I just read that Lake County kills more cats per capita than any other county in the state. This is a disgrace! We can and must do better for the cats, who are among are best and most useful friends. They provide a lot of love and joy for many people, and keep the rodents under control.

There are rejected but tame kittens and cats that wind up at the pound. They can make good house pets. Then, there are stray or “community” cats that are actually tame, not feral, and they can make good pets or good barn cats. And, the feral cats can also make good barn cats, or just outdoor cats that keep down the rodents.

In April I went to Animal Control to get a license for Zeus, my Great Dane. I couldn't resist, so I took a peek at the cat room. I wound up leaving with a wonderful 5-month-old Lynx Point Siamese that had no business being at the pound. She had actually been adopted once and then returned to the pound. She is beautiful and sweet, though feisty, and has made a good adjustment to our home and our other dogs and cats. She was and remains healthy. I was sad that I couldn’t save all the kittens there.

I urge people to consider adopting a cat from the pound. It is located in an out-of-the-way location off of Hill Road next to the county jail, which is unfortunate. Animal Care and Control could place a lot more cats if they took them out into the community, like they do elsewhere.

For instance, Rainbow Ag in Ukiah has cages with kittens from the Mendocino pound, and also from private rescue organizations. I once adopted two kittens from there, just because they caught my eye when I was shopping. Perhaps Rainbow Ag and other places in Lake County would be willing to showcase pound kittens and cats.

Concerning feral and stray cats, Lake County clearly needs to organize a TNR (trap, neuter, release) program. There are plenty of people willing to feed feral colonies, and plenty of rats, mice, gophers and voles for them to eat. (Yes, the occasional bird too, but such is life.)

According to veterinarian Richard Bachman, director of Veterinary Services for Contra Costa County, there are numerous successful models of TNR, usually combined with vaccinating for rabies and “tipping” the cats' ear so they can be easily identified as sterile, and studies show a decrease in feral and community cat populations when such models are used.

Besides the love and companionship, many of us cat lovers like having cats around in the country to keep rodents under control. Rodents attract rattlesnakes, so having cats also keeps the rattlers away, and if one shows up, a cat is a good early warning device (you’ll hear the rattlesnake rattle as the cat stalks it), and, more often than not, a cat will kill a rattlesnake before it can strike.

Of course, rats can really wreak havoc and devastate the human population. Rats transmit over 20 diseases to humans, including bubonic plague, a dread disease that thins the rat population when it exceeds the available food supply.

We need to learn from history. In the Middle Ages, cats were commonly blamed for everything, thought to be witches, and millions were murdered. As a result, the rodent population surged out of control. In the 14th century, following widespread superstitious destruction of cats and their near-extinction, rats proliferated and bubonic plague (“Black Death”) decimated the population of Europe, killing more than one-third (possibly even two-thirds) of the people, but generally sparing those households with cats.

We shouldn't return to Ancient Egypt's death penalty for killing a cat, but the Board of Supervisors should take steps to adopt more cats and prohibit the killing of healthy feral cats, and initiate a trap, neuter, release program instead of exterminating the feral cats.

Neuter and feed the stray and feral cats, but let them roam and destroy their share of rats, mice and other rodents. Respect the cats – they're among our best friends.

Ron Green is an attorney who lives in Lower Lake, Calif.