Cats and dogs

They caught her in the very act. One foot on the pavement, the other still swinging over the lowest part of the fence as she was making her escape.

Unfortunately they weren't our local police, who perhaps might have been more understanding, but two from a team of Spanish national police who had been stationed here to help enforce the rules. We were all grateful for this - except for Helga, the fence climber - because the covid-19 pandemic was something new and frightening in our lives.

The long weeks of home confinement were over by that time but severe restrictions remained, especially in relation to social gatherings, so San Sebastián's central park was out of bounds, its gates closed and locked. We met Helga shortly after the police released her that morning. She was understandably shaky, not having been nabbed by the police before, and angry because they had issued her with an on-the-spot fine for contravening the pandemic regulations. Three hundred euros was devastating for someone who doesn't have much spare cash. And if she didn't pay up within two weeks it would double.

So why did she do it? Why climb into the forbidden park over the fence? She had tried to explain to the police officers but her limited Spanish didn't prove sufficiently persuasive. 'La ley es la ley, señora', the law is the law. Well yes, but… what she was doing was to return a feral cat to its usual home in the park. Helga is a volunteer supporter of a group called ProAnimal Gomera that, among other activities, captures stray cats and takes them to a helpful vet to be neutered. It's a gentler approach to population control than culling and, from the cats' point of view, not ideal but probably the solution they'd prefer if given a choice.

Cats have always been a problem if you choose to look at it that way. It's really more of a problem for the cats than for us because they live their own lives quietly (except at night) in the park or on the rocks by the sea, but the benefactors who supply them with food tend to come and go unreliably. One elderly couple used to feed them daily with nothing but the best, visiting the supermarket to buy premium fish which they dispensed on silver platters with a choice of sauces, fresh bread and finger bowls.

They also fed the pigeons, scattering corn for the squabbling hordes that gathered twice a day at the appointed times (how do pigeons do that?). That all came to a sad end when the couple passed away. Other kind souls now fill the gap to some extent but much less dependably, sometimes being away, sometimes overlapping with each other so the cats get fed several meals simultaneously. The pigeons do better because there are always plenty of tidbits blowing around the cafe tables.

And what about the dogs? Are there no feral dogs as well? Yes there are, but far fewer and very seldom in town. There is an official dog-catcher service but in practice, any stray dog foolish enough to turn up in San Sebastián is likely to get caught by a local lady who used to worry about cats but now specialises in dogs. She takes them home and walks them daily in groups of five or six at a time, whether they want to or not. This also serves to discourage local dog owners from allowing their pooch to roam around on its own (which is illegal) because it risks finding itself collared, roped and trotting among the herd twice a day.

You couldn't do that with cats, could you? They'd tear each other to pieces along with their captor. It's probably significant - standing back for a moment to view life philosophically - that although there are now many more dogs than cats in La Gomera, they are nearly all owned and living in a cosy home with the rest of the family. It's the cats who choose to run wild, free and aloof. Which you either find admirable or not, a known way of dividing the human species into two distinct camps.

-------------- NOTES --------------

As always, the arrow of time flies onwards and things change. The ProAnimal Gomera group, although they operate throughout the island, now have a permanent base on the outskirts of San Sebastián where stray animals can be cared for and, if they're lucky, assigned to a new home.

This has made our local dog-snatcher lady increasingly redundant and she is currently reduced to a single ageing mongrel with arthritis. They seem happy together and he has the benefit of not being in competition with any of the other riff-raff.

There are also a decreasing number of cats wandering around because as the older ones pass into their peaceful eternity they now leave no kittens to carry on the struggle.

Sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned kittens, that invites the involuntary 'Aaah, what a shame…'

Contact details for ProAnimal Gomera

Post

ProAnimal Gomera, Calle de Las Tomateras, s/n

Antigua Escuela Taller

San Sebastián de La Gomera, 38800

Web

https://www.proanimalgomera.com

Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/proanimalgomera

Email

proanimalgomera@gmail.com

Phone

+34 621 273 777