By Ava Uhlack, Oct. 1, 2024
While Cal Poly Pomona is most known for its agriculture and engineering, there seems to be a rising group of celebrities on campus, and they happen to have four legs.
More than seven cats roam campus, each having their own area they tend to frequent, and at least six of them have names, according to @catpolypomona, an Instagram account that documents CPP’s cat happenings.
There is Bluebell, who is the reknowned gray cat that hangs around the Student Services Building, the Art building and the University Library, while Ursula, a light gray cat with white paws, provides rodent control for the Cattle Unit, according to Efrain Loera, the unit’s manager.
Ursula was acquired from the Pasadena Humane Society as part of its program to employ feral cats picked up off the street, according to Loera. The cats are spayed or neutered, vaccinated and then set up for adoption in preferrable working homes so they can hunt.
“She’s been at the unit for three/four months now,” said Loera. “She’s been a great pest control. She’s done her job really well. That’s for sure.”
Ursula is known to venture out onto campus, notably around the traditional red-brick dorms and eventually returns to the Cattle Unit, according to Loera.
“The Pasadena Human Society did tell us that because they are feral cats, they tend to venture a lot farther than a regular cat,” said Loera. “We keep her food available with water at all times, and she’ll usually come back.”
The Cattle Unit has had cats act as pest control before, and usually one of two situations occur, according to Loera. Either they venture off and don’t come back for some reason, or sometimes people take them home.
Loera said the cats are usually collared to imply they are taken care of and to leave them alone. He even spoke of an instance of Ursula venturing off campus around the Walnut area toward Mount San Antonio Community College.
“She ended up at a yoga place, and they ended up taking her to the vet,” said Loera. “Through the chip they were able to get our information and give us a call to get her back.”
Ursula is not the only cat known to hang around the red-brick dorms. There is a gray-striped cat named Noss who sticks to the area, although not much information is known about Noss.
There is also a rumored orange cat that lurks around the Arabian Horse Center and the campus suites. However, this cat is a bit elusive and rarely seen, according to the @catpolypomona account moderator.
Lastly, Momo and Kona are Bluebell’s offspring with black and white fur. They frequent the Horse Center as well, but Kona is a bit bolder and can go as far as the main campus, according to Cheyenne Thayer, the student activities coordinator.
According to Thayer, there were a couple people within the animal science department who noticed Bluebell was pregnant and trapped her to help her have her kittens safely. She was then spayed and tested for various feral cat diseases to ensure Bluebell was safe to roam around campus with other cats.
According to Thayer, the cats were moved from the animal science department to the Horse Center around October of 2023 after hearing the Horse Center was looking to add cats to their team for rodent control.
It was then Momo and Kona were adopted by the Horse Center and given a home base to return to at night. Now, the bi-colored duo takes care of mice, rats and other pests.
The Horse Center prefers using more natural ways to rid the area of small nuisances such as mice, thus making friends with the cats, according to Thayer.
“They have a curfew where they get locked up at 5 p.m.,” said Thayer. “They’re supposed to be at their home and in bed. There are a lot of coyotes around, and they’re pretty bold cats, and they’re very feisty, so they might not realize the coyote is a predator and might think ‘Oh, this is a friend.’”
The Horse Center staff makes sure the two cats are up to date on vaccinations and medications if needed, as well as provides food and water for their four-legged team members, according to Tina Kabbouche, one of the caretakers of Momo and Kona who has worked at the Horse Center for about 3 years.
As for Bluebell, they did try to provide her a spot in the Horse Center family.
“We tried our best to introduce her to our environment to make her home here,” said Thayer. “We took care of her in a kennel. On her first day of freedom she was like, ‘Oh, I know where I’m at’ and went back to her home on the main campus. Ultimately, she is a wild cat, so we can only do so much.”
This isn’t the first time the Horse Center has had cats on their premises. Previously, there was a gray cat that used to reside there named Noelle who died this past summer, according to Tina Kabbouche, a live-in student at the Horse Center.
Noelle was a barn cat around the age of 8 who had gone missing for a couple of weeks, explained Kabbouche.
“She’s gone missing before; she likes to jump into cars,” said Kabbouche. “This time we found her collar in one of our pastures. What we assume is that the coyotes got a little adventurous and got to her. We’re not sure, but we know she’s not here anymore.”
Kabbouche stated the two cats, like Ursula, are chipped.
Not much is known about the origins of Noss from the traditional dorm area and the orange cat from the suites, if they belong to a department or are just more additions to CPP’s ever-growing feline population.
That said, the cats that work within their respective units on campus are just that, working cats.
Loera urges the community to leave the cats alone.
“Let them be and let them do their job,” said Loera. “Don’t feed them. They’re there to manage and mitigate the rodents.”
Kabbouche echoed the same sentiment about Momo and Kona saying the cats’ routine includes a slightly-less-frequent diet to encourage them to hunt, which in turn keeps the rodent level to a minimum.
The cats on campus will remain a hotspot for four-legged friends, so be on the lookout for whatever cat might be around the corner. Just be sure to leave them on campus. Their home is here, not in a dorm, according to both Kabbouche and Loera.
Feature image courtesy of Gerardo Sanchez
