Decisions Decisions

This is for Friday - I have a vacation day and wanted to be sure to get this out there.

I struggle with ethical decisions constantly, and have for many years in doing what I do for cats.  I have had to make some very hard decisions on what is right for a cat, in so many ways.  Yesterday, I had the choice of leaving a cat at Lollipop, after they contacted me and said they deemed Orangie very friendly and adoptable and offered the opportunity to keep her at Lollipop for five days, and then if no one claimed her, they would spay her and put her up for adoption.  I had to make this decision quickly (being at work with people around hearing my conversation, and knowing they had to get her spayed if I chose not to have her kept by them), and when I am faced with being put on the spot and having to make a quick decisions, I usually regret the one I make.  Someone pointed out to me that perhaps this cat belongs to someone on the street I trapped it at.  Maybe this is someone's only joy and they loved it as best as they could.  What about the cat living its next few weeks, until adopted, in a cage.  But what about me feeding this cat every day at 5:30 am. in a bad neighborhood?  How do I know that someone is caring for this cat?  Then I started thinking about how another percentage of cat lovers feel - that cats should be allowed to go outdoors.  Here are the pros and cons of this, in my opinion:

Pros (what I say):

1.Injury or death by vehicles
2.Poisoned intentionally or accidentally
3.Injury or death by fighting with other cats
4.Infectious diseases contracted from other cats: FIV, Leukemia
5.Parasites: fleas, ticks, ringworm
6.Injury or death by sadists
7.Injury or death by dogs or predators
8.Killing of wildlife
9.Getting lost, picked up by animal control
10.Getting stolen as "bait" for illicit gaming
11.Problems with neighbors: cats littering their yards - getting shot at.
12, Freezing to death.

Cons (what they say):

1.Indoor cats are lazy, and don't get the exercise they need.
2.Cats by their very nature deserve the freedom of outdoor life.
3.The cats love the outdoors, fresh air and sunshine

 I do believe in personal responsibility for our decisions, and ultimately, our decisions may cost us the loss of a very good friend and family member. It's a matter of weighing the benefits against the risks, and being willing to suffer the consequences of our decisions.

I called within the hour and tried to reverse my decision on this cat, to get it back, let her back out onto the street after being spayed, and hope for the best.  But it may be too late, and I have to live with another decision I made not knowing if it was the wrong one, or the right one. 

I got another e-mail soon after that about a second cat that Laura trapped from Central this morning.  Sylvester died during surgery today.   May God rest his weary soul. 

Update:  I chose not to take Orangie back - to give her a chance for adoption.  I weighed my options again, and I realized that if by chance this cat did not have a home, one of the above situations would happen to this cat, one of four that I feed there on that corner on a daily basis, and have watched them suffer through the cold, and sickness, and injury.  Orangie reminds me of an orange cat I found on Third two years ago in the dead of winter, frozen solid, just hanging out of the straw under the porch.  I have to remember these instances when making the decision I made today about her.  I have to believe I am doing the best I can for them.