No, we won't sugar coat the truth

I just had a most unpleasant phone call from someone who has recently moved into Winnipeg from a rural property and left a group of outdoor cats behind.  To her credit, this person had, over the years, spayed or neutered all of the cats, and had provided food and basic shelter for them.  Until she moved.

I had the unpleasant duty of informing her that the cats were hers, and that leaving them behind is considered abandonment.  Further, that there are no shelters in Winnipeg that can take a group of outdoor cats.  The only possible exception would be the Winnipeg Humane Society, where the cats would be killed because they are not adoptable.

The rest of the call was even more unpleasant.  Apparently I am supposed to sugar coat the truth and let people believe that everything is wonderful when they leave animals behind or surrender them to a kill shelter.  I am not supposed to use the words abandonment and kill  I am supposed the allay their feelings of guilt by saying something comforting and untrue.

Well, that just won't happen.

You should feel guilty about things like this.  You should feel so guilty that you don't do it.  You should feel so guilty that you move heaven and earth to find an appropriate placement for the cats if you can't take them with you.