Parliament Hill "Catman" remembered

Photo Credit: Pat McGrath, Ottawa Citizen 

A long-serving caretaker of the Parliament Hill cat sanctuary died Sunday at the age of 92. 

René Chartrand tended to the cat colony for 21 years until 2008, when poor health kept him from his daily visits. With support from Ralston Purina, which supplied the food, vets at the Alta Vista Animal Hospital who provided care and a bevy of cat loving volunteers, Chartrand made the sanctuary the second most popular spot on the Hill after the Centre Block. 

"He made a promise that he would feed them and he did," said Brian Caines, a retired public servant who befreinded Chartrand in the 1990s. "He was there every day. He was there the day his wife died. On the 9/11 lockdown, he was the only civilian let on the Hill. He was so well know and the cats were so well know they made an exception for him to get up there." 

The cat sanctuary carried on for just a few more years after Chartrand retired. The cats were all spayed and neutered and the colony dwindled from its peak of 28 animals to just four in the fall of 2012. The last Hill cat, a tabby named Bugsy, was captured and adopted on January 4, 2014.  

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Parliament Hill cat sanctuary shuts down

After more than five decades, the cat sanctuary on Parliament Hill in Ottawa officially closed down last week.

The cats were recruited in the 1950's to catch rodents and at one time, more than 30 felines took residence in the area. Effective Trap Neuter Return (TNR) strategies have dwindled the population to only four cats. One volunteer recalled no kittens have been born to the colony for 10 to 15 years. 

It has been suggested that it would be great to have a memorial plaque at the site to educate the public about cat overpopulation, the cause of feral cats and the history of the colony that finally ended through the use of TNR and natural attrition, said Elizabeth Glibbery, Toronto Animal Services manager. 

"Kudos to great volunteers that dedicated their time and money to look after these cats with the ultimate goal of addressing the homeless cat issue," added Glibbery. "The closing of this colony is proof that TNR works even though the Caretakers of this colony will find it a bitter-sweet ending to their mission." 

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