No More Homeless Pets Forum February 2 2004 Feral Cats

Feral cats: how can you get the word out and people on board? Amy Santiago of Alley Cat Allies and Dr. Julie Levy of the College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida will address your questions on how to communicate with officials and individuals about humane alternatives to killing feral cats in your community.

Introduction from Amy Santiago:

You already know how to successfully trap a feral cat and manage an entire colony. Perhaps you've helped dozens or hundreds of feral cats. But, when you attempted to explain to your animal control officer and your city councilwoman how your trap/neuter/return efforts benefit the community, the words did not seem to come out right. Maybe you did not even know where to start the conversation.

Alley Cat Allies believes that mastering the art of explaining and articulating non-lethal stray and feral cat control is just as important in protecting lives as mastering the art of humane trapping.

E-mail us your questions if you want to learn how to effectively convince an elected official, stop a lethal trap-and-kill scheme, or elicit support from a property owner or apartment manager on the effectiveness of trap/neuter/return. We'll take a positive approach to educating the uninformed about this important public issue.

We'll help you with this challenge. And, teach you how to help other caregivers do the same. We'll give you practical tools, resources and even sound bites.

Introduction from Dr. Julie Levy:

Few issues divide the humane community and policy makers as much as feral cats do. Tough questions abound, including how many cats there are, what their impact on public health and the environment is, how their numbers can be controlled, what their quality of life is, and what's best for the cats themselves.

Feral cats deserve their place at the "no-kill" table, but the lack of basic information about them leads to debates often focused on emotion, unsubstantiated statements, and unreasonable expectations.
In this week's forum, we'll try to develop strategies for bringing all the feral cat stakeholders to the table. This includes local political figures, animal control, public health officials, environmentalists, veterinarians, humane groups, funders, traditional and no-kill shelters, feral cat caretakers and, of course, the cats themselves.

Questions

Overcoming the rabies fear
What about anti-roaming ordinances that prohibit TNR?
Addressing animal control concerns if TNR is humane
Trapping in the winter
Convincing farmers that cats are not just to keep rodents down and need care
Winning over apartment managers
Find the right way and words to communicate with people who have different motivations
Fighting a Park Board over TNR
Developing a committee to start a feral cat program
Getting feral cat groups networked and coordinated
When people threaten caregivers
When the traditional humane society won't accept TNR
Microchipping feral cats
Tracking feral cat data to prove TNR is working
Can feral cat advocates work with those promoting cats indoors only?

Overcoming the rabies fear

Question from Sabine:

Here in the South, rabies is a big concern to some when it comes to feral cats. Where I live and trap, I have had an animal control officer tell me they do "pre-emptive" trapping of ferals out of concern for possible rabies exposure. I asked her if they also pre-emptively trapped and killed raccoons and skunks, since they are at higher risk for rabies. My point fell on deaf ears. Our TNR-educating efforts are also not helped by the fact that a local councilman was bitten by a rabid domestic cat that had supposedly been inoculated against rabies! How can we respond to this legitimate, but perhaps over-blown fear as we try to get TNR-friendly ordinances passed?

Response from Amy:

Although in the United States rabies is not a serious public health threat, societal fears continue to make it a sticking point in many municipalities where TNR programs are being discussed. While cats are closely linked to rabies in many people's minds, the reality is that rabies is overwhelmingly a disease of wildlife. Cats consistently account for only 2-4% of all reported rabies cases in the U.S. The numbers don't lie, and these numbers come from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). In the last 14 years, there have only been 36 human rabies cases (deaths) and not one of these was acquired from a cat. In fact, the last reported incidence of a human death from rabies transmitted from a cat was in 1975!

When discussing this subject with health officials, it's important to make sure you clearly explain the relationship between Trap-Neuter-Return programs (TNR) and rabies. In the U.S., the primary carriers of rabies are, in descending order, raccoons, skunks, bats, and foxes. In a properly managed colony, all cats have been vaccinated against rabies, so should a colony member be exposed to a rabid wild animal, the chance of the cat acquiring the rabies virus is virtually zero. And if it cannot acquire the virus, it cannot transmit it to other animals or to humans.

This is a very different situation from your ACO's "pre-emptive" trapping where only some cats in an area will be trapped. Rather than managed, vaccinated feral cat colonies that cannot transmit rabies, the remaining cats are left, unvaccinated and still breeding, which in no way achieves her goal of reducing rabies exposure.

It sounds like your councilman is coming to the discussion with a specific bias about feral cats and rabies. Perhaps in his case, the most effective way to approach the topic would be to go beyond cats and get to the heart of the matter of rabies transmission. As I said before, rabies is predominantly found in wildlife. To fight the epidemic of raccoon rabies in the 1970s, an oral rabies vaccine (ORV) was developed that is now used in most of the states along the East Coast including Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Florida, New York, Vermont, Maryland and Texas. These programs have proven to be extremely effective in reducing the incidence of rabies. The Ohio program is credited with preventing the spread of raccoon rabies to the western United States. (http://www.alleycat.org/pdf/rabies.pdf)

Response from Julie:

Our public health and animal control officials have responsibility for preventing the spread of rabies. They've been so successful, that it is extremely rare for people in the US to acquire rabies from domestic animals. It's important to realize that the reservoir for rabies in the US is wildlife. Cats do not constitute a reservoir, but may be a conduit for rabies between wildlife and humans.

The best approach for winning over animal control and public health officials is to document how your program will further reduce the risk of cat-associated rabies. Increasing the proportion of feral cats that are protected by rabies immunization creates a buffer of immune animals between wildlife and rabies.

It's very important that your program volunteers are well trained and compliant with safe cat handling protocols, so they are not bitten by feral cats. Public health agencies spend huge amounts of money testing cats for rabies after a bite or providing post-exposure prophylaxis to people who have been bitten by a stray cat that then escapes. It's interesting that most cat bites occur to the hands of women and that the bites are usually considered to be "provoked". I picture well-intended cat lovers trying to handle a feral cat whose body language is trying to tell them to stay away.

Volunteers in areas with high rabies risk should also be vaccinated against rabies themselves. It's expensive, but also another sign to public officials that you take rabies seriously.

Finally, any time you approach public officials with a new idea, it's important to be armed with the facts. Here's an example of some background information you might use to convince officials that the TNR program does not conflict with their worthy efforts to control rabies.

Rabies, a disease that is primarily maintained and transmitted by wildlife, is of particular concern to public health officials. Since 1981, rabid cats have outnumbered rabid dogs in the United States, with 270 feline cases reported in 2001. Although the dog is the primary vector of rabies worldwide, widespread vaccination of dogs and reduction of the stray dog population since the 1940s have greatly reduced the number of canine cases in the United States. Today, more than 90% of rabies cases occur in wildlife, primarily in raccoons, skunks, coyotes, foxes, and bats. The most serious current pandemics of rabies in the southeast and eastern U.S. were caused by the illegal interstate translocation of raccoons and coyotes by the hunting industry. A total of 36 humans have died of rabies in the U.S. since 1990 and 75% were associated with bat exposure. Nine cases were associated with the dog/coyote strains of rabies; all but 2 of these exposures were believed to occur in foreign countries. Despite continued concern about the role of cats in human rabies exposure, the last human case associated with cats in the United States was reported in 1975. According to the CDC, depopulation of wildlife species that harbor rabies is an impractical rabies control tactic due to costs, repopulation, and public opposition.

In contrast, rabies vaccination of skunks and raccoons via trap-vaccinate-release programs and oral baited immunization have proven quite successful for providing long-lasting herd immunity, even when individual animals received only a single dose of vaccine and when only a portion of the population was immunized. Likewise, a single dose of rabies vaccine protected domestic cats against virulent challenge 4 years later. Although an ideal rabies control program for dogs and cats consists of an initial vaccine followed by boosters one year later and then every 3 years thereafter, it is likely that even a single vaccine administered at the time of sterilization increases the protection of feral cats against rabies.

What about anti-roaming ordinances that prohibit TNR?

Question from Carol:

We have a feral cat problem in our community. However, because of county ordinances which say cats (and dogs) are not allowed to roam off the property of their owner, by trapping, S/N and returning, our group would be breaking the law. Any suggestions on how to approach this issue in our county should our group decide to go forward with a TNR program for feral cats? Also in our county, anyone who feeds a stray animal for 72 hours becomes that animals owner and is required to be responsible for the rabies vaccination updates as well as reporting these animals on their county/city property tax forms. Many people don't want to take on the responsibility of a huge feral cat colony because of these issues.

Response from Amy:

Many local municipal ordinances such as you describe were put in place years ago, long before any proactive sterilization/prevention programs like Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) were in place. They are really 'anti-nuisance' laws intended, for the most part, to keep neighbors happy. The history of animal control was to stop packs of dogs and the threat of rabies. Feral cats have only been recognized in the past few years. Very few communities have updated their ordinances to account for successful feral cat management through TNR. Your best course of action is to work on changing those outdated ordinances, and the best approach I can offer is to appeal to what matters most to your elected officials.

Enforcement of anti-nuisance laws is usually tied directly to the number of complaints received. Any program that will keep citizens from seeing the animals as a nuisance will reduce the number of complaints, which for elected officials means happier constituents and tax savings. And that is exactly what TNR does - it is a proactive process that will stop or greatly reduce the "nuisance behaviors" of unsterilized cats.

Non-lethal population control also speaks to the desires of true animal control and protects public health in ways that "trap-and-euthanize" methods cannot. You can tell officials that animal control needs to change its focus. A study conducted in the State of Minnesota found that for every $1 invested in spay/neuter programs they saved over $19 in animal control costs over ten years. Therefore, TNR can have (and is already having) a dramatic impact on solving neighborhood feral cat issues. Get a copy of ACA's "The Humane Solution" (VHS or DVD) to demonstrate this. (http://www.alleycat.org/videos.html)

Be aware also that most citizens who are feeding stray and feral cats also care about them. They are already taking responsibility. The large reason they don't do more is because they simply don't know how and they don't have the resources. Consider proposing a pilot program that provides traps to be borrowed, training on how to use them, affordable and accessible spay/neuter clinics, and a safety net to give support and guidance to all those who look over these cats. Pilot programs, by the way, are the most direct way to circumvent current ordinances and accumulate evidence as to why they must be changed. Remember to track everything you do for future reference.

If you build it, they will come. A program for cats in your community will have to take into account the specific nuances and policies that exist in your local government. But, for things to change, you need to find ways to, at the very least, implement a pilot program that offers proactive, humane solutions so you can show how to make change as well as tell how.

Response from Julie:

You have a tough situation. A few years ago, our animal control ordinance had very similar language. Ours was even more restrictive because it was illegal to adopt a stray. They all had to be turned in to animal control.

When we decided to start a TNR program in Alachua County, we set up a meeting with the animal care and control director. We explained how our program would be organized and how it would operate. There were written plans for every detail. We were very lucky, because he said he was personally opposed to TNR, but he would see how he could help.

What a progressive and brave soul! He said that the feral cats would operate outside of the official system. We would keep our own rabies vaccine records and issue our own rabies certificates instead of the ones issued by the county for a fee. It was understood that if conflicts arose, the arrangement would have to be revisited. We worked hard to run a top-notch TNR program that could be viewed as an asset by officials, not as a liability. We had a lot of media coverage and are always sure to promote the county as an important partner.

Eventually, the county code was revised, so that feral cats are no longer in conflict with the law. Other than authorizing the removal of nuisance cats, feral cats are not mentioned in the code. Animal control notifies us when a cat with a tipped ear is impounded, and caretakers can go through the same procedures (and fees) for reclaiming a feral cat as they would for a pet.

In our county, animal control is a leader in the animal welfare community. The agency was a founding member of our No More Homeless Pets Coalition and was instrumental in bringing a Maddie's Fund grant to our community. We know we have a special relationship with the people at animal control who have to do society's dirty work, and we work hard to support them.

What if your animal control agency is not so willing to "think outside the box?" Then it becomes your job to convince officials of the value of your program. You might need to start with elected officials. Don't go for the throat immediately on behalf of TNR, but develop a reputation for being a rational, positive force in your community. Recruit an influential member of the community (lends instant credibility to your ideas) to come with you to meetings with officials. Then be well armed with examples of successful programs in other communities, tax-saving ideas, and reduced complaints from the public. Get a city proclamation endorsing the end of euthanasia of adoptable animals by a certain date (don't ask for money - just the public statement on the record). Butter up your animal control agency by helping solve the problems they have and giving them a better image. Propose a pilot program for TNR with defined goals that everyone can agree on.

Think twice about going for a formal ordinance change, especially if it goes so far as to register and regulate feral cats. These days, anti-TNR forces are very well organized, and you might find that a huge political controversy erupts that ends your chances for TNR.

Addressing animal control concerns if TNR is humane

Question from a member:

Our animal care and control has two major concerns re: TNR.

the animals' welfare (many animals suffer. It's inhumane. They can't in good conscience promote cats "on the street").
sending two different messages to the public and will confuse them (It contradicts the "keep your cats indoors" message they want pet owners to get. If it's okay for strays/ferals to be outside, why not pet cats?)
We've talked about the veterinary care and ongoing care, feeding and monitoring that cats in a managed colony receive and how it improves their quality of life, and that cats in a TNR program are not released willy-nilly "to the streets", but returned to a caretaker. And we've responded that we're talking about different populations of cats for which different solutions - hence messages - are needed.

Despite their concerns, they're willing to at least consider TNR. Their approval could mean an official policy favorable to TNR, going along with a pilot program, or even help in writing an ordinance specifically exempting ferals from certain animal control provisions. So what else can we say to address their two major concerns to get them off the fence and over to "our" side?

Response from Amy:

First of all, congratulations on having gotten this far!

Probably the best thing you can do is to demonstrate the benefits of TNR firsthand. For instance, if you have any colonies where TNR is practiced, show them photos of your 'managed colonies' - those you've already had sterilized and vaccinated. Demonstrate that contrary to the myth of the sickly, scrawny feral cat, the truth is that managed (sterilized, vaccinated) feral cats are virtually indistinguishable in appearance from the most pampered house cats (except for the ear tip, of course). Showing them how healthy the cats are is worth hours of talking about the benefits of TNR!

It also sounds like a "feral cats 101" session is in order for the animal control officials. It sounds like, while they certainly have some knowledge, they do not fully understand what a feral cat is, how a feral cat is different from a pet cat, and how the management of feral cats is different from that of domestic cats.

You have to start with the basics. Explain that feral cats are the unsocialized offspring of unsterilized domestic cats. Feral cats, while dependent on humans for food and veterinary care, cannot realistically be tamed and are not suited to living indoors with humans. Friendly stray cats - abandoned pets - and young kittens are found in unmanaged feral cat colonies. These cats are suited for life indoors with humans and, therefore, are removed from the colony for adoption. Refer to Alley Cat Allies' Glossary of Feral Cat Terms, (pdf) and have copies available to which officials can refer.

It might also be useful to speak frankly about the reality of the situation. Right now, animal control is either doing nothing about feral cats, or is sporadically trapping and killing, or is actively and systematically trapping and killing. Either way, there are feral cats in the community - otherwise, the issue of how to manage them wouldn't come up! So the question isn't one of whether or not there should be feral cats in the community. The issue is how to provide the best quality of life for them and stop their reproduction. TNR is not just the only proven effective means of feral cat population control; it is also the best means of improving the quality of life for individual cats.

As for sending a message to the public, there should be no conflict. Encouraging citizens to keep their pet cats indoors should not conflict at all with promoting humane management of feral cats. Furthermore, the citizens that animal control is trying to reach with its messages about proper pet care are the very same people who are feeding and caring for the community's free-roaming cats.

Studies have shown that as many as one in five households feed free-roaming cats. These same studies have shown that the caregivers regard the cats they feed as pets, even though they can't necessarily touch them. A message of humane, non-lethal population control for these cats will resonate with the general public, and will only lend more credibility to any other messages that animal control is trying to communicate.

And certainly, any message sent to the public about the care of domestic cats should include the importance of spaying and neutering all cats, and never abandoning a pet - messages that not only promote the well-being of the current generation of cats, but prevent future generations of feral cats.

Helpful resources available from ACA include the factsheets, Building the Body of Scientific Evidence that TNR Works (pdf) and Reduce Your Euthanasia Rate (pdf). We also encourage you to purchase ACA's video, The Humane Solution. This video provides an excellent introduction to feral cats and TNR, and is useful for educating both officials and the general public. Activists have used this video in many ways, including showing it at meetings with officials, donating copies to public libraries, and arranging for public access television to air it.

Response from Julie:

Wow! It sounds like you have a very progressive and open-minded animal care and control department. It's a very positive sign that they are willing to form a community collaboration with you to explore new methods, even though they are concerned about how things will turn out. One of the hardest things any of us can to is to set our preconceptions aside and take new chances.

I think you are on the right track. Acknowledge the legitimacy of their concerns and point out how your TNR program is going to improve the situation. Most of us would prefer to see all cats in homes, but that does not mean that all cats who can't have a home should be exterminated. A middle ground while we work toward ending cat overpopulation is to develop colony management via TNR improving the lives of the cats involved.

It would probably help if we all scrubbed our literature of emotionally charged statements such as the "short miserable lives" that feral cats live. It's hard to argue that TNR is humane when we are also saying the cats are miserable. In our experience, colony size reduction is a very slow process, because the cats live so long after neutering.

You have been given a relatively rare opportunity to prove that TNR can be an important tool. The success of your pilot program may determine whether TNR becomes a long-standing policy in your community. That means you have to set yourselves up for success.

Some strategies for high profile "success" might include:

- Select colonies that are located in ideal locations
- Solve a long-standing source of conflict or complaints
- Reduce colony size (this may require adoption of kittens or friendly cats since the remainder may live a long time)
- Keep the colonies neat and attractive, use feeding practices that don't attract pests and wildlife
- Get some media attention that flatters public officials
- Keep impeccable records
- Submit compelling regular reports of your accomplishments
- Get the community involved in helping animal care and control - they never have enough money, staff, or pats on the back

Trapping in the winter

Question from a member:

I live in the Midwest area where it has been below zero for most of the winter. We are working with some businesses that are allowing us to do TNR on their properties. Because of the freezing weather conditions, we are very morally conflicted on whether or not to do TNR right now. We want to get ahead of the spring flood of babies but don't want to harm the cats by placing them back out after surgery in this weather. Not all of the people calling for help have shelters for the cats. What do you think about doing TNR in the winter?

Response from Julie:

Concern about the welfare of cats living in extreme climates is well placed. We certainly don't want to run humane programs that jeopardize the welfare of the cats themselves.

On the other hand, if freezing temperatures were such a threat to cats, there wouldn't be cat overpopulation problems in the north. Cats have a truly uncanny ability to thrive in almost any climate. Take Marion Island for instance. This sub-Antarctic island boasts the "worst weather in the world" averaging 5 degrees centigrade throughout the year with significant wind chill. The island has no trees or other shelter and is covered mostly by rocks and lichen. A Marion Island website states that "mice arrived with 19th century sealers, damaging plant and insect life, and the five cats introduced to control them in 1949 had multiplied to 3,400 by 1977. Only due to a massive extermination program have they been eradicated."

With this in mind, I believe it is possible to conduct TNR responsibly in any climate. Cats (at least female cats) undergoing surgery in very cold areas should be confined for a few days post-operatively to be sure they are adequately robust to be released back to their environment. Clipping of hair should be kept to a minimum to conserve body heat. Midline abdominal incisions might afford better heat retention than flank incisions.

Your desire to pre-empt kitten season is an important point. Pregnancies in cats are related to day length, and already we are seeing pregnant cats in Florida. I would try to sterilize as many female cats as you can get your hand on now, otherwise you will be faced with sterilizing more pregnant cats and cats who've already had their kittens in the near future.

Response from Amy:

You are right to be concerned about trapping during very cold, inclement weather. Winter is harsh in much of the U.S. and, despite the fact that we all want to prevent spring litters, trapping in extreme weather conditions defeats the goal of helping cats by jeopardizing their health.

The stress an animal endures from the process of trapping, transportation, vetting, and recovery is considerable in good weather. When the temperature is below freezing, with snow and ice on the ground, the cats need their energy just to stay warm and in decent health. In addition, standard trapping procedure involves withholding food so the cats are hungry and will take the bait in the traps. In harsh weather, withholding food is simply a bad idea. And when a female is shaved for a spay operation, whether a side (flank) or stomach (midline) incision, removing even this amount of fur inhibits her ability to stay warm when returned to her outdoor home.

Many of the feral cat groups and shelters that want to prevent spring litters but are concerned about winter weather do one or both of the following:

They hold large spay/neuter clinics in the fall. Following this pattern, Alley Cat Allies' clinic has found that we have almost no pregnant female cats after the last litters of summer.

Other groups get a jump on spring kitten season by holding "Beat the Heat" clinics. These are also very large clinics held to spay/neuter as many cats as possible, but they are held as winter winds down and early spring weather permits safe trapping.
Another idea comes from NYP (Spay/Neuter Your Pet) in Medford, OR, a group that organizes seasonal campaigns in February, August, and October. These seasonal events are designed to preempt spring and fall breeding seasons. Remember that Oregon is a more temperate climate where February trapping is usually reasonable.

ACA recommends that if you don't yet have a regular spay/neuter clinic or services, consider planning only one event this year just after the summer litters. The weather is normally cooperative at that time of year, and there is the added advantage of being able to neuter the four- and five-month-old kittens who were born the previous spring, thereby preventing them from having first litters. You can network with groups that have already launched programs so that you don't have to reinvent the wheel.

Your question also brings up a larger point - whenever you trap, you must have a plan. Refer to ACA's factsheet, "The ABC's of TNR" (pdf) for comprehensive information on planning and implementing a non-lethal feral cat reduction program.

Convincing farmers that cats are not just to keep rodents down and need care

Question from Nancy:

Rural "feral" cats might also be called "barn cats" in some instances. However, how can you help cats that are seen as "property" or hired hands whose job it is to keep the rodent population under control? Many farmers happily accept intact litters each year to replace last year's fatalities? These cats have the same lifestyle that urban feral cats have, except that an urban feral cat colony is supported by humans. These farmers do not provide vaccinations or neutering and often don't even feed their cats. Is animal control the best place to start? We've already had some unpleasant exchanges with one such farmer who accused us of "stealing" his cats when we've snagged some to place in homes. Where do we start?

Response from Julie:

The best way to win support for your project is to win the confidence of the people involved. TNR is probably a totally new concept to people who are used to having working barn cats that maintain a relatively stable population by high birth and death rates.

In some respects, part of the battle is already won: the landowners want to have cats on their property. That means the next step is to raise awareness so that these cats can have a better quality of life.

It's probably best to start with landowners who are open to sterilizing their cats. Try running an ad in the classified section of the newspaper offering free spay and neuter and vaccination for barn cats. Once a few farms have taken you up on the concept and word gets out that the cats are returned in good condition and continue to do their jobs in the barn, other land owners will be more open minded and accept help.

If your community is like most others, there are far more cats that need help than there are resources to help them. Therefore, it doesn't make sense to tackle the most resistant landowners first. Use your resources where they will do the most good for the least effort and cost. I also believe that the most important objective is sterilizing the most cats possible. I would not focus on adoption early on, especially if the landowner really wants to get the cats back. Most communities still euthanize a lot of adoptable cats, so there is no need to wrestle cats off of farms to add to the surplus already waiting for homes.

Response from Amy:

Because most animal control agencies are not set up to deal with feral cats and will almost certainly destroy them, animal control should NOT be your first resource. And always keep in mind that if cats are living on someone else's property, you MUST get that person's permission before taking any of the cats or carrying out TNR on that property.

That said consider the people involved in the different situations. Yes, the mentality of "barn cat" farmers and "urban/suburban" property owners and/or caregivers may be different, but the mentality YOU need to change their minds isn't. In my experience, the best way to convince people to do something is to show them how and why it's to their advantage to do so. Instead of focusing on how to change the cats from being "property" in the farmers' minds, highlight the cats' roles as mousers/rodent specialists. Market your approach to meet their needs.

Working with feral cats in a rural community, you have an advantage because the cats actually have an accepted place in the community. Most of the time when we are trying to convince property owners to do TNR, they do not see any value in keeping the cats on their property. Explain to your area farmers how it is to their benefit to have the cats neutered - healthy cats will certainly be more productive in their jobs.

Another strong point selling point is that in virtually every state, rabies vaccinations are required by law. Point out that you will provide (at no cost to them) a valuable service that also puts helps them comply with state law. And if they are worried about needing to "replace last year's fatalities," assure them that there are plenty of feral cats in this world to replace cats lost to natural causes.

You'll make faster progress if you start by identifying one or more farmers who are at least somewhat open to TNR. Be sure to document the progress you make with their cats. Find out what made them willing to have their cats neutered and you'll be able to use their reasoning in persuading other members of the community who are, for the moment, less willing to cooperate. Good luck!

Winning over apartment managers

Question from Karen:

This last year, I worked on an extremely large colony (at least 100 cats) in a field behind a busy store. Now that the colony is down to a decent number (through adoption placement), I wanted to see about setting up a TNR program, where the remaining cats could stay there.

Next door there are senior apartments. Some of the residents feed the cats anyway, and I thought they would be good caretakers if we could set up a feeding station in the empty field. However, I don't know how to start due to the opposition in town. The apartment managers told me they DO NOT want the residents feeding the cats, saying it disrupts the skunk/raccoon population (by their eating the food). The store does not want the cats there and takes them to the shelter when caught. The shelter does not like the idea of feral cats being cared for when so many tame cats are homeless and euthanized. Not to mention I am in a small town (population about 15,000 counting our University students). Here who you know matters (and I don't know anyone). Is this just a pipe dream? I keep asking for help, but do not get any, and I'm ready to give up!

Response from Julie:

Sounds like it's time for a meeting of the stakeholders. This includes the store manager, the apartment manager, the shelter, and the residents of the apartments.

You'll want to organize strong support for the TNR option in advance so that it's obvious to everyone that TNR is the way to go. I would recruit a prominent local citizen to help present your case. I would also organize some of the apartment residents who will agree to be responsible caretakers. This includes assuring that food is not left out at night to attract wildlife and that the site does not become a nuisance. Do not allow the site to be littered with cat food containers and dishes or to attract the dumping of more cats.

Prepare an analysis of the site in advance, including documentation of how much progress you've made so far. Include pictures of the site that demonstrate how responsible your project is and how much better the situation will be when it's fully controlled. Point out that disorganized, surreptitious feeding of cats is likely to lead to ongoing problems, whereas a well-organized educated project will be clean and safe and eventually lead to everyone's goals: fewer feral cats.

The shelter should not fear your project, because you will actually be helping them by keeping some cats out of the shelter stream. TNR is great because it does not compete with the mission of shelters to save the lives of tame cats that need homes.

Response from Amy:

You are dealing with several complex factors, but I think you will be able to resolve the situation in a manner that is satisfactory to everyone.

When meeting with the store owners, the first thing you will want to point to is the success you have already had with reducing the population through adoption. Then explain that you want to help them further reduce the number of cats on the property through spay/neuter. Listen carefully to whatever concerns they have, and treat them seriously. However, do not waver from your central point - that you want to help them get the cat population under control and that TNR is best way to do this. If all else fails, see if you can convince them to give you a specific and reasonable time frame, say, six months, to improve the situation. Since most of the behavior that people find objectionable, such as spraying, caterwauling, fighting, and endless litters of kittens, are dramatically reduced after cats are sterilized, this will probably be the effective solution.

No matter what, the ball truly is in your court. If there are that many cats at the store, it seems clear that even if the owner does not want the cats there, he or she is not making a concerted effort to eradicate them. You have a real opportunity here to demonstrate that TNR works!

The apartment complex does not seem to be essential to resolving the situation, but it would still be great to have them on your side. Are residents feeding the cats now? If so, point this out to the property managers (without identifying the residents, of course). Make it clear that you share their concerns about attracting wildlife. Explain that residents are currently feeding the cats out of concern and compassion. They are not likely to stop. However, organized feedings at scheduled times can help keep wildlife at bay, because it will ensure that only enough food is provided for the cats, with no food left over to attract wildlife.

When dealing with the shelter, explain the ways they benefit from TNR. If they express a concern that so many tame cats are being euthanized for lack of homes, emphasize that you share this concern and that your goal is to see an end to the euthanasia of healthy animals. Then talk about the ways TNR helps achieve this goal. For instance, if the shelter accepts feral cats, they are using cage space to hold the cats before euthanizing them. Likewise they are spending money and staff time to care for them during this time. By embracing, or at least accepting, TNR, the shelter will free up cage space, and staff, and financial resources to care for animals who are candidates for adoption. You want to emphasize the point that managing feral cat colonies through TNR certainly does not make fewer resources available for tame cats. ACA's factsheet, "Reduce Your Euthanasia Rate," will be very helpful.

The last thing you need to do is get to know your neighbors! ACA has door hangers designed to enlist the help of people who already feed feral cats. It encourages them to have the cats spayed and neutered. Our door hanger has a space for you to add your name and phone number. By distributing these in your area, you will get to know people who share your concern for the well being of feral cats. Networking with other concerned citizens is a critical part of safeguarding the welfare of feral cats in your community.

Find the right way and words to communicate with people who have different motivations

Question from Susan:

I've noticed some villages are discouraging large TNR projects because of the "release to the wild" issue (Palmyra, PA most recently). But every colony I've helped with has been on private land for people who have been feeding the cats long enough to be considered owners. In the absence of a leash law or pet limit law, spaying and neutering those cats is legally no different from spaying or neutering someone's outdoor pettable pets.

In municipal areas, would it be better to stress "ownership" of fed ferals on private land when proposing a TNR program (maybe call it a "free spay/neuter for outdoor cats" rather than TNR?), rather than stressing "these are wild cats and can't be adopted?" One gentleman I talked to once was adamantly opposed to "TNR". When I asked, "Well, would it be okay if I just fixed your renter's outdoor cats at least?" he said "Oh, that's OK." ?????? We fixed the "outdoor cats". The "outdoor cats" got little shelters on the patios of their "owners", and TNR was accomplished.

Almost every single feral cat caretaker brought it up at the October PA Game Commission hearing ("We aren't dumping cats. We are helping landowners fix their own feral cats.") They are always spoken of as "wild" animals when they really are, in many cases, unpettable pets. Should we be addressing this aspect more strongly, especially in residential areas, so officials aren't scared off?

Response from Amy:

This is an excellent question - one that in many ways gets to the heart of what TNR is really all about. There are two distinct and equally important aspects to humane feral cat management:

carrying out TNR,
educating officials and the general public about feral cats and their management.

In the short term, anything that gets the cats sterilized and vaccinated is the goal. Keep in mind that feral cats are still an unknown quantity for most people. We use a lot of words and concepts that a person may never have heard before, e.g. feral, Trap-Neuter-Return, managed colony. People often feel overwhelmed and shut down in the face of a large quantity of new information.

When dealing with property and business owners, the best approach is to use simple, straightforward language. Asking their permission to take the cats to the vet to be neutered and vaccinated (or "fixed", or even "to get their shots") may get a quicker response than an elaborate explanation of the nature, origin, and responsible management of feral cats. Once you have permission to begin TNR, you can start the education process gently, perhaps through a series of casual conversations.

When it comes to negotiating with officials, however, I really think that providing anything other than the facts does everyone a disservice. You certainly want to focus a lot of attention on spay/neuter and the role of the caregiver. But if municipalities and animal control agencies are to adopt humane, responsible feral cat management plans, they must fully understand the facts about feral cats. This includes what a feral cat is, where they come from, how they are similar to and different from pet cats and friendly stray cats, and how to effectively and humanely reduce feral cat populations.

Whenever you meet with officials, listen carefully to their concerns and to their responses to your questions/statements. These responses can give you a great deal of insight into where they are coming from and the concerns and misconceptions they might have. By tuning in to these subtleties, you will be able to address their particular concerns directly.

And remember that it is never a good idea to assume that officials, even animal control personnel, have accurate or full knowledge of stray and feral cat issues. It is common for a feral cat advocate to meet with animal control and find out that, while the a/c officer uses feral cat terms, he or she does not use them correctly or does not fully understand what the terms mean. Click here, for a glossary of feral cat terminology.

Keep in mind, too, that while having the government's backing is certainly helpful, it is not an essential part of any TNR campaign in the beginning. It is frequently easier to simply begin TNR and build your momentum from there. Establishing credibility for your organization and its programs by responsibly and successfully carrying out TNR, thereby demonstrating its effectiveness, is worth many hours of negotiation.

Response from Julie:

I agree that the term "TNR" has become highly charged and politicized. For this reason, we make a point of defining it as "trap-neuter-return", not "trap-neuter-release". We want to remind people that we are talking about neutering cats that are already there, not establishing new colonies.

I would be cautious about defining these cats as pets though, because in many communities that would activate requirements for licensing, pet limit laws, and leash laws.

Our experience in Alachua County, FL, is similar to yours. Most "colonies" are a small group of cats, often a mother and her kittens, that shows up at someone's home or workplace. They start feeding the cats out of pity. These are the kinds of colonies on which we can have a great impact, because the caretakers attached to the cats will usually do most of the work of trapping for sterilization and caring for them afterwards. On the other hand, these caretakers have no interest in participating in cat control programs that threaten the cats.

I think you've already explained part of the answer to your question. Find the right way and the right words to communicate with people who have different interests and motivations. Regardless of their original concern, TNR is likely to be the solution they are seeking. Sometimes just using pseudonyms, such as barn cats, outdoor cats, or community pets, is enough to get the conversation started in the right direction. Other words like "free" also have a big impact.

Fighting a Park Board over TNR

Question from Monica:

After a bitter battle with city officials last spring to keep the feral cat colony that we had tended for over seven years safe in a local park, the Park Board decided, without listening to ANY of the facts, to remove the cats from the park. Now over six months later they have done nothing, but the cats are disappearing. One by one they are just not there anymore.

We have been blessed with a new Mayor since the Park Board decision last spring, and this new Mayor supports what we are doing. How can we protect the cats left in the park? We suspect that they are being poisoned or trapped illegally. How can we protect them? The park department denies any wrongdoing.

Response from Amy:

There are three things to start with, and do them all at once. First, poisoning domestic animals is illegal in most municipalities. Sad as this is, you and the other caregivers need to try to locate some of the missing cats' bodies. If you do, take them to a vet and have a necropsy performed to determine the cause of death. It is also a good idea to post flyers offering a reward for information about animal cruelty (killing or poisoning). Remember to assure confidentiality to informants.

Second, make sure TNR has been carried out on all of the cats in the colony. Documentation that all of your cats have been neutered and vaccinated will be the most important negotiating chip you can bring to the table with the new Mayor. This is evidence that TNR is working in this colony. If you have a well-organized tracking system in place, it will be much easier to document exactly when and which cats are missing.

Third, make sure you are communicating with all of the caregivers and neighbors that feed the cats, and that everyone knows what is going on and what they need to look out for. Distribute flyers or door hangers (contact alleycat@alleycat.org to order them) to make sure that you have as many people as possible keeping a watchful eye on the colony. Also make sure that the people who are feeding the cats are working together and feeding according to appropriate protocol. This means that feeding is done discreetly and the caregivers always leave the area looking better than they found it.

Now you are ready to deal with the Park Board and other officials. If you do not already work with a local activist group, locate one in your area and get them on Board. Build as much grassroots support as you can. Write a letter to the Park Board requesting a meeting, including a deadline for them to respond. In the letter, ask straight out if a trap-and-kill program has been put into place. It is essential to have these types of inquiries documented, so be sure to send a copy of the letter to the Mayor and City Commissioners.

If the Park Board does not contact you, follow up with a telephone call. If they will not meet with you, it is time to call out the troops. Start a letter-writing campaign to the Mayor and city commission. Letters should request a formal inquiry as to whether any trapping or poisoning of cats is being carried out at the park.

Contact the media. Bring as much attention to the situation as possible to put pressure on all the officials involved to take action.

Go to http://www.alleycat.org/pdf/StrategicPlanning.pdf for more information on how to be an effective negotiator. It sounds like you have been fighting this battle for a while. Don't be discouraged; you can prevail.

Response from Julie:

You are lucky, because the new Mayor may be a powerful ally. It's always very helpful to have someone from the community who is well known and respected, but is not directly involved in your group, to help open doors for you. The first step is to prepare a well-researched report about what you know to be facts. Describe the numbers of cats that have been present over time, how many of these have been sterilized, what the population dynamics of the park cats have been. Describe the recent disappearances of cats. Check with animal control, the city, and the private pest control companies to verify that no one has been trapping the cats. Be careful about making unsubstantiated claims about poisoning or other illegal activity if you don't have evidence to support it.

Next develop a plan for managing the park cats that meets everyone's needs. If there are areas of the park that support endangered wildlife, propose feeding stations that attract cats to other parts of the park. Do not allow feeding of the cats near children's play areas (that nice playground sand looks too much like a giant litter box). Avoid attracting wildlife by never leaving food out at night. Be neat and tidy and low profile to avoid attracting abandonment of more cats.

Make an appointment with the Mayor to present your report and a plan for resolving the problem. Dress professionally and remain calm. Explain how your plan will meet everyone's needs and make him a hero. If things go well, the Mayor will help you set up meetings with the Park Board and other stakeholders. Again, despite any past spats, it is very important to remain professional and to avoid making anyone else react defensively.

Developing a committee to start a feral cat program

Question from Jessica:

I am a supervisor at a humane society where the feral cat issue is a VERY hot topic right now. We have recently formed a 10-person committee to evaluate our options, as we currently have no feral cat program. For now, all feral cats beyond the age of 8 weeks are automatically euthanized, and we frequently have to euthanize even the kittens due to a shortage of space or qualified/willing fosters.

For the most part, the shelter wants an independent volunteer feral cat task force to form under the guidance of a national group. We are already overwhelmed with healthy, friendly cats. We can't do much for feral cats beyond providing training for volunteers, allowing them to meet in our building, and helping with advertising/referrals and community education. Anything more would overtax our resources and risk the welfare of our adoptable animals.

The committee seems to agree that the shelter should not be managing a feral cat program. That's the only thing we can agree on, thus far.The problem is, I don't feel comfortable handing over such a huge responsibility to people who don't seem to have a clue what they're getting themselves into! The most vocal Board Member on the committee doesn't even fully understand the difference between "stray" & "feral". She talks about her "sick, feral, foster kittens from last summer, that miraculously came around". The kittens she fostered were 7-wk old, well-socialized, very healthy, indoor kittens who were surrendered by an owner!

We have all shared our research, and I don't think another printout from the Internet is going to help. Short of releasing a feral cat at her feet, I'm not sure how to make our point! I don't want to scare away any potential volunteers for this much needed program, but the committee will never get anywhere without reaching some agreements on the most basic definitions.

The committee members are just so flippant! I'm now concerned about how humane a feral cat program can be if it's run by people who will bail on it as soon as they realize how much responsibility it is. What can we do to help educate people while at the same time maintaining our independence from what they're doing?

Response from Amy:

You are certainly not alone in having the feral cat issue as a hot topic. The fact that you are already overwhelmed with healthy, friendly cats is the best reason to implement a TNR program for feral cats. One good thing about TNR is that there are multitudes of people out there willing to trap and provide care for feral cats. There are most likely individuals and small groups in your area who already have expertise in TNR. Most successful programs were started and run by individuals who had no professional training, but knew something needed to be done. And managing a feral cat program does not require anywhere near the resources you are currently expending to euthanize the cats and kittens.

Your plan to provide training for volunteers, allow them to meet in your facility, and help with advertising, referrals, and community education is really all that is necessary to launch a program. And while your concern about the current feral cat committee seems legitimate, your best option is to let them begin their program. There will be a learning curve and a lot of bumps along the way, but your committee members will either become quite expert or they will move on to other projects.

The one thing you must emphasize during the learning period is safety. Alley Cat Allies' website has literally dozens of factsheets covering all aspects of safe, hands-on TNR for feral cats. I strongly recommend that you use these documents to develop guidelines for everyone who will be working with the cats. Then, as long as nothing truly harmful or dangerous is happening, for example, volunteers attempting to handle conscious feral cats at a clinic, it's probably best to let them learn from their own experiences… and, yes, from their mistakes. The woman who doesn't know what a feral cat is will learn, I assure you.

In regard to your humane society's feral cat euthanasia rate, ACA has guidelines to help municipal agencies and private shelters implement Trap-Neuter-Return, entitled "Reduce Your Euthanasia Rate: How to Adopt Non-lethal Control for Stray and Feral Cats at your Shelter or Animal Services Facility." It, too, is available on our website. The steps required are actually quite simple and straightforward, and for the most part involve never bringing the cats through your door in the first place. I'm sure this document could be of help while your feral cat committee puts its TNR program in place.

Numerous shelters and municipalities have implemented TNR programs and dramatically reduced their euthanasia rates. Good luck on joining their ranks. You are definitely moving in the right direction.

Response from Julie:

It sounds like your shelter is very open-minded and has the best interests of the feral cats in mind. I think it's very wise to do an honest appraisal of your resources before you take on large new projects like TNR. No one is served if the shelter overextends itself to the point that existing services suffer.

I share your concern about handing over the reins of a new feral cat program to inexperienced individuals. Before any cats are trapped, it is critical to establish a mission for the program, identify the priorities, services, resources, and personnel. There are many issues that need to be settled in advance: what kinds of services are to be offered, who pays for it? Is this mainly a TNR program, or is taming and adoption going to be a large component? What about pregnant cats and kittens that might be trapped? Who is providing the services (from trapping to surgery)? How will the community be educated, and how will you win the support of public officials.

Rather than selecting committee members solely from within the humane society, how about setting up an advisory committee of experts including some from outside the shelter? These may be recruited from your own community or even from long distances.

I am a firm believer in learning from the mistakes and triumphs of others. Organize a delegation to visit successful programs and find out what makes them tick. There are many TNR models to follow. Operation Catnip provides free spay/neuter and vaccines, but does little trapping and no colony maintenance, fostering, or adoptions beyond what the volunteers do on their own. Other groups are very involved at the colony level with education, registration, and supervision. Arizona ACC promoted alternatives to lethal feral cat control by providing sterilization that was cheaper than relinquishment for feral cats. After a few visits you are sure to find a model that fits the needs of your own humane society.

Getting feral cat groups networked and coordinated

Question from Jane in MD:

I have just started to get actively involved in TNR, volunteering with clinics and helping a friend trap. I want to do more, though I don't have a whole lot of free time. What I find frustrating is the lack of organization. It seems that there are many animal groups out there, but they are not well united. I am wondering if anyone has attempted to unite or network all these different programs, and if not, how do we go about this? We are doing some TNR in our county, but we are afraid to "advertise", because there aren't enough of us to respond to all the TNR projects that may crop up. What steps should we take to expand our operation? Thanks for all your helpful advice.

Response from Julie:

I agree with your instinct that if animal welfare groups present a united front, then progress toward helping animals would move at a faster pace. It's been my experience that unity often fails because groups cannot agree on everything. I believe that successful coalitions can be built if we focus on a few big issues that we all agree on, and then respect our rights to disagree on other issues. This strategy is paying off where community coalitions have set aside their internal differences to go after the brass ring and are coming home with huge grants that were not even considered possible a few years ago. Some great examples of success are listed on the Best Friends web site Model Programs.

Starting a coalition of animal welfare groups is a daunting task and may be best left to individuals who are already leaders in the community. An alternative is to organize your own TNR program. Start with a realistic evaluation of the available resources. How many volunteers do you have, how much time and money? If another group is already doing TNR, it might be most effective to join ranks with them to increase their impact rather than to further fragment the effort by starting yet another group.

Figure out what your strengths are and exploit them. If you are good at fund raising, but don't have any clinical expertise, paying veterinarians to sterilize feral cats at their clinics may be the way to go. If you are good at catching cats and caring for colonies, then having the cats sterilized at a low-cost clinic and then following up with colony care would make the best use of your talents. If you have lots of veterinarians and technicians that want to volunteer, setting up large-scale feral cat sterilization clinics might fill a void.

In my experience, there are a lot more caretakers willing to have their cats go through TNR than there is capacity to care for them. In that case, I would ask them to do all the trapping, transporting, and colony care, and focus my resources on building capacity to get them sterilized. Operation Catnip's primary promotional activity is a short ad in the pet section of the classifieds. It says, "Free spay/neuter for stray and feral cats. Operation Catnip, 380-0940." The newspaper donated the ad and it provides more business than we can handle.

Response from Amy:

Focusing community TNR efforts is almost always a good idea. Since it sounds like there are several organizations in your area already doing TNR, why don't you propose a "feral cat summit"? Hold a meeting of local feral cat activists to discuss major projects each group is working on and any concerns they are facing. You are likely to have the resources at your disposal to help solve one another's dilemmas!

One goal for this is to figure out how to pool resources. For example, create a list of trap depots. It will be to everyone's advantage if each group knows where traps are available for loan. When people call requesting assistance, you can refer them to the trap depot closest to them. This will increase the efficiency of local TNR efforts.

As for publicizing your work, in the long run operating underground and not publicizing your TNR efforts will create more problems than it solves. You already know that many people have never heard of TNR. When a feral cat situation gets out of control, they simply do the only thing they know, which is to call animal control. This almost always means the cats will be killed, whether the person wants that or not. Most people are open to non-lethal control when the option is presented to them! Often, they are eager to have the cats sterilized and vaccinated, but had no idea that it was possible.

Bear in mind that just because there is a TNR organization, it does not mean that the organization is responsible for doing all the work. The most effective and long-lived TNR programs are those that actively involve feeders and interested residents from the start. People who feed cats often call a TNR group for help, and if the group simply takes care of the cats, these feeders may never commit to the philosophy of TNR. Once the group has finished the job (for the moment), the feeder can go back to just feeding, and when one or more new, unsterilized cats enter the colony, nothing is done until more litters of kittens have been born! In contrast, when feeders are actively involved in the trapping process, they become committed to the cats' long-term care.

How do you enlist them? People don't "buy into" something they don't own. You must make them own the TNR process. Set limits on how much hands-on work your group is willing to do. Offer feeders the use of traps and teach them how to use the traps. Take the feeders along on a trapping expedition to see how it's done. Provide information about low- or no-cost spay/neuter clinics. Make the point that this is their responsibility, and remind them how many kittens they will have next spring if they don't TNR the cats this year.

Obviously some people can't actively trap, the elderly, disabled, or otherwise incapacitated. But most people can do this themselves. And, they frequently get hooked. TNR is about more than helping the cats. It's about people making a connection between the colony they care for and all the rest of the feral cats in their town. Not everyone will be persuaded, but a lot of people will.

Be sure to maintain contact with everyone you bring into the fold. Once you have recruited and trained these people, many will become valuable members of your group and help other people in the community as well. We highly recommend Bonney Brown's Grassroots Organizing to Help Feral Cats, available from ACA for $4. To order a copy e-mail alleycat.org.

When people threaten caregivers

Question from Cimeron:

I have recently put together a TNR program for a very large colony of ferals. The cats live in the breakwater rocks, which are parallel to a bike path that borders the bay, and there are a couple of hundred cats spread out over about a mile. I have a question about how to deal with abusive members of the public.

We've had many instances where our traps have been stolen or damaged by others. Increasingly, people who feed the cats are threatened and verbally abused by certain people who walk or ride on the bike path. Some people will actually crawl down onto the rocks where the cats are fed and where water bowls are hidden, and will dump all the food and water into the bay.

Some give reasons, saying that it's damaging the environment, some just don't like the cats and want to see them "removed" (i.e. killed), some have misplaced aggression, and others don't give any reason at all for their anger toward the cats and their handlers. With that said, the vast majority of people who see the care we're taking of the cats think it's wonderful, but the few abusive ones are becoming a real problem.

When confronted, many of our feral caretakers have tried to explain our goals and what we're doing to control the population. Unfortunately, these angry individuals haven't wanted to be educated on the subject and usually continue screaming at our caretakers. One of our feeders called the police after being threatened, but they said nothing could be done.

Does anyone have any advice? Could education help even for people who have closed their ears? Thanks in advance for your tips.

Response from Julie:

Wow! This is a hard one. It sounds like you are doing everything right. Just to be sure, it would be a good idea to have an uninvolved "auditor" evaluate your program. Pick someone who will be critical and thorough and brave enough to give you an honest opinion.

Is the TNR site neat and free of colony debris (cat food cans, paper plates, feces)? Are the caretakers friendly or hostile to strangers? Are the cats fed in public areas or could the feeding stations be moved to entice the cats away from the crowds? Is the colony so obvious that it encourages abandonment of more cats? Is it well managed or are more kittens being produced?

Let's assume that you have the model TNR program. Then it's time to educate and convert the enemy. Shouting matches on the sidewalk are not the most productive approach. Do the people who use the path belong to any organizations such as bike clubs, jogging clubs, etc? You said that many of the bike path users are supportive of the TNR program. Enlist their help to bring a message to their peers. Arrange a professional presentation to the clubs about the purpose of the TNR project and your success to date. If you can convince other members to appear with you, their presence may be disarming. Is there a community service group that volunteers to help maintain the bike path? Join it to make a highly visible contribution to the betterment of the bike path for all to enjoy.

As a last resort, you may need to document (video, sworn statements, etc.) the abuse and vandalism and pursue it through the authorities. However, this is likely to further alienate your opponents, and since you cannot monitor the site at all times, the damage would likely continue or even escalate. A public brawl may even attract the attention of public officials who may conclude that the TNR program is causing the problem.

Response from Amy:

You mentioned that this is a new TNR program. It's important to remember that some of these people have been using the bike path since long before your TNR program was put into place. They may have deeply held biases about what kind of damage the cats may cause. Although you can't change or educate people who are abusive and destructive without cause, you can identify and address legitimate complaints. Because they already have such strong opinions, the only way that you can change their minds may be to actually show them, through your program, that you are improving the park for everyone involved.

The most important, and often hardest, thing to do when dealing with irate members of the public is to remain calm and positive. Angry persons are almost always trying to elicit some kind of response ("to get a rise out of you"). The most empowering thing you can do is to smile politely and walk away. When you do this, you keep control of the situation. They expect you to react in kind. When you don't, they are less likely to continue harassing you.

Also, make a real effort to understand the objections the person has, and resolve them to the best of your ability. Common complaints include litter and food. Reassess your feeding protocol. Feeding during times of high human activity is a problem for two reasons. First, as you know, people who disagree with what you are doing may confront you or openly sabotage you work with the cats. Second, your feeding of free-roaming cats may be seen as an invitation to dump a pet cat or a neighborhood stray. It's important to avoid these scenarios.

Always feed in a discreet place; never leave food, traps, or other trapping materials unattended. Place them under bushes or behind barriers that aren't visible to the bike path. If possible, feed on broad, biodegradable leaves instead of on plates. Use clear or black bowls for water because they blend into the landscape more than brightly colored or steel bowls. Always leave the area looking better than you found it.

Finally, document all instances where caregivers are or feel threatened or harassed. Write down all details about the incident: date, time, physical description of the person, and license plate number if possible. Always take one or more buddies along to care for the cats - never go alone. A friend will not only serve as a witness if you are harassed, but will also give you the confidence to deal with the situation more calmly. If someone threatens you, call the police immediately.

When the traditional humane society won't accept TNR

Question from a member:

What can we do when the holdout is NOT animal control, but another humane organization? We have tried to offer our help; we have tried educating their decision-makers; we know that their use of old methods of feral cat controls is a well-guarded secret within the organization and don't necessarily want to drag them over the coals in public. They have an endowment; their budget is (compared to most of ours) huge. If they want to, they can sit and resist change forever. What can we really do in this case?

Response from Amy:

It can be easier to move a mountain than to change 'old-guard' humane societies. You don't need them to carry out TNR; get moving on your own. Hundreds of creative individuals, from the Feral Cat Coalition of San Diego to the Merrimack River Feline Rescue Society in Massachusetts and so many places in between, were the new kids on the block when they started up and now have the support of hundreds of people and their local government officials and are well respected in their region and in fact the entire country. They did it by developing a specific game plan and staying focused.

You need to build a reputation for yourself. Find a catchy name for your group and get started, even with just one event. Trust the fact that your community wants the killing to stop. If you are getting results, the community will buy into what you are doing, and believe me, your resistant humane society will take notice. You may not turn those folks around, but they will not be able to ignore you.

And you may be surprised to find support even within the old guard. Often there are progressive people in these organizations who do not speak out because they fear the consequences - often with good reason! In one prominent humane society in this area, someone was actually removed from the board of directors simply for mentioning that she thought it would be a good idea for them to explore TNR! The old mentality is extremely entrenched in many of these organizations.

However, it is very difficult to argue with success. You must focus on building momentum with your TNR program. Get as much positive publicity as possible. The public will embrace your efforts. The people in the humane society who favor progressive and humane policies will be emboldened to speak out on behalf of feral cats. And you may just find that you have moved a mountain!

The bottom line is, they can't hold out forever in the face of overwhelming public support and evidence that TNR works. Give them a chance to change their policies and get on board with TNR. However, if a year or two from now your program is thriving and they are still resistant, it might be time to air their "well-guarded secret" in the media. This should, however, be your last resort.

You will succeed - it's only a matter of time. Bonney Brown of Best Friends has a great booklet titled Grassroots Organizing to Help Feral Cats, available for $4 from Alley Cat Allies. To order a copy, e-mail alleycat.org.

Response from Julie:

Opposition to non-lethal feral cat control by traditional humane societies is not uncommon. In some respects, it stems from legitimate concerns about whether homeless cats in managed colonies have the quality of life that we want cats to have. In other cases, it is related to time-honored, but outdated perceptions about animal welfare and control.

In the past 10 years, I've witnessed and been personally challenged by radical new ideas in animal welfare. TNR is just one of these. Others include holiday adoptions, "open" adoptions, early neutering, partnerships with animal control, and the whole "no kill" ideology. It seems like every time our cherished time-honored dogma is shattered by someone with great vision, barriers to progress come down that we didn't even realize we erected.

Luckily for feral cats, TNR is really becoming mainstream. The Cat Fancier's Association was one of the first national organizations to embrace TNR and to fight for it before TNR was widely accepted. Today, almost every national animal welfare organization, including the ASPCA and HSUS, publish position statements that are positive about TNR. Communities that have reached or approached "no kill" status always include TNR as part of the strategy. It is very helpful to collect these position statements and success stories to help more conservative humane organizations become more open minded about TNR.

I am a firm believer that animal welfare organizations should work hard to get along. When factions form and groups criticize each other, it's always the animals that lose. The hot topic today is community coalitions. Funders and politicians just love the concept that the total is greater than the sum of its parts. We've found that to be true in Alachua County. We formed a No More Homeless Pets coalition that includes Operation Catnip, the humane society, animal control, the veterinary school, the local veterinary association, and many of the no-kill adoption groups. There is certainly plenty for us to disagree about and each group has a different priority and style.

However, our united front on what we do agree on (ending euthanasia of adoptable animals in 5 years) has resulted in a massive inflow of grant money and high visibility in the community. Adoptions are up and euthanasias are down, something we could not have accomplished as separate entities.

What this means is that it's up to you to be the shining example of professionalism, effectiveness, and success. The humane society may not be ready to embrace TNR today, but I suspect that they will eventually join the growing bandwagon. Be sure you leave the door open for them when they are ready. The worst thing you can do is to force them to declare a harsh stance now that will be hard for them to back down from later. When Operation Catnip first started, a local animal welfare group flamed us in their newsletter for being irresponsible and cruel by promoting TNR. We resisted the urge to retaliate and today, this group is one of our strongest supporters, regularly referring caretakers to us and helping in other ways.

Change comes (sometime in what seems like geologic time). In the meantime, focus on independently developing a shining TNR program that will be impossible to resist.

Microchipping feral cats

Question from a member:

As its benefits become more widely understood, microchipping owned cats is gaining popularity among the general public and the animal welfare community. Is there a role for microchipping within TNR? Given that the cost for microchipping can range from $5-15 at a low cost spay and neuter clinic, should we be microchipping our ferals so the cats could be tracked back to their colonies if picked up from the streets? I envision our TNR group being the buffer between the caretakers and Animal Care & Control; so the cats would be registered to our group and we would return them to the proper colony. Is this being done anywhere already?

Response from Amy:

Microchipping can be a very useful tool in reuniting cats with their caregivers, whether the cats are domestic or feral. But because the vast majority of feral cat organizations operate on very tight budgets, microchipping is not practical for most groups at this time. Spaying and neutering must be the first priority of all feral cat organizations, and anything that diverts resources from this primary goal can be counterproductive to achieving that goal.

I'm not saying, however, that there is no role for microchipping within TNR. A microchip could play a key role in reuniting a feral cat with a caregiver if that cat is ever picked up by animal control. A good middle ground might be to offer microchipping as an option that caregivers could purchase for the cats at their own expense.

Even without microchips, your organization can function as a conduit between animal control and individual caregivers. Make sure to keep detailed records for each colony. Ask caregivers to provide you with the exact location of each colony they manage as well as a description (and picture, if possible) of each cat. ACA has a feral cat colony tracking system available on our website, www.alleycat.org/pdf/system.pdf, that can either be printed and used in its current form or used as a basis for your own tracking system.

Arrangements can be made so that when animal control receives an eartipped cat, they record the location where the cat was trapped. Using your tracking system, you should be able to contact the caregiver and reunite the cat with his or her colony. The system would certainly be more efficient with microchips, but your goals can still be achieved without them.

There is one more point that needs to be addressed. Some individuals have proposed microchipping as an alternative to eartipping for the identification of sterilized, vaccinated feral cats. This is absolutely not a viable option. Eartipping provides obvious visual identification of a sterile cat living in a managed colony. A microchip is only useful if the cat is trapped and transported to a shelter that has a microchip scanner. Microchipping can be a complement to eartipping, but it can never be a replacement for universal eartipping of TNRed cats.

Response from Julie:

Microchipping offers a great way to reunite pets with their owners and feral cats with their caretakers. However, it does add extra cost to a TNR program. At Operation Catnip, it costs about $17 for each cat that we sterilize, including all of our overhead costs such as banking and phone charges. Adding $6/cat for a microchip would increase our costs by 35%.

Our philosophy is to use our resources to sterilize as many feral cats as we can, which is currently about 2,000 cats/year in Alachua County, a community of 220,000 residents. While we are proud of the number of cats we help, we also know that there are more than 36,000 feral cats in our community. That means we need to figure out how to sterilize many more cats than our current capacity if we are going to reach our goal of reducing the feral cat population. For this reason, we have elected not to microchip cats that are admitted to our program.

Tracking feral cat data to prove TNR is working

Question from a member:

Recently on the forum there was a discussion concerning gathering statistics and establishing definitions primarily for shelter and humane organizations. It seems solid statistics about feral cats and their colonies will be crucial to gaining widespread support of TNR, and that we need to establish common practices and set standards for collecting information too. Have any stats been published about the long-term impact of TNR? What types of information should we be tracking? Should we rely on our caretakers to do this, or keep our own TNR records for our groups, or both? Can you suggest any software to use for this purpose? I just bought the ResQTracker Software that is designed primarily for shelters but I haven't had time yet to enter my feral cat information (for reference: http://www.rottlover.com/resqtracker/screenshots.html).

Response from Amy:

You are absolutely right about the vital role of statistics as an advocacy tool. Accurate and complete statistics are the only way to show that a TNR program is working.

The most important information to track is the number of cats in the colony at the beginning of the project; the number of tame cats and kittens removed for adoption; the number who are euthanized for serious health conditions, who disappear, or who die sometime after being sterilized; and the number of cats remaining. These numbers prove that TNR is effective both in the short-term (bringing about an immediate reduction in colony size through adoption of kittens and stray cats) and in the long-term (numbers gradually decreasing through natural attrition).

It's important for both individual caregivers and TNR organizations to keep accurate records. Because the caregiver interacts with the colony on a daily basis, he or she is in the best position to monitor the colony and keep records on individual cats. But there is also a need for a centralized system to track the success of TNR in the entire community. Organizations should maintain regular communication with caregivers to track colonies over time.

Three examples of statistics collected by various groups include:

Hudson, NY: When Animalkind, Inc., started neutering the feral cats in Hudson, there were an average of 25 cats in each of 85 alleys. Three years later, the number had declined to between 4 and 15 cats per alley, with an average of 10 in each alley.
Merrimack River Feline Rescue Society: Before TNR, there were 886 unsterilized cats living in 25 colonies. MRFRS implemented 100% TNR, which resulted in an immediate 60% reduction of the population to 374 healthy, sterile cats.

University of Central Florida: At the start of a long-term TNR study, 155 cats were living in 11 colonies ranging from three to 25 cats on campus. At the conclusion of this eleven-year study, the number of cats ranged from one to five in each of 8 colonies, with a total of 23 cats. No kittens were born on campus after the fourth year of the study. For more information on this study, go to http://www.alleycat.org/pdf/buildingthebody.pdf, to see "Building the Body of Scientific Evidence that TNR Works".

If you are working with a cooperative animal control facility, ask them to track complaint calls. Typically, once TNR has been implemented, complaints about cats decrease dramatically. Since every complaint call requires a response, and therefore costs the taxpayers money, a reduction in the number of these calls is another measure of the success of TNR.

ACA is currently exploring various software programs to see if there is one we would recommend to TNR organizations. In the meantime, though, effective statistics can be maintained through simple Excel or similar spreadsheets.

Response from Julie:

One of the reasons feral cats are so controversial is because there is such sparse data about the size of the feral cat population, its effect on public health and the environment, and the efficacy of various control methods. There is no question that better data would allow us to make better public policy.

I don't know of any software programs designed for tracking feral cats. I do think it would be helpful to keep records detailing caretaker and colony characteristics, cat health findings at the time of sterilization, and colony dynamics over time. It would be great if someone had the time and resources to develop a national data collection system, especially if it was web-based so that data could be easily entered from any computer.

Our research group has published several papers on feral cats. Click HERE to view Abstracts of the papers.

Can feral cat advocates work with those promoting cats indoors only?

Question from Meg:

Last November Dr Levy participated in an AVMA-sponsored all day forum on Managing Free-Roaming and Feral Cats. Her presentation was excellent, by the way. That forum illustrated that while there are many issues upon which we disagree (STRONGLY), there are also a few goals, which we share with those who oppose TNR.

While we advocate vastly different approaches, the primary goal of both sides is to reduce the number of free-roaming cats in the US. Generally speaking, some other commonly held beliefs would be that most domesticated cats should not be allowed to roam free outdoors, and that cats should be sterilized.

Has anyone ever tried to get both sides to partner and, jointly, promote either of these two concepts? Was the effort successful? For instance, perhaps pro-TNR groups could help sponsor and promote the "Cats Indoors" concept through Public Service Announcements or other forms of public education, and the anti-TNR folks could financially help sponsor or participate in other ways in some Super Spay Days for cats of special target groups, like low income folks. Or are we just too far apart for people to try building any bridges between the two camps?

Do our forum participants have any other comments about, or new insights gained from, attending the AVMA forum that they could share?

Response from Amy:

Feral cat overpopulation has developed over many decades. You are right in pointing out that environmental, wildlife, and feral cat advocates, as well as government officials and the general public, must work together to effectively address the situation. And we can! Responsible organizations working on behalf of animals and the environment understand how complex natural relationships are, and that it's not one species against another.

The first things such diverse groups need to recognize are that feral cats have established a niche in the environment and that reducing their numbers is neither a quick, nor simple undertaking. Both long-term studies and practical experience demonstrate that high volume spay/neuter, together with aggressive adoption programs for kittens and adult strays, is the key element in reducing populations of feral and free-roaming cats, both immediately and in the long term.

Pro-TNR groups planning to partner with groups that do not fully support TNR, however, had better do their research to be certain that whatever group they collaborate with has only differences in outlook, rather than an expressly anti-feral cat agenda.

Cats Indoors! believes that there should be no cats outdoors, period. Their parent organization is the American Bird Conservancy, whose Resolution on Free-Roaming Cats "strongly opposes managed free-roaming cat colonies" and calls for "removal of all free-roaming cats." It further urges "local, state, and federal wildlife agencies, public health organizations, legislative bodies, and the public to ban and eliminate free-roaming cat colonies through capture by animal care and control facilities."

The Cats Indoors! website makes no mention of feral cat spay/neuter or support for managed feral cat colonies as even a part of the solution to feline overpopulation. In fact, they refer to the work we all do as "Managed Cat Colonies:The Wrong Solution to a Tragic Problem." Cats Indoors! Director Linda Winter has been unequivocal about the removal of cats from the environment. In remarks at the AVMA forum on Managing Free-Roaming and Feral Cats, she went so far as to commend the city of Akron, Ohio's ongoing municipal policy of killing all cats discovered outdoors - feral, stray, and owned pets. (To learn more about the Akron policy, see Feral Cat Activist, Winter 2003. pdf.)

There is no doubt, Meg, that ending feral cat overpopulation requires the buy-in of many segments of the community. But let's be very careful that the organizations we team with truly agree not only on the stated goal, but also on ethical means of reaching that goal.

Dr Julie Levy's response:

I believe in bridges, coalitions, and diversity. I do not believe that we have to agree on everything before we form productive partnerships. We already see diverse groups such as "no kill" shelters, animal control, public health officials, and veterinarians setting aside their differences to cooperate on improving the big picture of animal welfare.

I also agree that most stakeholders want to come to a time when there are fewer feral cats. I think we should focus on that common ground and move forward to develop strategies for reaching that goal. Too much time is spent arguing about how many cats there are and how many birds they eat. I think we can agree that it's a lot of both. Let's move on to start reducing their number. In my opinion, we'll be more successful in reaching that goal if we engage the community in non-lethal solutions like TNR instead of alienating it with draconian cat extermination plans.

The Cats Indoors! campaign is a double-edged sword. It is a good promotion for restricting the roaming of cats, but it is also a complete condemnation of TNR. As such, it leaves no alternative to the destruction of large numbers of feral cats. HSUS' Safe Cats campaign is an alternative that promotes responsible pet ownership while allowing room for alternatives to killing unwanted homeless cats.

© 2004 Best Friends. All Rights Reserved

Kindness to animals builds a better world for all of us.
www.bestfriends.org