In September 2002, a Texas newspaper published an editorial that began, "Our neighborhood has been terrorized lately by a wily old tomcat I call Osama bin Laden." The story didn't get any better from there. Many cat lovers were outraged at the author's insensitivity. Instead of taking the opportunity to educate himself, his audience, and, importantly, his neighborhood as to the plight of lost or abandoned animals and solutions for managing the problem, the author chose to (attempt to) make the cat the butt of a sad joke, cheapening the deaths of people who suffered from the real Osama bin Laden's acts of terrorism, and victimizing a victim.

The author wrote, "Feral cats have no business setting up shop in a residential neighborhood." As if they choose! He made it seem as if he and his neighbors were the victims - where in reality, that poor cat was the victim: the victim of uncaring, uneducated people. The editorial inspired people around the country to network in order to rescue the kitty. Renamed Samoa (an anagram of Osama) by his rescuers, the cat was captured within a matter of weeks, and was adopted to a loving home before the year was out. The author of the editorial had an eye-opening experience. Samoa, it turned out, was not feral, but someone's former pet. Samoa, it turned out, was not a terrorist - but was terrorized.

The article served to highlight the tremendous need for education. Literally millions of cats are left to fend for themselves because of the lack of education among pet owners or the lack of education as reflected in community efforts, programs, and laws. The cats are not responsible for the situation in which they find themselves, people created the problem. People need to be responsible for solving the problem. Condemnation has no role here. Real help comes in the form of education. Thus www.SaveSamoa.org and www.StrayPetAdvocacy.org were born.

www.SaveSamoa.org is dedicated to the rescuers and the rescued. It is our hope that these stories will inspire anyone who gets online to seek help because a stray or feral cat has in some way entered their lives and they want to know how best to help - whether by adopting the cat themselves or using these resources to find a rescue or shelter. It is our hope that these stories will help all of us learn about rescuing, and those rescued.

www.StrayPetAdvocacy.org is dedicated to education, legislation and research. We hope to provide important resources to those who want to change animal control policy. Our goal is to provide quick access to solid research on the economic and humane benefits of programs that do not require euthanization, and to provide access to solid research on the economic and humane benefits of enacting and financing low-cost spay/neuter programs. Our goal is to change the fate of stray and feral cats everywhere. There is a solution to cat overpopulation, but the first and foremost challenge is one of education. We hope these sites will help meet that challenge.

These sites are devoted to the forgotten or abused animals who live in misery and fear, just like the scared, lost/abandoned pet highlighted in the editorial. It is our hope to save ALL the Samoas, and prevent the unwanted ones. There aren't enough homes for them all.