By CAMERON LUCADOU-WELLS
A NOBLE Park Primary School teacher was hospitalised after trying to contain a feral cat in a classroom.
To add salt to the teacher’s infected wounds, the school was then told by Greater Dandenong Council that its rangers wouldn’t collect the cat because it wasn’t in an “appropriate trap”.
The teacher’s class had been confronted by the intruding cat about 9am on July 26.
The teacher was scratched and bitten by the animal as he trapped it in a giant plastic tub with a lid.
He was later put on a drip in hospital after his bitten finger was infected and “blew up to twice its size”, the school’s business manager Sue Allan said.
He has been on and off sick since the incident, and was absent as late as last Thursday.
Ms Allan was bemused that the council was reluctant to take the cat, which was hissing inside the unventilated, sealed container.
“We thought as long as it was contained, the council was under an obligation to remove it.”
She said it took some negotiation to get the council to send a ranger, who on arrival stated they couldn’t collect the cat.
The ranger suggested a school staff member transfer the cat into an authorised cat trap.
“Isn’t that what the council’s supposed to do? What are we paying our rates for?” Ms Allan said.
“What if it was my elderly mother in that situation? Would the council say they won’t take the cat because it’s not in a trap?”
Eventually, the ranger agreed to take the cat in the unauthorised container to an animal shelter.
Greater Dandenong regulatory services manager Peter Shelton said the council would provide cat traps free of charge for people to catch cats, and collect the captured cats to a shelter free of charge.
“As a general rule council officers will not collect cats unless they have been caught in an appropriate trap.”
Mr Shelton advised people not to handle cats if it could be avoided. “[There is] significant risk of injury and spread of disease that can occur when handling feral cats.”
Hallam Veterinary Clinic vet David Quarke said any cat could cause ‘cat scratch fever’ – which could cause an arm and hand to “blow up”. “You can die from it. You should be OK if you get antibiotics and a drip, but it can still take days and weeks to get over it.”
He advised residents not to try to trap feral cats – “let the council do it”.
