Elgin woman's mission is to help feral cats

When Donna Leetz moved to Elgin in 2003, wild cats were already in residence on her property. They were eating out of the garbage can and scavenging what they could to survive.

“So, of course, I started feeding them because I didn't want them to go hungry,” Leetz said.

In time the adult cats she found when she moved in started to have kittens and the population grew. Leetz said that was fine because she could take care of all of them, but eventually she decided she didn't want to see any more babies.

Almost a decade later, Leetz is deep into volunteer work trapping, sterilizing and releasing feral cats — a project she stumbled across trying to find a place to spay and neuter the cats on her own property.

She learned how to trap the animals from other Elginites doing similar work and, in the last three years, has pushed full speed ahead on the project.

Leetz sets humane live traps where she places food inside during a normal feeding time and then waits for the animals to walk in.

She has helped out in situations where people have more than 50 cats in a single residence and regularly works at a smaller scale.

“I'm not a licensed shelter and I'm not a licensed rescue,” Leetz said. “I'm just somebody trying to help.”

Leetz grew up on a farm in Michigan and has always been passionate about animals, especially horses. She still works with horses and has three cats of her own — all of which were rescued. She has also continued to feed about a dozen of the wild cats on her property and fosters another 12 to 15 of the felines for Cinderella's Hope, a nonprofit organization in West Dundee that helps with cat adoptions and spaying and neutering of both friendly and feral cats.

Cinderella's Hope is the organization Leetz works most closely with, but she also spends plenty of time driving to Chicago with a load of cats to get neutered at Tree House Humane Society.

When Leetz takes the animals in to be spayed or neutered, the cats also get a health exam with standard vaccines. Sometimes they need extra veterinary care and those procedures are often done as well.

The Elgin woman said she spends about 25 hours a week trapping cats or taking them to shelters and vets. And she has spent thousands of dollars getting the work done. Leetz said she has a full-time job, but also does side work to fund her passion, the effects of which can be seen throughout the Gifford Park neighborhood.

The time and money Leetz has poured into this project can be quantified with proof in the numbers. Leetz said she has noticed the shrinking population in recent years in stark contrast to the number of cats she saw when she moved in.

And it's not just a solo project, Leetz is quick to point out. She works with some of the other people trying to trap the animals, but also knows there are even more people involved she has never met.

Leetz said she doesn't know how long she'll keep it up — probably until she goes broke, she said dryly.

“I don't have a goal, but as long as I can help the animals I will continue to help the animals,” Leetz said.

To donate to Cinderella's Hope, where all money goes toward the spay/neuter program, send contributions to P.O. Box 417, West Dundee, IL 60118.

For help with trapping or other cat services, call (847) 975-1754.