LEWISTON — It began 28 years ago on Central Avenue at a drop-off spot for unwanted cats.

It was also near where Normand Blais lived. The cats that survived on their own would breed and pretty soon their numbers doubled, then tripled, he said.

Blais began feeding the cats and caring for their other needs.

Today, Blais, has taken responsibility for roughly 600 cats.

They don’t live in his modest home. They inhabit the cityscape and suburban neighborhoods. They hide by day, coming out only at night to feed and prowl.

They are the feral cats of the Twin Cities. Too wild to be housed at shelters and adopted, these cats are those forgotten and abandoned pets whose owners left them behind when moving, or dropped them in a box and left it at the edge of the woods because they couldn’t afford to feed the animals.

Blais can be seen roaming the city, visiting dumpsters and makeshift colonies of blue spruce-bough-covered boxes camouflaged among urban tree stands. There, he dispenses daily servings of canned and dry food, each of the cats known by the names his partner, Rose, has bestowed upon them.

At one of the 10 feeding sites he has cultivated and monitors, a black cat he calls Collie wanders over and starts meowing. Collie showed up at this colony behind a local apartment complex with 3 inches of bone showing on his tail. Fearing Collie’s tail might become infected, Blais rushed him to a veterinarian who surgically docked the remaining stub and restored Collie to health.

Blais said his efforts are often misunderstood. Some bystanders regard his interference as an aggravating factor, encouraging more strays to congregate at the 10 sites.

But Blais said those folks are misinformed and he is misunderstood.

“If you people had kept your cat in the house, I wouldn’t be feeding them here,” he said.

Besides, Blais doesn’t just feed the cats who might otherwise starve, he traps them and takes them to a vet. There, they are neutered or spayed and inoculated against rabies and feline AIDS. They are released into the wild again because they are too wild to be adopted, he said.

His efforts have not only kept the stray cat population in check, it has helped prevent the spread of disease among the feral and wild urban animal population.

The location of the colonies evolved from homeowners or apartment dwellers who would call him to report stray cats foraging for food and seeking shelter in inclement weather. He responds by finding the cats, fixing them, then feeding them and providing a safe place for them to get out of the elements.

Local veterinarians help by donating their services; wholesalers offer damaged food at discount prices. His website: tommysferalfelinefriends.weebly.com explains his mission and welcomes donations.

The group is named for a feral cat named Tommy that lived with Blais for four years, then didn’t come home after going out one night.

Steve Dostie, executive director of the Greater Androscoggin Humane Society, said the group acts as an important counterpart to his organization.

“They do a great service for the community,” Dostie said. The more people are involved with free-roaming cats or community cats is helpful, he said. The fact that Blais continues to feed and care for the cats he releases is important, Dostie said.

cwilliams@sunjournal.com

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