A colony of wild cats in Middleton has been nipped in the bud - thanks to a Wharfedale animal charity.

The local branch of Cats Protection was called in by worried householders in Carter's Lane after they noticed a group of feral felines prowling around at night.

The group duly started to set and bait humane traps to capture the cats - with the help of residents who volunteered for 'trap-watching' duties.

Acting Co-ordinator Graham Hoult said around five adult animals and several of their young were caught. He said: "We took the adults from the Middleton group to a vet's who gave them an anaesthetic, neutered them using soluble stitches and then after 24 hours we released them back into the area where they should be able to support themselves.

"Those under six months old we have placed with long-term fosterers and we will try to domesticate and re-home them.

"This is part of a growing problem across our area. We have been called to a very large colony in Eccleshill and are aware of a smaller pack in Burley-in-Wharfedale.

"The Middleton cats were slightly more feral than the others but as well as living off the local wildlife they had been creeping around people's back gardens for food, so they weren't completely wild and it was possible to trap them quite quickly."

Believed to have started from a couple of farm cats who decided to 'go wild', Mr Hoult says the colony could have grown very quickly if it hadn't been dealt with early.

Feral cats were taking up more and more of the charity's time, he said, and he urged anyone who knew of colonies to take a leaf out of the Middleton residents' book and contact them immediately.

He said: "The message to people is that we don't want to be called out to deal with large colonies of breeding cats - please tell us when there are only two or three so we can stop them becoming a problem.

"The people at Middleton did exactly the right thing and were very helpful. Because this colony was so young the animals were in quite good condition and appeared to have been eating well. "But a female can have three litters of four kittens a year, and those kittens can themselves breed after six months, so the numbers can swell quickly.

"What happens then is that the local wildlife can't provide enough food and the group becomes diseased and unhealthy. So the other important message to cat owners is 'please neuter your pets as soon as they reach maturity'."

For more information about cat colonies, or to offer a home to any of the cats in the charity's care, call 01943 830724 or, from Sunday, August 24, 01943 839448.