By Sofia McGinnis
TAMPA, Fla. — Administrators at The University of Tampa are pushing to remove the cats from campus. There have been reports of a flea and insect infestation under Plant Hall, and the cats are the ones taking the blame.
Several stray cats have wandered around campus and have made UTampa their home for many years.
“I always thought it was cool that we had campus cats,” said Elysia Rosado, a senior theatre major. “They weren’t hurting anybody.”
The UTampa Campus Cats, a club that helps feed and protect the cats that live on campus, have started a petition to help keep the cats at UTampa.
“I really hope that more awareness gets spread [and] that campus realizes that we’re not going to stand for this,” Rosado added.
Andrea Callow, the administrative assistant to Dean Holley Tankersley of the College of Social Sciences, Mathematics, and Education, said she “[has] worked in various offices in Plant Hall since June 2000, and I have never seen a single flea.”
“I would argue against the removal of precious Alfredo, Rigatoni, [and the rest of the cats],” Callow said. “They’re completely innocent and harmless, unless you happen to be a rodent, and sprinkle smiles wherever they roam.”
Isabella Doland, the president of the UTampa Campus Cats, said how their club helps these cats by feeding them, monitoring their health, and following a trap neuter vaccination and return system on new strays.
The university wants to either trap the cats and send them to a shelter or move them to a different spot on campus entirely. Facilities would be the ones to carry out this deed.
The UTampa Campus Cats club is pushing back. Doland advocates that these cats are not fit for homes, and relocating them will only result in them coming back to campus.
“This is not the way to go about this issue,” Doland said. “It is unfair and wrong to blame the cats for the flea problem, as they were treated this spring. They have also been on campus longer than this problem.”
Doland has proposed a better solution to dealing with the fleas and letting the cats stay on campus.
“[Treat] the Plant Hall grounds with flea treatments and let the cats stay,” he said. “They would not get in the way of this process and would most likely hang out in another spot on campus until it is finished.”
Nicole Crowther, an assistant professor for the department of Theater and Dance, mentions how much the UT Campus Cats have, and continue to help the Campus Cats.
“They are very passionate about the work,” said Crowther. “The students who get involved are often students who are missing their own furry family members back home.”
“The club is working to keep the cat population under control [and] they’ve gone so far as to find funding to offer flea treatments for the cats,” Crowther said. “I honestly don’t understand how fleas would be an issue inside one of the school buildings unless students were bringing cats into [these] buildings.”
I think the presence of the cats on campus does far more good than harm for our students,” she added.
The UTampa Campus Cats have already received more than 1000 signatures on their petition, as well as some donations.
As of recently, the solution is to relocate the cats from Plant Hall to the Cass Communication Building. Facilities have already been made aware of the plan and will be carried out by winter break at the latest.
If the fleas and bugs do go away, it’s only up to the cats to choose where they would like to stay. The UTampa Campus Cats are grateful for more signatures to help the cats.
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Thumbnail Photo courtesy of Isabella Doland.