all they want is a room somewhere...

(why we can't simply "take them all in" - and why they wouldn't want us to)

When the subject of cats on the street arises, we commonly get the question, "Why can't we just find them all homes?"  Ideally, those cats which have come from a home, been lost or abandoned, or which for other reasons are friendly/socialized to humans, should absolutely be removed from the street, vetted, and placed in loving adoptive homes...these "stray" cats may obviously be found in the free-roaming cat population, living alongside their feral counterparts...

A few words on why the traditional model of “rescue” does not apply to feral cats, however, which comprise the vast majority of the free-roaming feline population.  As mentioned many times across this site, the term “feral” denotes an animal specifically not socialized to human beings.  Feral cats and kittens are not candidates for adoption; they do not make suitable pets, and should not be placed in homes for several reasons.