Physical Plant Removes Cats from MC’s Campus
MC has been home to dozens of cats over the years. During the summer, 25 cats, a possum, and a fox were removed and transported to another location.
In the past, Mississippi College (MC) was not only home to hundreds of students, but also dozens of cats. MC’s campus cats added a unique quality to the student experience.
Often, students could find the cats congregating by the dorms, ravaging for food on the piazza, or lounging in the shade of the trees. Typically, the cats steered clear from passersby, despite their efforts to pick the cats up.
However, Roe Grubbs, Executive Director of Campus Operations, began to see the problems the felines were causing.
“They're feral cats and they're kind of dangerous,” said Grubbs “It turned into a health, safety and welfare issue. The cats were getting into places that were concerning us. I didn't want a student to walk in the dorm one day and a cat jump on them and hurt them.”
Over the summer, Grubbs and his team caught 25 cats, a possum, and a fox and safely transferred them to Choctaw Trails. Choctaw Trails is the location where the MC cross country team trains and hosts meets. It provides plenty of resources, such as food and water, for the cats to enjoy.
“Choctaw Trails was the best place because we controlled it,” said Grubbs. “It was a safe place, and nobody would hurt them out there. [It’s a] refuge for them.”
The first cats to grace campus with their presence originated from local houses, where the owners were not taking proper care of their pets. Two cats turned into five cats, and five cats eventually turned into over two dozen.
Though MC faculty safely and successfully removed the cats from campus, not all of the students were happy with the decision, including Abigail Hughes, a junior studying music education.
“At first I didn’t realize [the cats were gone] until people were posting about the bug issue being worse than before,” said Hughes. “They said it would be fixed if they brought the cats back. Then it clicked that they were gone and I was shocked and a little disappointed.”
Hughes immediately went to the non-MC affiliated Instagram account known as @mccampuscats to see if the account had mentioned details. Students follow the page to stay updated about the happenings of campus cats and the interesting interactions they had with students.
“I have two cats myself,” said Hughes, “and I remember just feeling excited to still be around cats even though I wasn’t at home. Kinda silly, but animal companions are important for humans.”
Though the cats for the most part have been removed from campus, many students living at College Plaza and University Place have spotted cats in the parking lots.