L. Fry, a veterinarian, in a letter to District Justice Andrea J. Book. “Trapping and killing these cats just leaves more space for other cats to move in to take advantage of the available resources. These new cats breed quickly and form new colonies. This is called the vacuum effect. It costs taxpayers an average of $200 to trap, house and eventually kill a feral cat. However, compassionate caregivers like Cindy Wise volunteer their time and resources to participate in TNR to care for these cats and it costs tax payers $0!”

Fry is executive director of the Wyomissing-based Fairchild Foundation and is owner of Banfield, The Pet Hospital of Pottstown. The foundation advocates trap-neuter-return programs and conducts monthly spay/neuter/vaccination clinics for feral cats at the Animal Rescue League of Berks County.

Cindy said that Kimberly Quanquin had given her the phone number for The CatWorks Inc. this summer before things completely soured and had helped find homes for two of the cats prior to that.

The CatWorks helped the Wises and Clay establish a TNR colony.

"Of course they took some of the cats in and they had me going to No Nonense (Neutering) to get them fixed, whatever we could catch -- trap, neuter, return," Cindy said.

“What we need to do is have citizens write their local decision makers that TNR is the most effective way to handle cats and that feeding bans don't work,” wrote Martha Kahan, president of No Nonsense Neutering, in an email last week. “It is difficult to pass new laws or overturn old ones. However, in Baltimore, they did just that. They exclude feral cats and colony caretakers from the established ordinances.”

No Nonsense Neutering's official commentary on the Bernville issue stated:

"Cat overpopulation has not been solved by decades of trapping and killing free roaming cats, both feral and stray, banning their feeding or imposing pet limits. In addition to being unpopular with the majority of citizens, these strategies prove to be costly to municipalities to sustain and enforce. There is an estimated 10 million households in the USA involved at some level with feeding and providing care for free roaming cats. Most individuals engaged in such activities are willing to participate and fund Trap Neuter Return (TNR) programs that benefit their communities and the cats."

Alley Cat Allies, a national organization that promotes TNR did not return requests for comment on the Bernville case, but Cindy did say she was contacted by them.

Cindy said they did start capturing and neutering the cats a few years ago.

"Some of them we had done back in 2008," Cindy said. "We have found homes for some of them that were friendly."

Others are truly feral and not approachable. Feeding them is the only way they have a chance to catch them and neuter them Cindy said.

"All they're screaming at us is to stop feeding them and they'll disperse," Cindy said. "Where are they going to disperse to?  I grew up in this town. The whole town has feral cats. We're trying to stop it. We're trying to stop the population from expanding. Taking them away didn't work. Their reasoning is that 'if you feed them, it's going to bring in more cats'. That isn't true because the same ones have been here."

Cindy said one cat she adopted as a stray kitten roaming the neighborhood recently died at age 15.

All of the parties involved have pets of their own. Cindy said her family has four cats that she keeps inside, Clay has one cat indoor cat and the Quanquins have one dog and two indoor cats.

Cindy said she tried cleaning up after the feral cats as best she could, but the Quanquins were not satisfied and started yelling at her, so she stopped trying to clean up on their property.

Even though there are ferals and strays throughout the borough, Cindy said her neighborhood was targeted.

“They (Bernville Borough Council) said they wanted to start in our block first,” Cindy said.

Bernville Police Chief Brian Thumm did not return repeated calls asking if others in the borough had been cited or if there are plans to cite them or what penalties those cited could face.

District Justice Book said she said a minimum fine of $25 each, if convicted, during Stephen Wise's and Margie Clay's hearings last month.

Book said the maximum penalty would be determined during the course of the trials. Stephen Wise's is scheduled for 10 a.m. and Clay's is scheduled for 10:15 on Jan. 27 at Book's office, 7191 Bernville Road.

Cindy said she hopes supporters of TNR attend the trial, but she realizes it may be difficult since it is during a workday.

Asked what her advice would be to other pet owners or feeders of strays and ferals, Cindy said, “Please, get them fixed, that’s the biggest problem.”

If people don't the cats and their offspring could end up with a short life.

“Feral cats are automatically euthanized at animal shelters like the Animal Rescue League, which is already overwhelmed and handles over 10,000 animals each and every year,” Fry wrote. “Euthanasia should be reserved only for those that have an incurable illness or injury, not the homeless.”