Whatever you do, don’t describe Nita Hemeter as “that cat lady.”
“Listen, I am not the cat lady,” Hemeter said absolutely. “I am the cat trapping lady. You got it? The cat trapping lady.”
Since the early 1980s, Hemeter has actually been associated with animal rescue and well-being problems, particularly connecting to cats.
“I started out volunteering with the Louisiana SPCA way back when the organization was located on Japonica Street,” said Hemeter, a local of New Orleans. “A few years ago, I began an organization specifically to help reduce the cat population by trapping cats and getting them the needed medical attention so they stop proliferating.”
All-volunteer effort
Hemeter leads the not-for-profit Trap Dat Cat, which she formed in 2020. It partners with regional shelters and vets to supply feline healthcare.
“I get referrals from a lot of animal welfare groups and from people who know to contact me for help with stray cats in their neighborhood,” said Hemeter, 71. “We trap cats all over the city of New Orleans with the help of a few volunteers, who also trap, transport and even help to foster cats for adoption.”
The vets supply healthcare consisting of spaying or neutering, vaccinations and eartipping, Hemeter included.
“A vet will, under anesthesia, remove a small top of one of the cat’s ear, indicating the cat has been spayed or neutered,” Hemeter said. “This tells trappers that the cat is sterilized and keeps them from being trapped again.”
One of those veterinarians assisting is Genevieve Wisdom, owner of Wisdom Animal Hospital in Old Jefferson.
“Nita’s organization is a life line for the community cat population with a village of volunteers to safely and humanely care for them,” Wisdom said. “Nita has actually had the ability to help cats that require major healthcare such as oral illness, tail amputations, and treatment for complex however resolvable illness.
Trap Dat Cat offers the cost of surgical treatment, medications and any post-surgical care, Wisdom said, while Wisdom Animal Hospital contributes the vaccines to avoid infectious and possible illness. Boehringer Ingelheim pharmaceutical contributes the flea control items.
To help cover medical expenses, Trap Dat Cat relies contributions and charity events.
“We have no overhead, and no one who works with the organization gets paid — we are all volunteers,” Hemeter said. “All moneys we receive are through donations and fundraisers go straight to the care of these cats.”
Support from the neighborhood
Theresa Bridges is social networks supervisor, treasurer, fundraising chair and the foster/adoption planner for Trap Dat Cat.
“We offer a service that people can’t find anywhere else,” Bridges said. “When we have charity events, the neighborhood is extremely generous and extremely encouraging.”
She had full marks for Hemeter’s work.
“I have known Nita for many years. She is a very passionate and caring person, and sometimes she lets her emotions get the best of her. But Nita will go out of her way to help not only any cat, but anybody who needs help.”
For those who wish to help trap cats around their community, Hemeter will walk them through the procedure.
Not simply feral cats
Hemeter said much of the cats got are not feral.
“From my experiences … frequently they are lost or have actually been abandoned by their owners,” Hemeter said/
“Recently someone lost his cat when he was packing to leave New Orleans and move to Arkansas. Luckily, we found the cat and it was chipped, so we were able to reunite the cat with his owner. The owner was so happy, he was crying”
In 2022, Hemeter quotes Trap Dat Cat caught 2,020 cats in Orleans Parish. Once they receive veterinary care consisting of spay/neuter, a few of the cats are promoted for adoptions while others are gone back to their initial areas.
“Nita and her volunteers are some of our city’s unsung heroes,” said Jeff Dorson, executive director of the Humane Society of Louisiana. “They do the tough and gritty work of humanely trapping and sanitizing cats, and their efforts have actually substantially decreased the city’s roaming population.
“I hope more individuals will follow Nita’s example and offer their time. Helping animals requires to be a cumulative effort, instead of an occupation of simply a couple of caring people.”
The broad view
As a cat owner herself, Hemeter said she enjoys the animals however dislikes how cats are frequently dealt with.
“The eyes of a cat touch my soul and their expressions and antics are hilarious,” Hemeter said. “But I definitely dislike (that) they are disposed of like garbage.
“I dislike that shelters and the streets are filled with fantastic cats that should have a home and rather are mistreated, starving and abandoned every day. I dislike it when individuals desire me to discover houses for their 20 cats due to the fact that they are moving.”
So she shares some suggestions: “So to all individuals who state they ‘love’ cats, show it by seeing the huge photo and get your cats repaired.”
