Alley Cat Rescue Exceeds 6,000 Domestic Cat Sterilizations Around Kruger National Park to Protect African Wildcats

MT. RAINIER, Md., April 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Alley Cat Rescue's African wildcat conservation program operates in South Africa to protect the wild cat species Felis lybica from hybridization with domestic cats (Felis catus). Hybridization is tied with habitat loss as the greatest threat to the long-term survival of African wildcats. The program prevents hybridization by sterilizing colonies of domestic cats that exist near African wildcat habitats. The first colony targeted was in the farming town of Hazyview in 2018 and over the years, the program has grown to cover rural towns and farmland in several provinces, including the Limpopo, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, Western Cape, and Eastern Cape.

Towns bordering Kruger National Park are a strong focus of the program as African wildcats are known to live in relative abundance in the protected Park lands. Incidences of hybridization are startlingly common near the towns and rare farther into the Park. Alley Cat Rescue's (ACR) Limpopo teams have recently achieved sterilization of just over 6,000 domestic cats. The teams are made up expert trappers, veterinarians, and veterinary assistants. Most of the team members travel considerable distances with trapping and medical equipment to reach small agricultural settlements that are surrounded by wilderness. They set up mobile spay/neuter clinics on site in whatever space is available - barns, classrooms, even outdoors.

Over all South African locations, Alley Cat Rescue has sterilized over 15,750 domestic cats. An up-to-date map of project locations can be found at this link.

ACR Founder and President, Louise Holton, created the African Wildcat Conservation out of love for both Felis lyica and Felis catus. She explains, "African wildcats are the original ancestors of our beloved domestic cats and a truly irreplaceable species. Yet only a tiny fraction of global wild feline funding reaches small wildcats—and even less supports African wildcats. This remarkable animal urgently deserves far greater attention and resources to ensure its survival."

More information about the program and African wildcats can be found on the Alley Cat Rescue website at saveacat.org/awc-conservation-projects.html.

Alley Cat Rescue is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to the welfare of all cats: domestic, stray, abandoned, feral, and small wildcat species. ACR advocates for humane nonlethal control of feral cats. For more information about ACR, visit their website http://www.saveacat.org.

SOURCE Alley Cat Rescue, Inc.