Citizens of New Martinsville: Please beware if you live in the 5th Street area-your pet cat is in danger. Your fun-loving frisky feline who brings much joy to your family will be trapped and taken away. These trusting, innocent pets are being enticed into traps by the aroma of tasty food much like strangers entice children with the sweet taste of candy. Am I comparing the abduction of a child to the abduction of a pet cat? No. But I am comparing the trusting innocence of a pet to the trusting innocence of a child.

Shed disappeared before Christmas. Our family hoped at that time someone took him as a Christmas present-naive, I’m sure-but the alternatives were too difficult to think about. His brother Sam disappeared last week.

After canvassing the neighborhood we discovered an individual on 5th Street is trapping cats. When questioned, this individual flippantly stated, “Cats are a problem. I don’t like urine in my mulch.” This individual refused to tell us what happens to these pets after they are trapped. At the present time 12 family cats have disappeared.

Are cats a problem in New Martinsville? I don’t know. What I do know is if pet cats are an issue then the city needs to be involved. No individual has the right to take away beloved family members and dispose of them.

What has happened to Sam and Shed? Our family has no idea. What we hope is that together they are safely running the hills of a cat farm.

Again, naive I’m sure, but the alternative is too difficult to think about.

Dan and Joyce Snyder

New Martinsville