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Sheltering an Animal’s Perspective
by Gregory M. Simpson
It was more than six years ago, just after 9/11, that desperation set in. Having trapped, spayed/neutered and vaccinated 19 cats and kittens from my neighborhood, one last female cat was tenaciously eluding capture. She already had two litters which I trapped. I did not want to face a third litter and had exhausted my list of people to call for ideas and help. It was time to think creatively. Going for a long shot, the name of Ellen Perry Berkeley came to mind. She is the author of the seminal book on ferals, Maverick Cats, included by Cat Fancy in the "100 Great Moments of 20th Century Cats." First published in 1982 and updated in 2001, this book mentions her hometown in Vermont, so directory information was summoned, and voila, her phone number was available!
Despite not knowing me, this warm, kind, soft-spoken, internationally known author graciously accepted my phone call. She provided me sage counsel and sustaining moral support until the female cat was trapped and spayed, without having an additional litter! What I did not know from the first phone call with Ellen Perry Berkeley was that our relationship was only just beginning.
As we grew to know each other through letters and phone calls, I described to Ellen my animal welfare avocation. Along the way, I began writing "Sheltering an Animal’s Perspective" in one newspaper which has since spread statewide. I would send the initial columns to Ellen and she generously commented, drawing on her impressive background as a writing teacher at Harvard, Columbia and UC-Berkeley, and as past senior editor of Architectural Forum. She is also the author of many books, and articles for such magazines at Cat Fancy, Cats Magazine and I Love Cats. Her 1984 article in Cat Fancy on the neuter-and-return of feral cats was the first in an American publication on this humane method of controlling the feral cat population.
In short order, I progressed from a man desperate to aid feral cats in my neighborhood to having a mentor for writing and animal welfare work. Ellen’s help did not end there. A few years into our phone calls, e-mails, and letters, Ellen suggested that I consider membership in the Cat Writers’ Association (CWA). Once again, she selflessly offered to assist me, this time through sponsorship into the association. Considering that membership in CWA was a perfect match with my animal welfare pursuits, I agreed, and am now a member. There is no person more than Ellen who better exemplifies the highest ideals of the CWA vision – to promote communal support, networking, and mutual respect between colleagues.
Ellen has continued to write and to tirelessly aid cats. She is on the advisory board of the national organization, Alley Cat Allies, and in 2004 published, TNR: A History of the Trap-Neuter-Return Movement.
To assist Protectors of Animals (POA) in Glastonbury, of which I am a member, she will generously donate $4 to POA for each copy of Maverick Cats sold through the shelter’s efforts. Please consider purchasing a copy of this book that The New York Times reports is full of "Amusing portraits….intriguing information." Cat Fancy described the book as "first-rate in every way…entertaining, informative, well-researched, thorough…a definitive work." One may order directly from Ms. Berkeley at Box 311, Shaftsbury, Vermont 05262. Indicate with your payment of $14.95 that you would like $4 of the purchase price sent to Protectors of Animals. I am deeply grateful to Ellen Perry Berkeley for making this fund raising activity possible for Protectors of Animals, Inc. and for being my mentor.
And remember, as Ellen Perry Berkeley says, "As every cat owner knows, nobody owns a cat."
For the animals, Gregory M. Simpson
Gregory Simpson’s animal welfare involvement spans over 25 years, having provided leadership for several Connecticut organizations, as well as having served as state advisor to the national Friends of Animals. Currently a Board member of Protectors of Animals, Inc., he was chosen by CAT FANCY magazine as one of the ultimate cat lovers in the U.S. He is also a member of the Cat Writers’ Association.
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