Long-Time Newark Resident and Animal Lover Takes on Stray Cats in Need with ‘Forest Hill Friends’

NEWARK - Thousands of abandoned cats are put out on Newark's streets every year to fend for themselves, according to local animal rescue groups.

As these furry friends, which are typically not spayed, reproduce at an exponential rate, seeing cats lounging on a porch, scurrying across the sidewalk or picking through a garbage can for scraps becomes an accepted reality, part of the city landscape.

“They homeless cats pretty much exist in every nook and cranny, and once you start noticing them, you will really see how many there are,” said Linda Lobdell, a long-time resident of Newark's Forest Hill neighborhood. “It's worse in neighborhoods with fewer resources. A lot of people are really struggling, and they can’t afford to care for their pets and don't even have time to care about wheth