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 treatment.
“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 treatment 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 severe treatment such as oral illness, tail amputations, and treatment for complex however resolvable illness.
Trap Dat Cat supplies 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 really generous and really 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 area, Hemeter will walk them through the procedure.
Not simply feral cats
Hemeter said much of the cats got are not feral.
“From my experiences … typically 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 communities.
“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 hard and gritty work of humanely trapping and sterilizing cats, and their efforts have significantly reduced the city’s stray population.
“I hope more people will follow Nita’s example and volunteer their time. Helping animals needs to be a collective effort, rather than a vocation of just a few caring individuals.”
The broad view
As a cat owner herself, Hemeter said she likes the animals however dislikes how cats are typically dealt with.
“The eyes of a cat touch my soul and their expressions and antics are hilarious,” Hemeter said. “But I absolutely hate (that) they are discarded like trash.
“I hate that shelters and the streets are filled with wonderful cats that deserve a home and instead are abused, hungry and abandoned every day. I hate it when people want me to find homes for their 20 cats because they are moving.”
So she shares some advice: “So to all the people who say they ‘love’ cats, prove it by seeing the big picture and get your cats fixed.”
For more info about Trap Dat Cat, go to trapdatcat.org
