They may not be from Tucson, but more than 100 wild cats have infiltrated ASU's campus.
And they're not leaving anytime soon.
ASU is home to many stray cats, said David Brixen, director of facilities management, who said the cats use tunnels that run throughout ASU's campus.
"These cats are a little bit wild," Brixen said. "If people try to approach them they can scratch and bite."
Brixen said the tunnels are utility corridors used by ASU staff for repairs and general maintenance.
He said more cats are hiding in tunnels to stay warm during the winter, and that the cats tend to breed on campus, which means the cat population won't be declining soon.
Brixen also said the cats sometimes get stuck in the tunnels.
"When we know that cats are trapped, we do what we can to get them out," he said.
Ig Tsong, a physics and astronomy professor and a member of the Mildcats, an organization that helps to rescue and find homes for stray cats, said the cats sometimes use tunnels located around the University for shelter.
Rich Kruzel, vice president of the ASU Mildcats, said he would conservatively estimate the cat population at about 100.
Kruzel said a litter of kittens was discovered in a maintenance room of the Life Sciences Tower about a month ago -- they have since been put up for adoption.
He said the cat population could be attributed, in part, to students who abandon their cats on campus as well as students who fail to spay or neuter their cats.
"You see every day more and more cats are thrown outside by either people ... who don't want them, or just people who [don't] realize the importance of fixing their animal," he said.
Another problem, Kruzel said, is a possibility the cats are diseased, mostly with feline leukemia or rabies. When a cat is found and rescued, it is also tested for standard ailments.
Pre-business sophomore Marya Mtshali said she thinks the cats living on campus could be a potential hazard to students and the cats themselves if they are found to carry diseases.
"The tunnels of ASU are not the place for wild cats to be, whether or not they're harming people ... it can be an endangerment to us and to the wild cats," she said. "Not to mention that possible damage they could be causing to the maintenance tunnels, which [students] would have to pay for."
Kruzel said students don't need to worry about the cats as a threat even if they are diseased; they don't often approach humans.
"For the most part, there is no health or safety issues that anyone has to worry about from the cats," he said. "They stay away from people, and we are sure not to release any cat we catch if there is any serious health hazard."
After the cats are captured, tested, and fixed, they are then released back where they were found, and cared for as long as they continue to return, Kruzel said.
In the event that the animal is tamable, the Mildcats give them foster care and adopt them out, he said.
Reach the reporter at rkost@asu.edu.
