The Hawaiian Humane Society is doing one surgery after another, about 40 a day, trying to sterilize free-roaming cats to keep the feral colonies on Oahu from growing in number. There are cats in the hallways. The cat house, where the cats and kittens go to await adoption, is full to bursting.

Few animals provoke humans the way cats can.

There are those who feel an almost instinctual urge to feed large colonies of wild cats; who spend their own money and stash little bowls of Meow Mix under bushes in parks and parking lots.

Then there are those who are cruel, either in deed or in opinion, and who feel that all free-roaming cats should be eradicated.

Between extremes is the position Hawaiian Humane Society CEO Pamela Burns advocates: Let people feed the wild cats, but make sure all the animals have been sterilized so they can’t reproduce.

If it seems like there are a lot of cats roaming around the island, there are. The estimate is 300,000 cats.

Anti-cat sentiment has been building. Cats have been implicated in the deaths of monk seals because cats can carry a common parasite detected in the seals’ bodies. Cats are blamed for killing native birds. Colonies of cats in highly visible public areas make people upset — either worried for the animals’ welfare or disgusted by their presence.

Hawaii law says dog owners must keep their dogs under their control, but there is no similar law regarding cats. Cats can roam freely as long as they have a microchip. The Humane Society has no authority to trap cats anywhere, though property owners can trap on their private property.

So what to do? Or more pointedly, how can the situation be addressed in a compassionate way?

The Humane Society is moving on several fronts.

It’s working to set up regional representatives on Oahu — “cat captains” — who can help coordinate efforts between people who care for cat colonies, work with neighborhood boards and bring a targeted approach to reducing cat population without resorting to euthanasia. It will lend traps so feral cats can be brought in, sterilized and released. (A feral cat that has already been spayed or neutered has a notch in its ear.)

It’s partnered with businesses like Petco, placing adoption-ready animals in pet supply stores.

“It’s been great. It serves as an off-site shelter when our shelter is full, and the animals are highly visible for adoptions,” Burns said.

This past weekend, hundreds crowded a whimsical event at a Ward Warehouse boutique featuring cat-themed merchandise and Humane Society cats. The line to get in to Boutique Mori stretched out the door and down the walkway. Fourteen cats were adopted.

And there are plans to increase the number of feral cat sterilizations by increasing the clinic’s capacity.

The underlying principles are practicality and compassion, in dealing with both the cats and the people who have strong opinions about them.

As Jacque Vaughn, community relations director for the Hawaiian Humane Society, puts it, “Cats that are struggling on the streets to survive bring out the worst and best in people.”

Reach Lee Cataluna at 529-4315 or lcataluna@staradvertiser.com.