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Cat fight Jim Craven photo Janet Overstreet of Ashland passed out fliers Saturday along Highway 62, protesting Petsmart's cat-adoption policy. Local group protests adoption of animals from out of county A dispute between two factions concerned about helping stray cats ended with one side picketing the other Saturday in Medford. Some 20 Friends of the Jackson County Animal Shelter demonstrated outside the Petsmart store, upset because the store is offering for adoption stray cats from Siskiyou County in Northern California. Cats for adoption should be coming from the local shelter, explained FOTAS member Monica Trocker. "What this is all about is Petsmart has brought out-of-state strays to their pet center," said Trocker, who carried a sign reading, "Petsmart priority? Not Jackson Country Strays." Other signs read, "Adopt Only Local Pets" and "Boycott Petsmart Pet Policy." Store officials say they are only trying to resolve a problem of too many strays in Siskiyou County. The store would like to help the Jackson County shelter, too, but there is a limit to how many cats it can adopt out, said store manager John Brandon. No cats are sold at the store, he said. "This is all about saving cats' lives," he said. "Petsmart believes there are too many stray cats on the streets. Siskiyou County has a fairly large stray cat population and a small adoption agency. We know that all shelters need help but we can only do so much." But Trocker and the other protesters says the Petsmart policy is hurting the local effort to reduce strays. "Jackson County residents need to know they are bringing in more strays," said Trocker, one of the original FOTAS volunteers at Petsmart when the store opened four years ago. They stopped volunteering last month after management refused to get Jackson County Animal Shelter cats back, Trocker said. Both times that Jackson County cats were taken into the store they were not properly treated, she said. Petsmart officials rejected those charges. All the cats are well cared for, fixed and placed into good homes, Brandon said. "Petsmart doesn't seem to feel it will impinge upon us but it will," Trocker said. "We will have more strays. We have enough strays to take care of already." Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA